Over the weekend, I found an old notebook of mine. The first page was dated October 2003, and on which I'd scribbled a list of 20 "Things I want to do before whatever," like eat at El Bulli (done, March 2006), build a bench, and understand String Theory (perhaps never). Why I didn't include: "Go on a free, all-you-can-eat rampage at one of Nobu Matsuhisa's restaurants" is beyond me. But it don't matter now, 'cause that's exactly what I did last night at Nobu 57, suckers. (Perks from having a day job that includes being a food writer at a national consumer magazine.) I asked Nobu which of his restaurants was his favorite and he couldn't say, explaining that they were like his children. After that all I could muster up was, "I saw Jay-Z and ?uestlove from the Roots at your spot in Tribeca."

From the top down: Black pepper crusted black cod, seared scallop, oysters in filo, and halibut tartare with caviar.