SAKE
enters the scene with great ratings
I
travel to the U.S. every four months for business. During my brief
stay there, I eat sushi as often as possible because, face it, really
good sushi is a rare commodity in our cosmopolitan capital. It is
available, of course, but what is served is far removed from what
any real sushi lover would consider acceptable.
Now
there is "SAKE". Open just a few weeks, "SAKE"
is now through the "shake-down" period all restaurants
experience, the time required to get service staff trained, the
kitchen running smoothly and the food quality stablized. To review
it just a few days after it opened, which sadly daily newspaper
did, is both unprofessional and unfair. However, I am glad to set
the record straight....and judging from the crowds I have seen at
every visit, the prior review has been rightfully ignored.
"SAKE"
is a very well known and popular chain of up-scale restaurants in
Quito, Ecuador and, fortunately for us, Panamá City is the
first of many planned restaurants outside that country. The interior
design is very high-concept & minimalist, and it works well.
Dark, with pools of light that seem to imitate a dim underwater
realm, the center of attention is two very large TV screens set
into one wall that play endless videos of beautiful and hypnotic
scenes of underwater sea life; a perfect setting for the fresh,
high-quality ingredients one expects in a good restaurant and finds
at SAKE. While not serving classic Japanese cuisine, SAKE offers
instead European/Retro-Japanese fusion with a few surprises added.
Sake has come to save the reputation of
sushi in Panamá.
But it
is time to tell you about the food.
For
appetizers, we started with Hirame ($7.85), a truly exotic combination
of thinly sliced tuna and swordfish, lightly sauteed in olive oil,
sprinkled with sesame seeds and served with tempura vegetables.
The slices of fish had barely been kissed by the fire so the seafood
essence was wonderully flavorful. Next was House Tataki ($8.85),
a melange of tuna, octopus, salmon and beef tenderloin lightly brushed
with SAKI’s special dressing. The varied flavors and textures
were a delight, and the freshness of the ingredients apparent to
the palate. Next came a truly astonishing dish called Mika-Zuki
($7.50), which was four large scallop shells filled with sautéed
minced octopus, sesame sauce and massago caviar, and served grantiné.
This was, without a doubt, the highlight of the appetizer selections
and one I would highly recommend. Most diners don’t order
as wide a variety of food as one does for a review, so go for the
best of a very good selection...and Mika-Zuki is it.
The restaurant’s cozy bar.
Of the
main courses, we tried only two as the sushi was yet to be put to
the test. Tokubay ($12.50) was a beautifully presented dish of bite-sized
pieces of beef tenderloin, cooked to tender perfection, served on
a large bed of fried wonton, which was, in turn, supported by four
squares of crispy fried rice. Whatever you do, do not leave the
fried wonton...it is saturated with the beef sauce, and the four
fried squares of rice are crisp and delicious.
Not as
successful was the Sake Passion Fruit ($14.50). Two large filets
of grilled salmon was accompanied by two griddled prawns, gohan
rice and oriental spinach. While the salmon was moist and perfectly
cooked, the imported rice had a rich flavor and texture, and even
the small portion of oriental spinach was delicious...the two large
prawns were dry, slightly mushy, and had almost no flavor despite
the tangy passion fruit sauce. A slight disappointment as the size
of the salmon filets was more than adequate.
Now for
the sushi.....and there was lots of it; Kaiso Roll, Rock N’
Roll, SAKE Roll, Spicy Tuna, etc, all came and went. The flavors
of each were fresh, delicious, expertly made and presented. The
imported Japanese rice could use a bit more of the rice vinegar
used to give the rice just a hint of flavor while still sticking
together to form a cushion for the fish and other ingredients. When
I mentioned that to General Manager Raúl Dominguez, he stated
that the recipes were still being worked on as the ingredient portions
for highland Quito do not work quite the same as they do at sea
level Panamá City. That kind of attention to detail and knowledge
of the ingedients being served tells you a lot about the kind of
restaurant SAKE is.
Bottom
line....SAKE is an exqusite addition to the parade of Panamá
City’s fine dining establishments. And if you truly enjoy
sushi, you have found a home. When you visit, if you see a "third-age"
gringo sitting in the corner eating sushi, sighing as though he
were in heaven, come over and say hello....it will be me.
