Bea Tseng
Google
On June 6, my husband and I ate at Mee the first night we stayed at the Belmond Copacabana. We ordered their Tasting Menu and were disappointed at the service and the quality of the food. The first dish was scallop, nicely presented, but not very fresh, had a fishy taste. The shiromi was the worst – I ate two pieces and left the third untouched. The third dish (zushi) was a ball of white rice wrapped in beef, tuna tartare, and eel; could have been better if the rice was soft, sticky, and seasoned like how sushi rice is supposed to be. The rice was dry and had no flavor which is shocking for a Japanese restaurant, not to mention one with a 1 Michelin star.
The Trio Snack was the best among the nine dishes. The grilled wagyu beef in a skewer was flavorful, the tuna tartare was fresh, and the chicken panko was crispy and tasty. Of the last three dishes (shrimp, noodles with pork belly, and Korean bibimbap), the bibimbap was the most disappointing in taste. It was nicely presented but lacked in flavor.
Of the two desserts, the mochi was OK, but the strawberry mousse was pretty good! With water and three small bottles of Sapporo, the total came to R$2.026,20 (roughly USD$363) – totally not worth it. As for service, it was quick and smooth the first half because there were only three tables with customers. As the restaurant started to fill with more people, service lagged, and there were gaps of 15 – 20 minutes between the last couple of main dishes. We had to ask the server to check on our dishes more than a couple of times.
We enjoy dining at Michelin star restaurants, and unfortunately, Mee has been our worst experience. It’s hard to imagine how Mee got their one star. Perhaps their past dishes were delectable, but the Tasting Menu we tried in June was not to the standard and quality of a Michelin star restaurant.