Scott T.
Yelp
to be kind, the eating experience at SAGO was disappointing.
on a couple of positive notes, the space is absolutely stunning and the wait staff brought their A game. whoever did the design work and whoever hired and trained the wait staff gets extra brownie points. EVERY person we interacted with was engaging and attentive to a point that bordered on hovering.
dishes were bussed quickly. not sure if the kitchen's short on plates or if they're anxious to turn the tables. either way, I'm happier being fawned over than ignored.
love Kate, our server -- a bit ditzy in a delightfully charming sort of way.
I'm willing to give the bartenders the benefit of the doubt, but at the very least, our cocktail No. 9 (vodka, Licor 43, Lofty espresso, and coffee liquor) has recipe problems. couldn't figure out how to sort through my Yelp photos so I could count how many espresso-style martinis I've had, but it's more than a few and this version (and I'm particularly fond of Licor 43) was the worst I've had by a wide margin.
brief note to Mr. Mixologist: stop trying to be so-o-o-o clever. you don't need to fix what isn't broken.
the space, staff, and food are all gorgeous but eventually you don't just eat with your eyes, and the eats were no bueno. we went on a Sunday evening, and I'm pretty sure the regular chef had the night off and the dishwasher filled in. nothing was good, and two of the three dishes were borderline inedible.
the MIE GORENG (spicy wok fried noodles, sesame ginger chicken, bok choy, Thai basil, green onion, and white sesame seeds) was the pick of a weak litter. again, lots of mie goreng pictures in my Yelp photos and theirs was the least enjoyable I've ever had. not awful but I wouldn't say it was good either. nothing exotic in the flavor profile. theirs was a greasy version with a little sweet soy of the noodle side at Panda Express.
the CITRUS SALAD (red plums, haas avocado, plum vinaigrette, seed and nut mix, finger limes, and mustard frills) might have been okay if it wasn't drowned in dressing. the dish was prepared with the understated complexity of a sledgehammer and arrived looking more like an chunky chowder than a salad. when we finished, enough dressing had pooled in the bowl for Michael Phelps to swim laps in.
the FRIED CHICKEN and CAVIAR (Japanese fried chicken, lemon grass aioli, and kaluga caviar) was an unqualified disaster. when I read "Japanese Fried Chicken," I was thinking shatteringly crisp karaage. what we got was KFC Original Recipe shallow-fried in warm oil. the chicken was less fried than gently confited. the gummy texture was off-putting like it had been poached in fat, a technique ill suited for a breaded product.
we arrived a few minutes after they opened and I'm pretty sure the kitchen forgot to turn on the fryers and, by the time they did, there wasn't enough time to come to temperature before service. since the chicken pieces were cooked through, I'm guessing they were twice fried, the first much earlier than serving and the second in not-nearly-hot-enough oil.
I hate walking out of a restaurant and checking both ways twice before crossing the street because I'm terrified I might get run over and die with the taste of a bad meal in mouth for all eternity.
yeah, it was that kind of evening.
ps: have had a solid back-and-forth with Dale who apparently enjoys elevated status in the SAGO command structure. he graciously invited me back for a do-over. I'm looking forward to an updated rave review.
will keep you posted.