The Prague Post Online: Night & Day: Deliciously defying tradition

January 7th, 2009

Endowment Fund Business Listings ONLINE Reservations Classifieds

Deliciously defying tradition

Two sushi houses prove you needn't be authentic to satisfy
Restaurant Review | Search restaurants | Archives

By Wency Leung
Staff Writer, The Prague Post
December 17th, 2008 issue

JAN PŘEROVSKÝ/THE PRAGUE POST

Mana's friendly service makes you feel right at home.

Be Kara OK!

Legerova 78
Prague 2-Vinohrady
Tel 222 220 572
Mon.-Sat. 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
www.bekaraok.cz

Food ***
Service ***
Atmosphere **
Overall ***

From the menu
Daikon salad 50 Kč
Tuna sashimi 140 Kč
Gyoza 120 Kč
Beef udon 120 Kč
Sushi set 2 (California roll, cucumber roll, and tuna, salmon and ebi nigiri) 350Kč
Sushi set 3 (Kara OK! roll, salmon roll, and tuna, ebi, sea bass, and octopus nigiri) 450 Kč
Sushi set 6 (Flag roll, squid gunkan, salmon, octopus and Japanese egg omlete nigiri) 350Kč
Fukuchi sake 250 Kč

Mana Sushi House

Slezská 56
Prague 2-Vinohrady
Tel. 608 248 965
Mon.-Sat. 11 a.m.-3 p.m., 5 p.m.-11 p.m.

Food **
Service ***
Atmosphere *
Overall **

From the menu
Dolsot bibimbap 280 Kč
Vegetable tempura 280 Kč
Sushi set deluxe (assorted salmon, tuna, ebi, surf clam 520 Kč
Pilsner Urquell 40 Kč

Japan’s Agriculture Ministry sparked panic and outrage two years ago when it decided to put together a sushi squad that would travel the world inspecting Japanese restaurants for their authenticity.

This panel of experts, which the media dubbed the “sushi police,” was to tackle a proliferation of overseas restaurants committing crimes against Japanese culinary tradition.

Due to the widespread criticism and anxiety that ensued, the plan was eventually scrapped to the relief of many.

At the heart of the criticisms was the idea that food needn’t be authentic to be great. And Vinohrady’s Be Kara OK! proves this point.

This restaurant/karaoke-box club wouldn’t likely pass the exacting standards of Japanese traditionalists, but it does excel at the irreverent, fusion style that’s popular in North America.

Its menu is heavy on creations made with avocado, cream cheese or mayonnaise — ingredients that traditional sushi chefs would find appalling. These include the California roll, Philadelphia roll, “caterpillar roll” and the “atomic madness roll.” The menu also offers a small selection of izakaya (or Japanese tapas) dishes like chicken karaage (fried nuggets) and takoyaki (fried balls of octopus).

Scrapping traditional sushi dining rituals, diners can order food while they sing in the five private karaoke rooms, or eat at the casual, ground-floor sushi bar.

With the exception of its sad-looking mascot, a disheveled manga waitress in kitchen slippers, the sushi bar’s décor is modern and stylish, with sleek white countertops and a chic, red-and-silver papered accent wall.

After taking our orders, our waiter reappeared with a small bowl containing individually wrapped pill-like tablets for each diner.

“Please open,” he instructed, and graciously stopped my dining companion from popping the mysterious tablet in his mouth.

Placing the pill in the bowl, he then poured hot water on top, making it expand into a disposable hand towlette.

Clever, but it’s the food that made a real impression.

The crispy unagi roll, which appeared first, was outstanding. It was an eel and mayonnaise roll, battered and deep fried. The Kara OK! roll of eel, tuna, butterfish and cucumber, and the more conventional offerings like salmon nigiri and tuna sashimi, were also very good.

The fish was fleshy and firm (although raw butterfish is really chewy) and the rice held together nicely and had just the right amount of vinegar.

An order of chicken teriyaki was tender and well-seasoned. And the beef udon was delicious, but rather light on meat. The tiny bits of beef were lost among the noodles.

The gyoza, however, was rather grim. These pan-fried dumplings were mangled, likely from sticking to the bottom of the pan, and were served on a bed of wilted lettuce. Their skins weren’t crispy and were torn, allowing the meager meat filling to spill out.

While Be Kara OK! was modern and cool, Mana, a Korean-Japanese restaurant also in Vinohrady, offered more of a home-style dining experience.

The dining room at Mana, with its bright orange walls and wooden kitchen chairs, is casual and comfortable, but can hardly be considered stylish.

Mana’s sushi was also less refined than at Be Kara OK! The rice seemed coarser, and the taste of vinegar was more robust.

The vegetable tempura had a home-cooked quality, lacking a delicate airiness you might expect at finer sushi restaurants. Nevertheless, it was nice and crispy, and the unexpected touch of vinegar and chopped spring onion in the dipping sauce added a bright twist.

Similarly, the Korean comfort dish, dolsot bibimbap, was warming and tasty, but unrefined. As tradition dictates, the mix of rice, shredded carrots, bean sprouts, beef and egg was served in a hot stone bowl that kept its contents sizzling as it arrived to the table. Here, too, the little shreds of meat were so small you could barely taste them.

What makes this restaurant truly homey, however, was the friendly service. Our waitress was a pro, presenting each course at a measured pace. Ever smiling, she kept her distance but seemed to know precisely when to appear.

The sushi police wouldn’t likely have given their official seal of approval for either of these two restaurants, but at least they might have enjoyed them.

Wency Leung can be reached at wleung@praguepost.com

Be the first to add a comment!

Most e-mailed articles
Best kept wrapped Czech beer faring better abroad Czechs open school in Himalayas

Most visited in Business Listings

The Prague Post Online contains a selection of articles that have been printed in
The Prague Post, a weekly newspaper published in the Czech Republic.
To subscribe to the print paper, click here.
Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.