There’s an old joke about a restaurant so exclusive it has an unlisted phone number. For the first weeks of its life, quite involuntarily, Saiko (pronounced “psycho”) was that restaurant.
As late as last week, calls to Directory Assistance regarding Saiko, which opened Dec. 4, elicited an “I show no listing” shrug. On top of that, Saiko’s exterior sign has yet to arrive.
And because owners Jerry Kleiner and Howard Davis didn’t settle on the restaurant’s name until five days before it opened (which undoubtedly contributed to the 411 snafu), pre-opening publicity was scant, and subsequent attendance, though respectable, has been short of the door-busting crowds that typically accompany a Kleiner-Davis debut (Marche, Red Light, Opera, Gioco).
The lull, if you can call it that, seems destined not to last. Even though it’s practically invisible from the street, Saiko looks like a winner.
At first glance, the menu seems like a by-the-numbers collection of sushi and sashimi dishes, along with some cooked entrees. But in addition to the tried-and-true Japanese cooking, the menu embraces creative riffs.
For instance, you might start the meal with a Kobe beef roll, in which the rice-wrapped, barely seared beef is encased in crunchy brioche. It’s almost reminiscent of shrimp toast, though with a vastly superior payoff in flavor.
“Rivers, Lakes & Oceans” is a scooped-out avocado half loaded with pieces of octopus, tuna and hamachi, among other creatures. The flavors will remind you of seviche, the distinction being that in this dish, the seafood is merely dressed with citrus juices, rather than cured in them. It remains very much a sashimi dish.
There’s a lot of beef on the menu, including a “Shogun” prime ribeye steak with teriyaki sauce and a $99 Kobe-style steak. The Yokuzuna steak, a 16-ounce New York strip topped with a cheddar-cheese gratin alongside peas and carrots, looks like something you might get in a Wisconsin Dells supper club, but look again. The topping on the excellent beef is a white cheddar that has been laced with wasabi oil, and the “peas” among the carrots are actually hulled edamame beans.
Ton Katsu, a traditional entree of breaded boneless pork, is a dish that never fails to underwhelm me, but Saiko’s version is terrific. The pork, sliced into chopstick-friendly pieces, is surrounded by a sweet and tart assemblage of apples and Japanese pears, bound together with a curry-accented sauce. Think of sweet-and-sour pork, done as well as it can be done, and you have the gist of this dish.
The hits just keep coming. Seared squares of ahi tuna are matched to twin spring rolls stuffed with foie gras and fresh and candied pineapple. A quartet of seared scallops float in a lobster and white-miso sauce that has the texture and richness of a fine bisque. On the traditional side, Saiko’s dragon roll offers the textural interplay of spicy tuna, avocado and unagi (cooked eel); pan-fried halibut cheeks with a deep-fried halibut futomaki roll provides mouth-filling firmness from beginning to end.
The closest thing to a flaw, other than the kitchen’s over-reliance on tuna as its “go-to” fish, was the lobster-pork gyoza dumplings, which lacked sufficient lobster flavor. (Loved the smoked-chile soy sauce, though.)
Elvia Granados’ East-meets-West desserts include a yuzu meringue tart, with yuzu (Japanese citrus) curd and a tangerine anglaise sauce, a wasabi-spiked green-apple sorbet and a surprisingly tasty sandwich of Japanese green-tea cheesecake topped with flourless chocolate cake. The banana split is noteworthy for its homemade ice-cream flavors: rich chocolate studded with bittersweet-chocolate nuggets, coconut and blueberry cheesecake.
Service seemed very well-trained and personable, and could discuss the unique menu at length. But I was undoubtedly recognized, judging by the full-court press of managers who checked on my meal several times on each of my visits.
The dining room is wide open, from the sushi and display kitchen on the north end to the cocktail bar at the south. In between are bursts of color, such as a bright-blue tile wall, and hand-drawn, anime-inspired images of fish. Tables are well-spaced and set with pearl-look chopsticks that are so attractive I predict theft will be a constant headache.
Two improvements I would order up in a hurry include a coatroom (under construction, I’m told) and a more efficient kitchen fan (the aroma of cooking oil lingered on our clothing after each visit).
Saiko is not yet the restaurant it will be, but it’s more than good enough even in its incomplete state.
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Saiko
(star)(star)
1307 S. Wabash Ave. 312-922-2222
Open: Dinner Mon.-Sun.
Entree prices: $17-$99
Credit cards: A, DC, DS, M, V
Reservations: Recommended
Noise: Conversation-challenged
Other: Wheelchair accessible; valet parking
OUTSTANDING (star)(star)(star)(star)
EXCELLENT (star)(star)(star)
VERY GOOD (star)(star)
GOOD (star)
Reviews are based on no fewer than two visits. The reviewer makes every effort to remain anonymous. Meals are paid for by the Tribune.
