The name of the Saigon Sushi restaurant, which has become pretty much of a fixture in Vero’s downtown being at the same location for the past nine years, certainly suggests Asian fusion cuisine, but it leaves out perhaps the most important component of the menu, its delectable Thai dishes.
After all, Thai food is the fastest-growing ethnic food all across the U.S. and Jimmy, the owner/chef, is from southern Thailand near Phuket himself.
Why not put something about Thailand in the name of the restaurant? Standing behind the sushi bar which he mans himself, Jimmy, now 53, says he hasn’t seen the need to and he’s not sure what it would do for his business. “It’s hard to say what brings people here,” he says. “Some nights, everybody wants sushi. Other nights, they order Thai or something else. It really all depends.”
When my better half and I dropped in on a recent weekday night without reservations, the place was close to full but the friendly wait staff, mostly of Thai origin as well but with a perfect command of English, greeted us promptly and showed us to a comfortable booth. They also proved extremely willing and able to explain the various dishes on the menu.
I’ve often wondered if Asian fusion restaurants can really do all those very different dishes equally well. Japanese, Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese and Korean – can anyone really be proficient in all of them?
Well, Jimmy of Saigon Sushi just about made a believer out of me.
My only small complaint was about the unavailability of the listed beers. Our drink orders were taken promptly enough and the menu presented choices between Thai, Japanese, Chinese, domestic and European imports, but I was informed that they were out of Chang, the only Thai beer on the menu and a favorite of mine, and they didn’t have Tsing Tao, the Chinese beer, either. I had to settle for an Asahi Japanese brew, which was fine.
From the moment we sat down and the waitress brought us a glass of water, we noticed that Saigon Sushi pays attention to details. The glass of water came with a lemon slice carved like a bird and a piece of paper artistically ruffled on top of the straw, while the tables were decorated with good-luck bamboos.
All plates were attractively presented and garnished to make any visit more of a dining experience – not just eating. The fruit a young girl at a nearby table ordered for dessert was served in an orange shell carved in the shape of a hoopoe bird with face and ears – her eyes lit up when it was brought out to her.
We wanted to sample items from the different cuisines being offered, so we started with a Vietnamese crepe appetizer ($8.99), a fried dough crepe filled with crab, pork, scallions and bean sprouts, served with fish sauce and slivered carrots seasoned with garlic – delicious! – and with a Beauty-and-the-Beast order of sushi ($9.99), a plate consisting of five pieces each of tuna (beauty) and slightly warm eel (beast) sushi – really good!
For dinner Christine chose the mango salmon ($16.99), a large piece of grilled salmon over crisp sautéed carrots, broccoli and zucchini served with white rice and the fish sauce mixture, and covered with at least half of a sliced mango.
The entrees came with a choice of miso soup or salad. Miso soup can sometimes be bland but this one was quite flavorful, and the salad was covered with a delicately seasoned garlic dressing. With the soup and salad came a special small relish dish, tiny slices of carrots, pineapple, cucumbers and tomato – very refreshing and light. Another fitting accompaniment.
For my entrée I went with Jimmy’s Special ($17.99), four jumbo shrimp each wrapped around a huge tender scallop and grilled, served over a bed of Thai noodles with a mild green curry sauce. It was the specialty of the house – Jimmy says he invented it from things he learned working in other Asian restaurants in Miami before he moved to Vero about 18 years ago. We both agreed it was indeed special and Christine says she will order this the next time we come here, which we are definitely planning to do.
For dessert we ordered fried ice cream, a large scoop of vanilla ice cream wrapped in a crispy coating with chocolate syrup, whipped cream and a maraschino cherry – one dish was more than enough to two.
We found the service and attention faultless, the food delicious and the prices very reasonable – our total bill with tax and tip for a four-course dinner with a drink was just under $80.
The 32963 restaurant columnist, Tina Rondeau, is spending a couple of weeks checking out dining establishments in Northern Europe. Her reviews will resume in our Aug. 27 edition.