Not long after the turn of the 20th Century, thousands of Japanese migrated to Brazil and Peru in search of land. At the turn of the 21st Century, thousands of New Yorkers migrated to Miami in search of sunshine. One of the end-products of this confluence is Sushi Samba Dromo.
Not long after the turn of the 20th Century, thousands of Japanese migratedto Brazil and Peru in search of land. At the turn of the 21st Century,thousands of New Yorkers migrated to Miami in search of sunshine. One of theend-products of this confluence is Sushi Samba Dromo.
This is a restaurant part Japanese, part Brazilian, part of a new trendthat matches Asian with Latin into a new kind of fusion, all the rage now inSouth Beach. There are separate sushi and Samba chefs, one specializing inJapanese and one in Brazilian, and two distinct menus.
If the menu is a fusion, the look is quite Brazilian, aside from the sushibar that serves as the restaurant's center stage. Surrounding that stage isthe Dromo, namesake and looksake of the arena in Rio where they hold the sambacompetition during Carnaval. Seating is arranged in a stadium style, withdifferent levels all affording a view of the South Beach scene, whether youare inside or out. The floor is patterned after that of the Copacabana. GroovyBrazilian music is piped in loud, people linger for drinks, and weekendsattract the kind of crowds that promise to bring back the town's heyday.
Sushi Samba Dromo is the third in what you would call a series, not achain, of Sushi Sambas. Two others are in Manhattan. Each has similarities anddifferences - each chef gets some room to roam and invent dishes; 20 percentof the food might differ from one location to the next. Chef here is JulianMedina, Mexican born but well imbued in the cuisines of South America. HisJapanese sidekick, Naohiro Higuchi, is responsible for our first appetizer,miso soup ($4). This starts with a dashi stock, which is made of dried bonito(a small fish from the tuna family) with kombu seaweed, the stock strained andcombined with miso, studded with cubes of tofu and snipped cilantro leaves.
First real sign of fusion is the South American beef maki roll ($11). Thisis ribeye, broiled and then thinly sliced, rolled out and stuffed like a sushiroll with hearts of palm, shredded carrot and scallion, six pieces in all.It's served with delicious grilled asparagus that have been brushed with anherbal basil oil flavored with shiso leaf. A teriyaki sauce drizzled on top ofthe maki roll adds salty and sweet.
Field greens ($7) involve mesclun salad with homemade dressing of carrot,sesame oil, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, onion and celery, pureed in theblender to a most interesting taste. Adding crunch on top is a thatch of friedleeks.
Some items are traceable neither to Japan or Brazil or maybe to both. Takecrispy oysters ($10), oysters crusted with blue cornmeal and lightlydeep-fried, brought to the table on top of a sofrito of roasted corn andsauteed bacon with queso fresco, a mild white cheese. On top go wasabi espuma,or wasabi foam, and wasabi tobiko, or flying fish roe flavored with wasabi.
On to sushi. Most basic is yellowtail scallion roll ($7), simply a roll ofrice outside, with yellowtail and scallion inside, six pieces. Deftly done.But guaranteed you've never before seen El Topo ($11) a roll not rolled, butmolded in a press. Base is rice, with shiso leaf, sliced jalape?o, salmon andmozzarella. It's oven-cooked for three-four minutes to melt the cheese andthen served with a spicy sauce of Japanese peppers and mayo, as well as eelsauce. This one will satisfy those who find sushi insubstantial; it's fillingand interesting.
Samba Roll ($12.50), the house specialty, is inside out, seaweed stuffedwith tuna, flying fish roe (tobiko), avocado, cucumber and redleaf lettuce. Agood roll but certainly not as provocative as the Topo.
The vast and complex menu does not require entrees, but there are someworthy ones. Those into the pleasures of the flesh will certainly lovechurrasco Samba ($39), a five-meat combination of ribeye, skirt steak, porktenderloin, beef tenderloin and chorizo (homemade sausage). These areexcellent cuts, well prepared, juicy and flavorful. They are served withlinguica sausage, a Portuguese sausage, plus rice, beans, salty and pungentsauteed collard greens and farofa, seasoned yuca flour, the latter twoBrazilian staples. Two ramekins hold dipping sauces of pineapple-ginger andchimichurri, and each accents the meats well. This is plenty to share amongtwo or even three; there is a smaller churrasco that suits one.
Much lighter is steamed grouper with shiitake soba noodles ($19). This is afilet of grouper steamed and served with shiitakes and the buckwheat noodles,sauteed in water and olive oil. When cooked, all is coated with a black oliveand hearts of palm vinaigrette, a lovely light but puckery touch.
Dessert brings East and West together. The O Cha Cup ($8) starts with atouille recipe flavored with Japanese green tea and formed into baked cups.These cups are filled with dulce de leche-flavored rice pudding, made withsushi rice, and topped with fresh mango sauce, fresh chopped mango and driedblack currants. Lovely and light.
