For my birthday, Vince made reservations at a new Spanish restaurant of two months in Pasadena called Saso. We had a fabulous time learning about the josper oven that they use primarily to grill their fishes and prawns to give that wood fire and charcoal flavor and smell. They also rotate their seafood offerings to a variety of fish or shrimp..wherever they can get their hands on fresh local catch to give the best quality!
We were lucky enough to be seated in the corner so that we can people watch and have some privacy at the same time! This shared courtyard is super cute and adds perfectly to their ambiance. We just need the ocean behind us and it would have been a perfect escape! Their chairs reminds us of director chairs and I spied a dog being able to sit on the chairs too!
Txolo Squinkles. Tequila, mezcal, poblano liqueur, lime, grapefruit. This is the left drink. It tasted less boozy and more sweet and refreshing. The fresh grapefruit added a nice touch.
Vito’s Coldbrew. Bourbon, licor 43, espresso, orange cream, churro dust. I love the orange cream that slowly sank to the bottom. The very slight hint of it added a nice sweet touch. The coffee itself is strong and was very easy to drink.
Flip the Script. Cognac, torani, campari, lemon, lime, orgeat, egg. This drink was so creamy and refreshingly light at the same time!
Txuletta Tartarra. Wagyu tartare, caviar, celery, anchovy aioli, sourdough chip. Oh I don’t know what kind of wagyu they used but it was very tender and soft. Even though wagyu is supposed to be fatty, this was very refreshing and light to eat. The anchovy aioli added a nice seasoning that was flavorful. The sourdough chip was very crispy and buttery.
Calimero. Poached shrimp, spanish deviled egg, capers, chive, smoked salmon aioli. This was also very good! The salmon aioli reminded us of an asian flavor. We felt like we were eating a dynamite sushi roll. There was a light kick at the end.
Ganbak. Whole grilled prawns from Santa Barbara, garlic, rosemary. This was our favorite hands down! Vince was sooo overly impressed with these prawns. He kept raving about it the rest of the night! We asked our waitress to find out how they grilled or marinate it for and they did not keep any secrets! The prawns were stuffed with a small rosemary branch and marinated in garlic for an hour. Thrown in the josper oven to give that wood figure smoky flavor. We learned about the josper oven today too and wonder if we can use our Gozney pizza oven to recreate this simple dish!
Josper oven: a hybrid grill and oven allowing to achieve the flavor of the grill while able to control the temperature as with an oven.
Whole Fish Basquaise. Black fish local catch from the josper, garlic crisp, chili, premium olive oil. The black fish was the local catch of the day. The charcoal smoky grilled ends of the fish added such a good textural and flavorful component. The garlic crisps in the olive oil is such a simple idea but offered multiple layers of flavor. Fish was the star of the dish!
We are definitely going to make this our regular place! We even found out they offer happy hour and street parking was so painless! We will be coming back to try their crab cakes and eat their prawns again! Vince said he can totally get 4 orders of prawns and just eat that as a whole meal!
Their service was unbelievably nice! Everyone was very talkative and open about the restaurant concept and the food. They didn’t keep any secrets to where their seafood connections are or how they prepared their food.
Thank you for a delicious birthday meal babe. I love you! 🙂
