Dinner at SAGA – this is the James Kent legacy menu; I understand that the new executive chef will be implementing his own menu this month, so my comments will likely be moot soon.
I ultimately have to agree with others’ sentiment that the food at SAGA is just too unmemorable given the very steep price point. I wanted the flavors to be sharper – more seasoning, more acid, generally just “punchier.” Perhaps this was affected by the season/seasonal produce – the whole meal leaned toward softer, fall flavors (e.g., persimmon, sweet potato, etc.)
The menu also suffered from a lack of cohesion/point of view, as others have mentioned. It was described as both “New York with global influences” as well as a tribute to the late Chef Kent. There were some moments where you could see a more interesting menu buried in there – the Moroccan influenced Squash course, the duck “tagine” with dips and Moroccan flatbread, and the tea course. These courses were the highlights of the meal. But then the rest of the menu leaned toward generic, Japanese-influenced fine dining. I also understand that many of these dishes are throwbacks to past menus at SAGA, hence the Kent tribute, but at no point were these connections made explicit to us by our server.
Some off touches: the caviar dish with bonito following so closely after the mushroom dashi was repetitive in flavor, the squash-toffee knafeh – while delicious and as mentioned above a highlight – should clearly be a dessert course, the madai was to my mind overcooked (although perhaps in service to the very crispy skin), and the dessert with variations of burch/sweet potato/quince was one-note in flavor despite the various preparations, and could have used some acidic elements to cut through the caramelized, brown sugar sweetness.
Ultimately I would tell you to skip, but with the new menu debuting in the near term future perhaps just give it a month.
thenisaidbitch
That’s interesting, I don’t think I recognize one dish from my meal there almost a year ago (which was fantastic)! I thought the bento box starter was a signature of theirs as well, wonder why they changed it. Sorry you didn’t enjoy!
OkChapter763
Such a shame, we ate there in April 2023 and the tagine dish was one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. It doesn’t look the same sadly.
Working_Crew5402
Went when it first opened and was one of the best meals of my life. The duck was absolutely amazing. Unfortunately have heard lackluster things after his unfortunate passing. I’d guess there will be some new energy with the next menu and they should be back in good form.
gamebl0uses
I ate at Clover Hill when Charlie Mitchell was exec there. It was bomb. Really excited to see what he does when he has full creative control at SAGA.
5 Comments
Dinner at SAGA – this is the James Kent legacy menu; I understand that the new executive chef will be implementing his own menu this month, so my comments will likely be moot soon.
I ultimately have to agree with others’ sentiment that the food at SAGA is just too unmemorable given the very steep price point. I wanted the flavors to be sharper – more seasoning, more acid, generally just “punchier.” Perhaps this was affected by the season/seasonal produce – the whole meal leaned toward softer, fall flavors (e.g., persimmon, sweet potato, etc.)
The menu also suffered from a lack of cohesion/point of view, as others have mentioned. It was described as both “New York with global influences” as well as a tribute to the late Chef Kent. There were some moments where you could see a more interesting menu buried in there – the Moroccan influenced Squash course, the duck “tagine” with dips and Moroccan flatbread, and the tea course. These courses were the highlights of the meal. But then the rest of the menu leaned toward generic, Japanese-influenced fine dining. I also understand that many of these dishes are throwbacks to past menus at SAGA, hence the Kent tribute, but at no point were these connections made explicit to us by our server.
Some off touches: the caviar dish with bonito following so closely after the mushroom dashi was repetitive in flavor, the squash-toffee knafeh – while delicious and as mentioned above a highlight – should clearly be a dessert course, the madai was to my mind overcooked (although perhaps in service to the very crispy skin), and the dessert with variations of burch/sweet potato/quince was one-note in flavor despite the various preparations, and could have used some acidic elements to cut through the caramelized, brown sugar sweetness.
Ultimately I would tell you to skip, but with the new menu debuting in the near term future perhaps just give it a month.
That’s interesting, I don’t think I recognize one dish from my meal there almost a year ago (which was fantastic)! I thought the bento box starter was a signature of theirs as well, wonder why they changed it. Sorry you didn’t enjoy!
Such a shame, we ate there in April 2023 and the tagine dish was one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. It doesn’t look the same sadly.
Went when it first opened and was one of the best meals of my life. The duck was absolutely amazing. Unfortunately have heard lackluster things after his unfortunate passing. I’d guess there will be some new energy with the next menu and they should be back in good form.
I ate at Clover Hill when Charlie Mitchell was exec there. It was bomb. Really excited to see what he does when he has full creative control at SAGA.