|
Ok, so in all my time in SJO, I have hardly ever eaten anywhere special. There have been a few restaurants where I've paid as much as $13 for a meal.
When in SJO I'm not looking for haute cuisine. I'm usually looking for the quickest, and most nourishing food so I can get back to doing what I came down to SJO to do...
Now, on my last trip, I did something different...
The trip report will explain the trip, but, one thing I did on this trip was eat at the above mentioned restaurant... (I might have mis-spelled it).
To start off, this was on a complete lark. It was late (around 8:30) and we hadn't eaten since 11:30. We didn't want to drive to eat, and we were staying at the Clarion. We wanted to eat well, and had really had enough of "typical" fare.
I went down to the lobby and asked, and the guy just handed me a bunch of pamphlets, hadn't tried any, and suggested we go to the Pueblo... Having eaten at the pueblo the night before, and not being in the least bit impressed, I kept looking.
I found a pamphlet for Bakea, and was interested... Made a reservation for 9pm, and we went walking over for dinner. From the Clarion, you walk towards the Dunn Inn, which has an amazingly charming bar by the way, walk past it a block, and there is Bakea on the corner.
Bakea looks like a house, I would NEVER have known it was a restaurant had I not been looking for it. There was a guy standing out front, who waved us in.
Decor:
The restaurant is broken up into several little rooms, I seem to recall about 6 small cozy rooms, each with 3 - 6 tables. Each room has a different "feel". There's one that's out front that is sort of like a terrace cafe, one that feels like an open air patio, one that's built over a glass floor like the ones they have in museums, and there's the main room where the bar is, that feels like a small cozy restaurant.
The art:
The art on the wall is...... not my style. It's pretty, but to me it looks like somebody's K*D drew the stuff. It's modern art, which I have no taste for. It wasn't unattractive, just not my style.
The ambiance:
When we got there, they seated us in the main room, which has a rather bad echo problem. The room felt very intimate, just a wee bit loud. We were not the only table, there were 2 others, on dessert when we arrived. Once they left, we asked the staff to lower the volume of the music, and the place instantly became charming without all the echoes.
The wine selection:
With a rather large (for a boutique restaurant) wine selection was quite nice to see. There were several wines that I would have loved to try, and several which I've had before. These ranged from moderate to high priced... (for my standards) I seem to believe that the price range of bottles was in the 25 - 90 range, but I can't recall exactly...
We had different requirements for wine, so we each had a glass of wine, instead of ordering a bottle, which is why I didn't pay much attention to the prices of the bottles. My red was quite good, and complemented my meal exquisitely.
Bakea also had 2 selections of sparkling water (rather odd), S. Pellegrino and Perrier. Naturally I went with the Pellegrino, with some lime.
The food:
We started off with salads... These were quite good, but I especially liked mine made with camembert, which was joined by a berry sauce, made of fresh blackberries (or something similar).
On to the main course. We ordered a shrimp risotto, and a tenderloin with melted brie. Both were fantastic, although my tenderloin was slightly over cooked for what I asked (I suggest you order it under what you prefer, and if need be return it), and a little tougher than I expected, but the flavour was spot on. The potatoes that accompanied the beer were quite good, especially when dipped in the port sauce of the steak. The risotto was truly delectable.
We move on to dessert, and they had a vast array of offerings. We ordered a cheesecake, and a "coffee special" or something like that.
Me, being from NY, I'm rather judgemental about my cheesecakes, and this was not a let down. It wasn't superb, but was quite good, and covered in cherries. Overall I would say that it was a good cheesecake.
On the otherhand, the other dessert was 2 pieces of pastry chosen by the chef to complement each other, and go along with your choice of coffee. My standard choice of coffee is a double espresso, to which I got a small chocolate tartalette, and a biscuit. The biscuit was flakey, and moist, and although small was quite nice. The chocolate thing that came with it was awesome - it had a slight coconut and a slight raspberry hint of flavour, and just went down so well with the coffee.
The price:
approximately $35 USD. per person.
Overall impression:
We got out of there having had a seriously quality meal for a reasonable price (by US standards), in a charming, very romantic setting, with eclectic food choices, as well as a decent wine selection, and the choice of several very well appointed rooms to dine in. This is definitely the kind of place that, were I to be in a similar situation, or a resident of SJO, I would definitely partake in again. The service was good (above average for SJO standards) and our overall impression of the place was very favourable.
I would highly suggest giving this place a try if you want to go out with someone who can appreciate a good meal, and a pleasant atmosphere.
qbf.
|
Login
Register
FAQ
Search
Calendar
