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July 5th, 2008
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A tale of two sushis

Neither will win awards, but the differences are distinctive
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By Dave Faries
Staff Writer, The Prague Post
March 5th, 2008 issue

VLADIMÍR WEISS/THE PRAGUE POST
Presentation is one of the reasons Miyabi still draws.
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Miyabi

Navrátilova 10
Prague 1-New Town
Tel. 296 233 102
Open Mon.-Fri. 11 a.m.-11 p.m., Sat.-Sun. noon-11 p.m.

Food HH
Service HH
Atmosphere HH
Overall HH

FROM THE MENU

Salmon nigiri 65 Kč
Tuna maki (six) 150 Kč
Tempura sushi (six) 140 Kč

Miga

Slezská 19
Prague 2-Vinohrady
Tel. 222 522 468
Open Mon.-Fri. 11:30 a.m.-11 p.m., Sat.-Sun. 5 p.m.-11 p.m.

Food H
Service H
Atmosphere HH
Overall H

FROM THE MENU

Sushi set 780 Kč
Tuna sashimi (four) 280 Kč
Bibimbap 320 Kč
Gyoza 95 Kč

The best sushi houses around the world bank on fish as fresh as the law allows, hand-selected by trusted purveyors. When sliced and married to vinegared rice, the delicate flesh appears to melt and flavors of the sea descend on your palate. Modest stalls, in contrast, purchase the remaining catch — decent enough, but comparatively shallow in flavor and texture. It’s left to wasabi and soy to rouse a diner’s senses.
In Prague, Sushi Bar supplies the city’s top seafood restaurants through its neighboring shop, reserving sashimi-grade fish for its own use. With few exceptions, the other Japanese destinations fish from less reliable pools.
Bickering over a mediocre lot, therefore, seems rather pointless. Yet there are exceptions, as two recent visits to contrasting sushi restaurants demonstrate.
At Miyabi, a longstanding (and sometimes forgotten) establishment in New Town, the kitchen presents clean salmon, its pink flesh streaked with chevrons of rich white fat. Cut thickly, both fish and rice in the nigiri portion stand up to each bite, but the salmon dissolves gently. Miga’s version is flabby, almost to the point of mushy. Veins of fat slither through the meat in half-hearted juts and irregular pocks — a sloppy-looking catch, though notable for its strong flavor.
Curiously, Miyabi bails on tradition, omitting that thin swipe of wasabi between fish and rice that purists expect. Miga nods to propriety, dotting the rice with green horseradish. But its nigiri at times collapses under the pressure of chopsticks.
Miyabi serves reasonable tuna as well: sturdy to the touch, delicate on the tongue. Still, the meat expresses little of the big fish’s spirit, settling into a passive, faintly metallic funk. Even this bit fades out in tempura maki form, yielding its space on the palate to a thin veneer of slightly malty batter.
In general, Miyabi’s rolls start off rather mellow. This laid-back character converges easily toward the earthy graininess of tempura. Then it all succumbs to a single-minded piquant dressing.
The tuna plated at Miga is even less impressive. Sashimi arrived on the table while still a little frosty. As it warmed, the valued texture of good red meat seeped water — the result of dissolving ice crystals, or more accurately, chefs willing to short-cut the defrosting process.
Otherwise, it’s difficult to discern anything specifically tunalike about these slices of fish carcass, as each piece rests against fresh lemon. As a result, the dominant taste is a sour bite of citrus, muted by infusion and a little watered-down.
Perhaps it’s best not to say much about other items at Miga, such as surf clam nigiri. Dried and lacking substance, the usually bright foot weathered into a dull stretch of hide, its color faded into something reminiscent of a dying rose — an order worth forgetting.
Both restaurants roll tight maki, although the seaweed wrap at Miyabi imparts grassy flavors, while Miga’s merely keeps things in place.
But the latter is one of those ubiquitous Japanese-Korean hybrids. And it seems that Miga’s kitchen has a much better handle on Korean fare. Its musty kimchi reveals both tart and hot streaks. Dolsot bibimbap revels in the cacophonous mix of julienned vegetables, meat, a few caramelized bits, rice, egg and — of course — the burn of chili paste. It’s a bit on the slovenly side, dragged down by little problems, but not at all bad. Pan-frying sears golden brown wrinkles into entirely adequate gyoza.
So the Korean dishes win at Miga, though not by much.
When it comes to sushi, Miyabi proves the value of both experience and quality.

Dave Faries can be reached at dfaries@praguepost.com


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