Sato

Rating: OK
Meal:  Lunch
Price: 16.300 BHD
Payment: Credit cards accepted
Dishes: Steak teishoku
English Menu: Yes
Smoking: No

The other restaurant open during the day for lunch at my hotel is Sato, a Japanese restaurant.  Normally I wouldn't eat something I can get all the time on a trip, but my options are extremely limited.

Sato has lovely ambiance, and they do try hard with all the Japanesey things.  The menu has a lot on it, and it is eye-wateringly expensive.  I opted for a cheaper teishoku with steak (only 7 BHD on the menu).  Of course, I asked for water and got something european in a glass bottle.  Then I asked for a side of avocado, knowing this would be spendy, but I wanted more good fats.  All of this plus tip added up to 16.3 BHD, so you can see how quickly this can escalate.  It's a pity, because there is plenty of reasonably priced food to be had in Bahrain, but it's all closed during the day, and so many places are doing these buffets that justify a big price for dinner.

Anyway, the teishoku was kind of funny, tasting very unlike a real teishoku, but that's not necessarily bad.  There was more flavor for one.  The steak was good enough, and the miso tasted good too.  The funniest thing was that in addition to the yellow pickled diakon (which is more Korean than Japanese), there was a strange purplish looking thing.  I tasted it and was amused to find it a beet, something I don't think I've ever had with a Japanese meal.  Anyway, I passed up the rice and the sweet things on the plate (shredded carrot, ginger dressing soaked salad, two sweet sauce platters) and tried to only eat the stuff that isn't poison.  The side of thinly sliced avocado arrived and I was glad for it, though the sticker shock at the end of the meal unpleasant.