Abokado Sushi

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© Abokado 2009 | All rights reserved CONCEPT:

RETHINK SUSHI

Abokado introduces its Japanese Pan-Latin menu, a union of traditional Japanese cuisines mixed with the exquisite delicacies of Latin America. Abokado takes this fusion of two very different cultural delights to a higher plateau by providing customers with creative dishes not offered anywhere else.

Located in the heart of Miami’s Mary Brickell Village, Abokado dazzles its audience with a menu that uses only the freshest ingredients preserving a natural balance of aroma, texture, and taste offered from both of these two diverse regions and cultures.

Abokado’s distinctive dishes are handcrafted to perfection and create a cuisine that redefines fusion and presents a true evolution of flavor. Contemporary in design and classic in comfort, the decor and ambiance at Abokado is welcoming, relaxing and unique in its combination of colors, materials, lighting and background music.

Whether one's preference is front and center at the sushi bar, outdoors, on a banquet or at individual tables, Abokado presents a memorable experience defined by fine service and outstanding cuisine. CHEF'S CORNER:

Abokado's menu preserves the natural balance, taste, aroma and texture of fresh seasonal ingredients from both Japanese and Latin American cuisines.

The restaurant's distinctive signature dishes - handcrafted to perfection by expert chefs - create a cuisine that redefines fusion presenting a true evolution of flavor. The menu incorporates and respects the distinctive character and essence of each cuisine and culture represented.

A selection of unique cebiches and tiraditos whet the appetite for starters, salads, nigiri, sashimi and signature entrées. Rolls and hand rolls evolve way beyond the norm featuring the freshest gourmet ingredients available. An outstanding wine list, specialty cocktails, extensive sake selection and an imported beer list complement the menu. FAQS:

WELCOME:
We hope you enjoy learning about our cuisine as much as we enjoy preparing it for you.

JAPANESE CUISINE:
The Genealogy of Cooking.

Rice has long been the main staple of the traditional Japanese diet. It is not only consumed daily as a staple food but also used to brew sake, a traditional alcoholic drink. Japanese cuisine has developed the art of providing side dishes to complement consumption of the staple food. Table manners were also established in the quest for more refined ways of eating rice and drinking sake at formal ceremonial feasts. The history of the Japanese diet, which is inseparable from rice, started therefore with the introduction of rice cultivation.

The rice-centered food culture of Japan evolved following the introduction of wet rice cultivation from Korea more than 2,000 years ago. Soybeans and wheat were introduced from China soon after rice. These two ingredients are now an integral part of Japanese cooking. During Japan's development, tea, chopsticks and a number of other important food related items were also introduced from China. The tradition of rice served with seasonal vegetables and fish and other marine products reached a highly sophisticated form in the Edo period (1600-1868) and remains the vibrant core of native Japanese cuisine. In the century and a half since Japan reopened to the West, however, Japan has developed an incredibly rich and varied food culture that includes not only native-Japanese cuisine but also many foreign dishes, some adapted to Japanese tastes and some imported more or less unchanged.

JAPANESE CUISINE :
CONTEMPORARY

Today, Japanese cuisine is still heavily influenced by the four seasons and geography. Whilst to some westerners, the food may seem almost mild, freshness, presentation and balance of flavors is of paramount importance.

The main ingredients in Japanese cooking are seafood, vegetables and rice. Raw seafood cut with a very sharp knife has long been a distinguishing feature of native cuisine. Principal seasonings are fermented soybean and rice products, such as "shoyu (soy sauce)", "miso (soybean paste)", "sake", vinegar and "mirin (sweet sake)". To preserve the natural flavors of ingredients, strong spices are avoided in favor of milder herbs and spices, such as "kinome (aromatic sprigs of the tree known as sansho)", "yuzu (citron)", "wasabi (Japanese horseradish)", "myoga (ginger)", and dried and ground "sansho" seeds.

Food is arranged on plates or in bowls in a manner that harmonizes colors and textures that accord with the season of the year. Contrasting shapes, sizes and patterns are used to achieve an aesthetic balance between food and receptacles in order to please the eye and stimulate the appetite. Japanese cooking characteristically tends to assimilate foreign recipes.

SUSHI AND SASHIMI:
SUSHI

According to Japanese lore, sushi made its debut approximately 1,300 years ago, originally an ancient Chinese method of preserving fish. At that time, the delicacy was far from what it is now. The preparation of sushi was performed as a technique to preserve fish by using salt. During the Edo period (approximately 600 years ago), the first culinary preparation of sushi as we know it today (fish and rice) was performed in Tokyo.

Types of Sushi
Nowadays four categories are popular, although there are many different ways to prepare sushi, the two most popular varieties are:

Nigiri-zushi: hand-pressed or "edo-mae-zushi" developed in Edo in the 1800s has bite-sized portions of vinegared rice topped with a dab of Wasabe (Japanese horseradish) and a small slices of raw or cooked fish or shellfish.

Maki-zushi: rolled sushi, is vinegared rice arranged on a sheet of "nori" (seaweed) with various types of seafood or vegetables, rolled into a cylinder and sliced crosswise into bite-sized pieces.

Other Types of Sushi are:
Chirashi-zushi: scattered sushi, has two regional varieties, in Tokyo, seafood, vegetables and sliced omelet are arranged over a bowl of vinegared rice, accompanied by soy sauce. In Osaka, cooked seafood and vegetables, chopped and mixed with rice are topped with sweetened sauce and thin strips of omelet.

Oshi-zushi: pressed sushi of the Kansai region is made by pressing marinated seafood and rice in a wooden mold.

Sushi Accompaniment
Ga: This is a thinly sliced pickled ginger. It should be eaten a little at a time between varieties of sushi to freshen the palate.
Wasabe: This is green Japanese horseradish. It is made from a green knobby root that is ground into a powder. Wasabe is a very powerful seasoning that makes the "fishy" taste of sushi disappear by momentarily paralyzing the mouth.
Soy: This salty sipping sauce has historical significance. Its flavor reminds us of what sushi tasted like when the preparation was merely used as an act of conservation.
Ocha (agari): This is Japanese green tea. It is very refreshing, rinsing the mouth and tongue of fat build-up from the fish. For this reason, plenty of tea is served in a large mug.

Sushi Etiquette
Legend has it that sushi is the original "finger food", first enjoyed by Japanese card players hundreds of years ago. It is said that seaweed paper was rolled on the outside of the sushi to avoid "sticky fingers" while playing!
Sushi was originally a finger food. While chopsticks are often used, they are by no means mandatory, nor are they as easy to manage as fingers!
To eat sushi, pick it up at one end, turn it upside down, and lightly dip it in the soy sauce. The fish should always hit your taste buds first, not the rice.
Fondness for soy sauce leads some people to soak the rice part of the sushi in it. This is not recommended as it makes the rice fall apart and obliterates the flavor of both the rice and topping. Soy sauce should act as a complement to the foods with which it is eaten. In addition to green tea and sake, beer is also excellent with sushi.

SASHIMI

Also known as "tsukuri" is composed of fresh seafood fillets cut into bite-sized pieces and eaten raw with soy sauce and wasabi.

Sashimi, most commonly consists of red fish such as tuna or bonito; white fish such as sea bream, flounder, horse mackerel or sea bass and sometimes of freshwater fish such as carp, as well as shrimp, squid, or abalone. However, almost any fish may be used. Finely shredded daikon (Japanese radish) provides a bed for the fish and wasabi is used as a condiment. One or sometimes several of the following provide garnish: shiso (beefsteak plant) leaves or buds, edible chrysanthemum flowers, freshly grated ginger or slices of lemon. Soy sauce is served separately as a dip. Dipping it into soy sauce in which a little wasabi has been dissolved is the method usually adopted to eat Sashimi. Alternatively a small amount of wasabi may be placed on it and it is then dipped into the soy sauce.

THE LATIN AMERICAN CUISINE :
FLAVOR AND TEXTURES: ALCHEMIES AND TONES

The earliest colonialist, the Spanish and the Portuguese, introduced the meat and milk animals of the Old World and pigs and chickens spread throughout Latin America, sheep populated the Patagonia and cattle became part of the Argentinean pampas landscape. Gastronomic colonization took place for economic reasons: coffee thrives in Brazil, bananas, pineapples, mangoes, citrus fruits are common in Central and South America – Mexico, Peru, Argentina and Chile.

All these Old World new products trade in to the Americas additional to the indigenous ingredients such as maize, chocolate and vanilla, roots, tubers, fruits and vegetables whose taste and culinary virtues were obvious drive the well know Latin American Cuisines.

The territory is vast, the climate and geography bewilderingly diverse, all these factors contributed to the development of a sophisticated regional cuisine – one foodstuff thrives in one place and not in another. We can identify maize as the staple of the Central America nations including Mexico and the Andean nations – Colombia, Chile, Peru and Ecuador. In the Caribbean and the Amazonia, the staple is the cassava root.

In addition, it is possible for us to divide the culinary habit of the region into groups that reflect the way in which food is prepared and served. The nations of the Pacific coast prefer spoon foods – like the cebiche; countries like Mexico and Central America countries prefer scooping foods and tortillas with and extensive use of salsas. The gaucho nations – Argentineans and their neighbors from Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay and southern Brazil have a special predilection for meat.

Of the Latino nations that can claim a distinctive culinary identity, that of Mexico is probably the most widely recognized. The staple foods are: dried beans and lye-treated corn flour, with avocados and tomatoes providing a nutritional balance; the chile is the most important flavoring; chocolate and vanilla, are the luxuries. The presentation puts the emphasis on choice of chiles and salsas.

Three distinct traditions combine in Brazil: indigenous, Portuguese and African, the result, a very distinctive gastronomic tradition as inventive as it is exuberant.

In he Latin American cuisines is the spirit that counts. It has no secrets, just a light hand and an open heart. What it does have, and in abundance, is soul. A cuisine that is simple yet sophisticated, robust but delicate. Reflects the beauty of the land, the sunny nature of the people and the generosity of a fertile earth.

GLOSSARY OF TERMS:
NORI: Dried seaweed (Often used to wrap or belt Maki-Zushi or Gunkan)
MAMENORI: Soy bean paper
TAMAGOYAKI: Thinly cooked sweet omelette
GOBO: Burdock root
KAIWARE: Daikon radish
KAMPYO: Dried gourd
NATTO: Fermented soybeans
OSHINKO: Takuan or other pickled vegetable
TAKUAN: Pickled daikon radish
TOFU: Sybean curd
TSUKEMONO: Various pickled vegetables
UMEBOSHI: pckled ume (plum) fruit
WASABI: Paste of wasabi root
YUBA: Tofu skin
GARI: Pickled ginger
SHISO: Perilla, a perennial herb in the mint famiy
DAIKON: Mild flavored east asian giant white radish
PONZU: Citrus-basd Soy sauce
TOGARASHI: Mild oriental chile
TSUMA: Shredded Daikon
TEMPURA: Classic Japanese deep fried batter (Ice cold water, flour and eggss)
SRIRACHA: Thai hot sauce made from sun-ripened chile peppers, vinegar, garlic, sugar and salt
NATTO: fermented soybeans
TENKASU: Spicy crispy tempura bits
PANKO: Breadcrumb variety
NASU: Eggplant
SUNOMONO: Vinagered salad
TATAKI: Lightly grilled, meat or fish
UME: Species of asian plum
HOISIN SAUCE: Chinese dipping sauce
YAKIMESHI: Fried rice
MAKI: Rolls
TEMAKI: Hand rolls. cone shaped piece
TEKKA MAKI: Small tuna roll
NEGI: Scallions
YUZU: Citrus fruit native to east asia
AONORI: Green laver. A type of edible green seaweed
SANSHO: japanese pepper
SOBA NOODLES: Buckwheat flour noodles
TATSOI: Spinach mustard
KUSHIAGE: Deep fried kabob, Kushi refers to skewers
MISO PASTE: Fermented rice, barlet and/or soybean, with salt and the mold Kojikin
OGONORI: Edible colorful sea moss (seaweed)
KABAYAKI: A dish diped in a sweet soy sauce base before broiled on a grill (Eel sauce also Kabayaki-no-tare)
KAPPA MAKI: Kappamaki, a kind of Hosomaki filled with cucumber, is named after the japanese legendary water imp pond of cucumbers, The Kappa GALLERY:

INVESTORS:

FEU NUVO:
The company, Feu Nuvo, was founded as a limited liability corporation (LLC), in Miami, Florida on January 19th, 2005. Feu Nuvo is focus on developing business concepts within the hospitality and retail industries.

The key to our success will be based on our ability to create a visionary company whose management team lives by its Mission, Philosophy and Values and that is able to develop a solid teamwork.
ABOKADO:
Our Mission is to offer an extraordinary dining experience in a memorable ambience with a superior guest servide at an excellent value; creating, through memorable moments, a loyal guest base that generates a high level of repeat business. Francisco I. Cueto, Chief Executive
Officer and Managing Director
1110 Brickell Avenue, Suite 404
Miami, Florida 33131
Phone 305.416.6031
Fax 305.416.6033
investors@abokadosushi.com EMPLOYMENT:

I certify the facts set forth in my application are true and complete. I understand that, if employed, false statements on this application may result in dismissal. I understand that Abokado may procure an investigative consumer report that may include information as to my character, general reputation, personal characteristics, and more of living, and I have a right to receive, upon request, a description of the nature and scope of any such investigation. I authorize Abokado to check all personal and employment references and to verify all information I have included on this application form. I understand that this application, the Abokado policies, practices, and procedures, and all other communication distributed to me by Abokado does not constitute or supplement any contract of employment. If I am hired, I understand that all benefits, policies, and procedures may be changed by Abokado at any time, with or without notice. I further understand that I have the option to terminate my employment relationship with Abokado, wit or without cause and without notice at any time, and that Abokado retains a similar right. I understand that this application will be kept on active file for 30 days from the date completed, after which time I would have to reapply in accordance with established company procedures. CONTACT US:

Mary Brickell Village, 900 South Miami Avenue #133
Miami, FL 33130
Phone305 347 3700
Fax305 347 3777
info@abokadosushi.com LOCATIONS:

MIAMI - BRICKELL (MIAMI - ABOKADO - BRICKELL):
Mary Brickell Village, 900 South Miami Avenue
Miami, FL 33130
Phone 305 347 3700
Fax 305 347 3777
info@abokadosushi.com

DIRECTIONS TO ABOKADO: Situated in the heart of the Brickell area on South Miami Avenue between SE 9th and 10th Street, Mary Brickell Village is easily accessible from US 1 and I-95.

FROM I-95 SOUTH: Take I-95 South towards Downtown Miami. Take Exit 2A. Stay in the right lane and take a right turn at the light. Go over the bridge and continue to Brickell Avenue. Take a right on 10th Street. Take a right at South Miami Avenue. Abokado is on the left hand side at Mary Brickell Village, 900 South Miami Avenue.

FROM SOUTH MIAMI: Take US 1 to Brickell Avenue. Take Brickell Avenue to 10th Street and take a left. Take a right at South Miami Avenue. Abokado is on the left hand side at Mary Brickell Village, 900 South Miami Avenue.

FROM MIAMI BEACH: Take Macarthur Causeway also known as 395 to I-95 South. Take I-95 South towards Downtown Miami. Take Exit 2A. Stay in the right lane and take a right turn at the light. Go over the bridge and continue to go down Brickell Avenue. Take a right on 10th Street. At South Miami Avenue take a right. Abokado is on the left hand side at Mary Brickell Village, 900 South Miami Avenue.

LUNCH: MONDAY - FRIDAY: 12:00PM - 3:00PM
DINNER: MONDAY - THURSDAY: 5:30PM - 11:00PM, FRIDAY - SATURDAY: 5:30PM - 12:00AM, SUNDAY: 5:30PM - 10:00PM NEWS:

ZAGAT (ZAGAT RATINGS & REVIEWS)

Abokado is now in the ZAGAT's Restaurants Guide.
www.zagat.com/Verticals/PropertyDetails.aspx?VID=8&R=136824
ABOKADO BRICKELL (JANUARY 29TH, 2009)

Abokado Mary Brickell Village now open. We look forward to see you, for reservations please call (305) 347 3700. Thank you.

ABOKADO'S BENTO BOX LUNCH (ABOKADO INTRODUCES NEW BENTO BOX LUNCH MENU)

Abokado introduces Bento Box Lunch Menu at $18
PROMOTIONS:

ABOKADO BENTO BOX LUNCH MENU (ABOKADO'S NEW BENTO BOX LUNCH MENU)

Abokado's Bento Box Lunch is available between the hours of 12:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m.

CHICKEN TERIYAKI & VEGETABLE STIR FRY 17
Miso Soup
Mixed Greens Salad, ginger-carrot dressing
your choice: Tuna, Salmon or Shrimp Cebiche OR Tuna, Salmon or Shrimp Nigiri / Sashimi (two)
your choice: Steamed White Rice, Sushi Rice or Vegetable Yakimeshi
Chef’s Dessert Selection

SKIRT STEAK CHIMICHURRI & VEGETABLE STIR FRY 19
Miso Soup
Mixed Greens Salad, ginger-carrot dressing
your choice: Tuna, Salmon or Shrimp Cebiche OR Tuna, Salmon or Shrimp Nigiri / Sashimi (two)
your choice: Steamed White Rice, Sushi Rice or Vegetable Yakimeshi
Chef’s Dessert Selection

*SHRIMP AJI PANCA & VEGETABLE STIR FRY 18
Miso Soup
Mixed Greens Salad, ginger-carrot dressing
your choice: Tuna, Salmon or Shrimp Cebiche OR Tuna, Salmon or Shrimp Nigiri / Sashimi (two)
your choice: Steamed White Rice, Sushi Rice or Vegetable Yakimeshi
Chef’s Dessert Selection

SUSHI OR SASHIMI (3 PC) 18
Miso Soup
Mixed Greens Salad, ginger-carrot dressing
your choice: Tuna, Salmon or Shrimp Cebiche OR Tuna, Salmon or Shrimp Nigiri / Sashimi (two)
your choice: Steamed White Rice, Sushi Rice or Vegetable Yakimeshi
Chef’s Dessert Selection

Consuming raw or undercooked meats, poultry, seafood, shellfish or eggs may increase a risk of a foodborne illness.

*indicates medium spicy.

2008 MIAMI SPICE (2008 MIAMI SPICE IS HOTTER THAN EVER!)

Miami Spice 2008 is a mouth-watering summer restaurant promotion showcasing the very best of Miami cuisine.

During August and September, Miami’s top restaurants offer three-course meals (Lunch $23, Dinner $36) featuring signature dishes created by world-renowned chefs.

Discover the tropical fusion of ingredients that makes Miami dining so wonderfully out of the ordinary. An epicure’s paradise awaits you in Greater Miami and the Beaches!

RESERVATIONS:

MIAMI - BRICKELL (MIAMI - ABOKADO - BRICKELL): Great outdoor seating, bar and sushi bar.
www.opentable.com/single.aspx?rid=16738&restref=16738
We also have a call ahead seating program where we will take your name by telephone if we are on a wait.

Please call us for further details or to book a table, 305.347.3700.
PRESS:

CLINK! DRINKS (ZEN AND THE ART OF COCKTAILS AT ABOKADO):
by Aurora Rodriguez
2008-10-01
MIAMI.COM
Tucked inside urban shopping spot Mary Brickell Village, new(ish) sushi joint Abokado offers a Zen-like experience for lovers of raw fish and cocktail.

Order up an El Diablo (spicy crab tempura and avocado) to go with the restaurant's signature strawberry-topped bubbly potion Nuvo-Dream or Zen Martini and eat and drink in perfect harmony.

D.I.Y.

• Nuvo-Dream: Squeeze, then drop a small slice of orange into a chilled champagne flute. Add four ice cubes and one sliced strawberry. Pour in 1 ounce St. Germain liqueur and 2 ounces Nuvo sparkling vodka. Top off with 3 ½ ounces of cava sparkling wine.

• Zen Martini: Muddle four cucumber slices and 1 ½ ounces Key lime mix in a glass shaker. Fill with ice. Add 3 ½ ounces gin (Tanqueray Rangpur preferred), three drops of Tabasco sauce and ¼ ounce simple syrup. Shake vigorously. Double strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with a dash of green Tabasco and a cucumber slice.

www.miamiherald.com/clink/story/717115.html

MIAMI.COM (FIRST LOOK: ABOKADO):
By Sara Liss
2008-08-09
MIAMI.COM
The goods: Mary Brickell Village now adds Abokado's upscale Asian-fusion cuisine to its burgeoning dining scene (in addition to crowd-pleasing Mexican, Chinese and seafood restaurants). Though not a chain, Feu Nuvo, the company behind the project, plans to open more locations in Florida and Georgia. The 140-seat dining room evokes Zen minimalism with slate walls and stone floors, while also catering to Miami's see-and-be-seen sensibility with its open plan and leather banquettes on raised platforms flanking the perimeter. The central wooden gazebo made of blond wood references Japanese tatami-style dining while a glowing sushi bar in the rear of the restaurant provides additional seating where diners can observe half a dozen sushi chefs churning out rolls with mechanical precision.

The grub: A cross-cultural menu of Japanese-Pan Latin fusion dishes that marry the sobriety of traditional Japanese fare with the fire and textures of Latin cooking. Raw fish is the focus here with an extensive list of ceviches, tiraditos, nigiri and sashimi. A tiradito sampler ($26) features a taste of all four selections including a tuna tataki with aji-amarillo sauce, salmon with key lime ponzu, hamachi with serrano peppers and beef tataki with yuzu truffle oil. An appetizer of Abokado "nachos" ($14) redefine snacking by presenting tempura-fried shiso leaves topped with spicy tuna, avocado and kaiware sprouts while chorizo-stuffed calamari ($12) caters to both sides of the Atlantic. Head sushi chef Hiro Asano (formerly of Bond St.) helms the maki-making with signature rolls that exemplify the restaurant's stated mission with combinations like the "El Diablo" ($18) made with spicy snow crab and avocado topped with striped bass and jalapeno wafer. Ingredients like jicama, cilantro and chipotle crema turn up in various specialty rolls in addition to ubiquitous fillings like tempura shrimp, cream cheese and cucumber.

Non-sushi eaters need not fret, a succinct menu of cooked entrees includes chili braised short ribs ($24) with wasabi-shiitake grits, tequila-miso marinated chicken ($22) with yucca mash and a beef filet ($32) with Peruvian corn succotash.

Desserts include yuzu cheesecake, churros and yuzu tequila sorbet. In addition to a full bar and wine list, the restaurant has also organized a sake list with prices $32 to $120 per bottle or $7 to $14 for 4, 7 and 8-ounce options.

The verdict: Sushi savants will be flocking to bustling Mary Brickell Village to sample Abokado's palate-broadening blending of Japanese and Latin staples.
www.miami.com/first-look-abokado-article

MIAMI NEW TIMES (BEST CEVICHE):
Abokado
2008-05-07

They spell it cebiche at this Japanese-Pan Latin newcomer. And the renditions served here are distinctive in other ways as well. For one thing, they're prettier than others — the seafoods steeped in flavor without being seeped in a puddle of lime juice and buried in cilantro and red onions. The garnishes and marinades are more creative than most: Lobster luxuriates with slivers of fresh mango in key lime juice; cold-water prawns get invigorated by chipotle-tangerine sauce; tuna tangles with yuzu tobiko, wasabi, scallion, and soy. Prices are $12 to $16 for a generous portion, but a $30 sample proffers any three cebiches of your choice, accompanied by a refreshing scoop of shiso-kiwi sorbet. While you're here, you'll probably want to try this stylish restaurant's sushi, tiraditos, or flashy Latin-Asian fusion dishes. But it is the cebiches that will keep you returning.
www.miaminewtimes.com/bestof/2008/award/best-ceviche-1006446/

MIAMI NEW TIMES (CHAIN REACTION):
Like its brethren, Abokado plays it safe.
2008-03-03
Miami New Times
Mary Brickell Village still isn't much of a village, with many of the storefronts as empty as the concept of a downtown urban mall. Think of it more as a quaint clustering of that rapidly replicating creature known as the casual-upscale restaurant chain. On the plus side, Brickell Village has imported some of the better specimens of the genre. Places such as Oceanaire Seafood Room, Rosa Mexicano, P.F. Chang's, and Grimpa's Steakhouse offer diners chic design, full service, and usually fully packed bars, friendly staff, and fresh, accessible fare at prices lower than those found at less "casual" upscale establishments (except Oceanaire, the best of the lot, but noticeably more expensive). Abokado, the most recent arrival in the Village, isn't quite a chain — or not yet, anyway. This locale is the first link, with another under construction in Georgia and more on the way. It shares positive traits with its fellow tenants, as well as some characteristics that make such establishments less than ideal for folks who take their dining seriously.

Abokado's outdoor dining patio, situated by a gurgling fountain, is the quietest in town; surrounding storefront windows post signs of shops to come. The indoor design is Zen-like in a sleek and formulaic way. The walls are draped in expensive, textural earth-toned materials, while wooden trellises break up the spacious area into intimate dining arenas. A stylish sushi bar sits at one end of the room, a stylish liquor bar at the other; flat-screen TV sets flash new-age imagery (a waterfall, the time-lapse blooming of a flower). The décor is accessible, comfortable, and utterly soulless. Just like the food.
Abokado's "Japanese Pan-Latin" cuisine leans more toward the Asian side — excepting a few token dishes like a selection of "cebiches" that are distinctive in more ways than the spelling. A sampler allows diners to try any three of the six offerings ($30), the favorite at our table being cold-water prawns marinated in a bracing chipotle-tangerine sauce. Plush, lime-splashed chunks of lobster intertwined with bits of mango and red onion were tasty too; cubes of barely dressed, definitely not marinated salmon came tossed seemingly with only a single edamame bean. A scoop of yuzu-kiwi sorbet is served alongside the cebiches.

Salmon, tuna, and hamachi come marinated in strip form (tiradito), but we chose a beef version. Bad move. Thimble-size twirls of pinkish-brown meat arrived rolled around strips of cucumber (the menu promised jicama), with dabs of lightly truffled aioli faintly drizzled on top. Go with tuna estiradito instead — a sort of sushi carpaccio topped with truffle oil and iridescent dots of yuzu and wasabi tobiko. As the tuna and truffle flavors melted on the tongue like snowflakes, the yellow and pale green dots of fish roe popped like champagne bubbles, the trio of flavors melding together wondrously — a creative and culinarily credible combination.
www.miaminewtimes.com/2008-03-13/dining/chain-reaction