The Casual Restaurant Critic
You might agree or disagree with my opinions, but that's life, isn't it? And no, I get no commissions or kickbacks from any of the places favorably reviewed - I do this entirely for my own amusement 
and your information. 

This, by theway, is the one part of NotTheNews that often features POSITIVE critiques, so to those
of you whining about NotTheNews being too negative, get off my case.

Move Over Kyoto

... Here Comes the Competition!
March, 2001

It's hard to believe, yes, but the Critic has another review for his readers this month. Perhaps not so difficult to understand since it has been about 14 light years since NotTheNews has been updated (boo to Bill Lawson) so the Critic has been unable to post anything new.

Gracias a Dios, there is now a very strong competitor in the raw fish, soya sauce and Sapporo beer category, better known as sushi. Gracias a Dios because the last visit to the Kyoto sushi restaurant featured a very unpleasant experience with a mouthful of robalo nigiri sushi that was definitely past it's prime. Etiquette people... question: What does one do with a mouth full of rice and decomposed fish? Does one spew forth on a) the floor; b) a handy side plate; or does one simply grimace and swallow. This is beginning to sound a little obscene. The Critic leaves that question for you to ponder while he proceeds to heap accolades on the new kid in town, Campay Sushi.

Campay Sushi is located on a side street in the Colonia Mexico, which is a barrio in northern Merida; it's a couple of blocks off Prolongacion Montejo on 19 street. You turn onto 19 street leaving www.gym behind you. Office Depot will be on your right once you're on 19. Then proceed two or three blocks and there it is. 

If you've lived in Merida for a while, you will perhaps remember that there was once a beauty parlor for our canine friends in this very spot; the Critic's initial reaction was 'hmmm' and then he popped his head inside. All worries of finding a poodle in the miso soup were immediately dispelled however. The place looks nice. 

The best place to be is at the bar, where an expert sushi guy (is there a technical term for this profession in english?) prepares sushi to your liking (not your likeness as one restaurant put it). This guy is so good that once you order a couple of different items, you won't wait long before he will place them in front of you, staggered in such a way that there is never a long wait between dishes. He's actually keeping one eye on the fish and another on you. The only beef the Critic has with the bar is that it's a little close to the door.

There are of course people who prefer tables. Good for them. The table service, on the one occasion when the Critic actually used one, was a little clueless and inexperienced. This will improve, one would sincerely hope, with time.

The Critic recomends sitting at the bar, ordering a towering ice-cold Sapporo and tuna sashimi, thick cut, which melts like butter on the tongue... Also worth mentioning are the smoked eel rolls and a crispy little critter called salmon skin roll with onions and more. The textures and flavors are fabulous. As in other Merida sushi restaurants, the inclusion of philadelphia cheese in almost every roll is overkill - not only are you ingesting extra calories, but the thick cloying taste of the cream cheese smothers the more subtle flavors of the fresh fish. So go ahead and ask them to leave it out - they'll be happy to do so.

Go tonight!

 

Casual Critic Rating: 4

Beginning 1999, the Critic started rating the places he visited. Here's the scoop:

 

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