OSAKA

We're always on the lookout for good Japanese restaurants and in Buenos Aires, Osaka always gets mentioned. My good friend T plus my brother-in-law both recommended this restaurant so we decided not to give it a miss on this trip.

A table was booked for 1:oo p.m. and we set off for Palermo Viejo right after breakfast so we could walk around and window shop before having lunch. We arrived at the restaurant half an hour early and waited a bit before they opened. The large wooden doors slid open to reveal a sleek, modern interior flanked on three sides by an open kitchen, a sake bar and a sushi counter.

The menu has several sections: sushi and sashimi, rolls and cones, salads, tapas, pastas, grill and wok items plus specialty Japanese-Peruvian fusion dishes. We decided to have a light lunch and ordered only sushi and assorted rolls and cones (temakis) and miso soup.

We started out with a salmon sashimi platter while our five-year old had his favorite cucumber rolls. We ordered spicy salmon temakis plus the spcial rolls: Maki Furai - salmon, avocado and cream cheese in a crispy coating wrapped in seaweed and the Escabemaki - shrimp, glazed sweet potato, avocado and onions escabeche. The rolls were delicious but definitely fusion creations and were very different from the typical Japanese sushi rolls. The salmon sashimi was fresh and very good and the miso soup was as it should be. Osaka is definitely worth a visit if you need a break from carne and crave some sushi. Next time, we'll try some other dishes from their extensive menu.

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OSAKA

Soler 5608 (corner Fitzroy)

Palermo Viejo

Tel: +54 11 4775 6964