Saii, sophisticated sushi experience
by Andrew | October 6, 2007 | 18 Comments
(votes: 45, average: 2.42) 
Loading ...Saii Asian Bistro / Sushi Bar is located at 6900 N. May Ave Oklahoma City (map). They are open Monday through Saturday. Contact them at 405.702.7244 or visit their website. Reservations are available by phone.
There has been a lot of local hype over the relatively new Saii Asian Bistro and Sushi Bar, so much so I had to experience it for myself. I have eaten at most sushi restaurants in the Oklahoma City area and have yet to really be impressed so I packed up the entire family, toddlers and all, and prepared for perhaps an above average tuna roll and some fried rice for the kids. What I found when we walked through the door was a trendy, hip, sophisticated place with a dynamic menu and upscale atmosphere.
My first thought was, “oh boy, my kids are really going to throw this feng shui out of balance”. While definitely not a kid friendly atmosphere, mine have been eating out since they were born and have learned how to behave in an adult environment. I did feel a bit guilty about all the rice on the floor around the youngest’s high chair when we left, but that’s why we leave a gracious tip right?
The first thing you notice when you walk into Saii is the decor. An Asian waterfall and rich red and yellow mood lighting relax you and make you forget that you are in an anything-but-trendy shopping center on North May. In fact, Saii feels like it would be more appropriately placed in the Skirvin Hotel downtown, or nestled in the arts district, but then again North May seems to be adding unique and inviting new eateries every week. Saii is definitely a welcome complement. Seating is lounge-style with large plush square dining areas, multiple bar seating areas, and regular table seating. I have been to other cutting-edge, trendy sushi bars in other cities and they are usually blasting rock music, have bright lighting, and the walls are covered with impressionist art forms. Saii is modern, yet traditional. Asian decor replaces the abstract art forms, and dark rich woods, mellow lighting, and soft music seem more accommodating to the digestive tract.
Saii has a full menu as well as a dynamic sushi selection. Appetizers of edamame, crab rangoon, calamari, or lobster shumai prepare the palate for more complex flavors ranging from your familiar Asian flare (pad thai, lo mein, fried rice, and curry dishes) to more unique offerings pairing seafood and steaks, and even a wide range of Asian influenced salads. The crab rangoon was surprisingly flavorful, nearly overstuffed with cream cheese and imitation crab meat. The sushi was the biggest surprise. Lots of very good varieties, unique from the other drab sushi eateries in the city. I tried several rolls that featured everything from calamari to tuna. Each roll was presented with thoughtful plating and unique flavors. Asparagus is an ever-present ingredient in many of the rolls which is new to me in most sushi I have eaten. The Saii ninja roll had a topping of crawfish and real crab meat (think really good chicken salad, but replace the chicken with various shellfish) that I could have spread on bread and made an amazing sandwich out of. For the most part, ingredients were fresh and presentation was phenomenal. The calamari was a bit tough, but it’s not like you can go pull squid out of the Oklahoma river. Actually….you probably can, I’ve seen strange things washed ashore on the banks of our dark brown waterway and bobbing along in Bricktown, but that’s another post.
Overall, it is a great experience and highly recommended. The nice thing about Saii is you can take a friend who is sushi-averse and still find a meal everyone can enjoy. You get a Manhattan atmosphere with an Oklahoma City price tag. I probably will not return with my 5 year old, 3 year old, and 1 year old, but I can promise I’ll be back to eat another round of tempting and unique culinary art.
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So far, 18 people have responded to this article. Won't you join in?October 15th, 2007 at 7:35 pm
Saii was a very pleasant surprise to say the least. I am not very often impressed with new eateries in the metro area, but this one definitely stands out. The atmosphere is perfect for a date or a night out with friends. All the tables are comfortable with couch like seating, perfect for snuggling up on a romantic date. The music is set at the perfect volume and the ambience is amazing. I haven’t even gotten to the food yet. Wow! I was really impressed. The asian cuisine was amazing and really unique to this city. We had the sweet & sour chicken and were blown away by how wonderful and different it was despite being such a seemingly boring choice. The sushi was equally as wonderful, very fresh with a beautiful presentation. I try different places everytime i go out and am rarely as pleasantly surprised and just downright impressed as I was with this one. Way to go Saii! I highly recommend this one.
October 16th, 2007 at 10:13 pm
Thanks for the comment! I agree, in a world where the Hibachi grill is considered the ultimate Asian dining experience, Saii really stands out as a tastier and more dynamic restaurant. If you find other places that really stand out be sure and let us know.
October 24th, 2007 at 4:51 pm
You should try shiki. They have amazing sushi
November 6th, 2007 at 1:15 pm
I believe the owner of Saii used to own Asian Cafe on Britton. Before the change in ownership Asian Cafe offered the very best asian food in Oklahoma City.
November 7th, 2007 at 7:44 am
Joseph, thanks for that info. I thought Asian cafe was a really cool little place, but I wasn’t overly impressed with the food, but went there just recently. Maybe it used to be better as you suggest.
November 10th, 2007 at 4:42 am
I have seen the kitchen at Saii bistro while delivering supplies and it is an ecoli epidemic waiting to happen. The dinning area is amazing though. I would not pay to eat there.
January 2nd, 2008 at 5:03 pm
The setting is good. The lights were dimmed low. I was pleased at first, but was disappointed at the dirty silverwares. My wife and our 3 kids ordered some entrees along with sushi and gotten VERY SICK. I would NOT RECOMMEND!
February 11th, 2008 at 7:23 pm
After loosing our reservations for a Saturday night we were finally seated an hour later although we were never informed that our reservation had been lost. Service was equally slow. Our server was unattentive & refused to take our order when we were ready. Finally after being seated for 20mins he came back to take our order. We asked to speak to the manger/owner who proceeded to accuse us of lying about our reservations. We finally left the resturant 3hrs later. As we were FINALLY leaving the server made a snide comment as the last of the party was leaving the table. When confronted he quickly ran to the kitchen. I would absolutely not recommend.
February 12th, 2008 at 10:35 pm
The news continues to get worse about this place. I had a great experience, but am now scared to go back. Maybe I should stick with the shady places.
February 15th, 2008 at 10:42 am
We had a large party and reserved a table for 2/14. We arrived promptly at 7pm and were seated immediately. It took 20 minutes to get our drinks. It took another 20 minutes to place our order. At 9pm (2 hours after being seated) we still did not have our food. When I asked the waiter where our food was he said “it will be out any minute” - 15 minutes later I asked again and was told “any minute now”. We finally just got up and walked out. Never receiving our meal. Each person in our party has agreed that we will never go back.
March 1st, 2008 at 5:22 pm
I had a similar experience when they first opened. Sat at the table for 20 minutes before a server even brought us water or anything. Another 15 minutes for drinks and appetizers. Another 45 minutes for sushi. Super slow and unfriendly service. And food was below adequate. The decor is awesome and that’s the only thing going for it. Tokyo Sushi is still the best sushi place in OKC. On the flip side, I have a few friends who went to Saii and they loved it. At most, they are very inconsistent which is almost worse than just being a bad restaurant.
March 2nd, 2008 at 3:25 am
When there with a friend tonight, thinking it would be as good as some of the comments says it was. Did the sushi. Yuck! Most important part of any sushi is the rice. Tasted like steamed Calrose rice without any of the seasoning. Even if they were to use the premix seasoning for sushi rice found at Walmart, it would at least taste decent. Not even a hint of rice vinegar much less the Sake, Mirin (Sweet Sake) and Konbu (dried kelp)needed to make sushi rice. Disappointing and overpriced. Also had their sample appetizer platter. Satay sauce was a joke and coconut shrimp… stick with Outback Steakhouse. For Sushi I recommend OKC’s oldest Sushi Bar .. Tokyo Sushi.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
The setting at Saii is very contemporary-it’s a nice little atmosphere, but as several others have said, the service is very lacking. They take forever to get out drinks, to take your order and to bring the food to you. They are also not very friendly. The sushi was decent but not as good as some other places. I recommend Okura overall. Neko is also good but tends to be on the pricy side. I am trying Shiki tonight so we’ll see how that goes.
May 23rd, 2008 at 11:35 pm
Well, I went to Saii for my son’s birthday on May 18th. We were a table of 10. We received very good service, water and tea refills and the food was great. We would definately return. My daughter who is a sushi fan said that her order was wonderful and a bit different from the other sushi restaurants around town. My pad thai with shrimp was tasty and had a lot of shrimp. The servings were large but not outrageous. They allowed us to bring a cake and helped serve it.
June 17th, 2008 at 12:46 pm
I heard the owners are suing each other and the restaurant is going under. The atmosphere there is nice, but you can get the same food, or better, at a cheaper price elsewhere.
July 1st, 2008 at 1:48 pm
Geeze louise, Alice. Do you have any other rumors or inuendo you would like to share with group?
I don’t know much about saii, but this seems a rather nasty bit of proprietary information and not all that helpful, Mrs. Kravitz.
July 30th, 2008 at 1:58 pm
For the sushi officionados, try Tokyo Japanese Restaurant on Western just north of 63rd. They do not focus on decor or ambiance, but instead have AMAZING food. Truly, this place is the best in the state. Big statement, but a true one.
September 14th, 2008 at 7:55 pm
My friend had a bday party there, the wait was horrendous. The sushi was terrible. My rice was dry/a little hard and the crawfish tasted absolutely disgusting. Very slow service. We will definitely not be coming back. If you’re going to eat sushi in OKC, it HAS to be at Tokyo.
http://www.tokyookc.com/
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