3. February 2015: Restaurant Harry Sasson
Harry Sasson is one of the best chefs of Colombia – and I must say that I have to confirm that. He owns a couple of restaurant throughout the whole country and it is worth going. However, there was one huge disappointment already in the beginning. As it is the second best restaurant in Colombia I was curious to experience the best of his kitchen and wanted to try the tasting menu – which was not served. You had to pre-order the tasting menu upon reserving your table (which was not told to me when I booked). Definitely a no go! If you are a restaurant with theses standards your kitchen staff should absolutely be able to provide a tasting menu to the guest, even without them pre-ordering it. Or at least let your guests when they reserve their table.
So much about complaing – the rest was great. The evening started with a “Mojito Bacardi” (18’000 COP) which was sweeter than most mojitos I have tried before, having a slight vanilla taste. But the great part about it is not only the mojito but the bar itself and the design of the restaurant – very appealing!
As it was not possible to have the tasting menu, I went for the “Lomo (Tartare “Dirty Martini”, Agua de aceitunas, Hendrick’s Gin y pepino)” (26’800 COP) as a starter. The beef tartare was good, no question, but I have definitely had better tartares before. So far, my expectations were absolutely not met.
Luckily, I also ordered other dishes to try as much as possible like the “Cebiche de Corvina (Cebiche, limón, tomate fresco, cilantro, jugo de jengibre fresco, ají criollo)” (29’900 COP) which was refreshing and contained a nice variety of tasty seafood.
Another starter was the “Morcilla de Arroz (Al estilo de Burgos, crujiente, huevos fritos)” (20’800 COP) which were good but to be fair, I have had better morcilla before, for example in Madrid.
As a last starter, I went for the “cerdo” which is basically fried pork in batter. And while it is not really the best quality of the pork meat you are served when ordering it as a starter it was actually good. Crunchy, crispy, fatty, juicy, yummy!
To follow my passion of eating meat, I went for the “Lomo de Res (con Foie Gras fresco y jus lie)” (66’800 COP) and while the prices are closer to Zurich than to any place close to this restaurant, I must say it was worth paying it. The meat was so tender and the grill flavour of the charcoal grill was outstanding. The foie gras add on was – in retroperspective – unnecessary but the meat was incredibly tender.
The “Alverjitas (Bacon, ajo, crema y parmesano reggiano)” (18’800 COP) with bacon and parmesan cheese were definitely too much. But they tasted delicious. To sum it up, the main course was absolutely great while the starters were only good to very good. Quite uncommon in experience – usually the starters are way better than the main courses but I was happy it was different for once.
What you also get is bread and butter after you have placed your order. But the bread somehow seemed a bit old which was really a disappointment.
As mentioned above, the interior is absolutely great …
… no matter where you sit it looks great but …
… the bar is one of the highlights as well as …
… the part which is set up as the inside of a house. I went to check it out as I had arrived a bit too early …
… and the rooms are marvellous – especially if you look at the wine selection they offer.
When I asked the responsible waitress to be seated inside she consented and I was lucky enough to be at a table inside – which is not only nicer in my opinion but also a bit less noisy so you are actually able to speak.
The service is generally attentive and does a good job – only when it came to ordering the bill it took them longer than normally. It really seems to be a thing with restaurants – waiters don’t want customers to pay/leave. However, the prices on average are absolutely fine from a Swiss perspective but are quite steep from a Colombian perspective (e.g. double espresso, 8’000 COP; bottle of water, 4’000 COP; bottle of red wine, Millaman, 106’000 COP). If you are into good food though, you have to pay Harry Sasson a visit – make sure to pre-order your tasting menu though.
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Contact Details:
Restaurant Harry Sasson
Carrera 9 #75-70
Bogotá (CO)
Tel.: +571 347 7155
Homepage: http://www.harrysasson.com
About the Author: Sven
I started the blog in October 2009, while living in Milan which I definitely consider to be one of the food capitals of the world. I was in touch with food since my early childhood (as my father is a former chef). Whenever I can, I travel the world to discover new places, to meet people but mostly to try local dishes and to find hidden gems! If you know a place worth going, please drop a line to: info@thediningexperience.org.
Currently, I am a member of the following food-related associations: Chevalier @Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Zurich-Ville; Membre Gourmet Dégustateur @Ordre Mondial des Gourmets Dégustateurs [OMGD]; Gesellschafter @Goldener Fisch and Member @Slowfood Convivium Zurich City. 
