Hugo's Grill has been reincarnated into Asian, tapas fusion - sounds like a bit of a groaner, but upon reflection, it hasn't actually been down successfully in Victoria before. Conceptionaly, the tapas-fusion approach worked for us, but a little over a month after opening, there are still some fairly big kinks to work out.

They've renovated the space, replacing the upholstery and carpeting (yay, I hated the Hugo's upholstery) and adding a variety of Asian themed decor and lighting items. It looks good and everything except the complicated zen table candle (too big), seemed like a practical choice. 

Our server was quick to consult us on the new concept. It was tapas, so the dishes would arrive in no particular order. Ok, sounds fine - if executed properly. By which I mean, random to the client shouldn't really be random to the staff. You wouldn't want your salad to arrive at the end of all the meat courses, right? Happily, that didn't happen, but everything did arrive at the same time and we didn't have enough room on the table and things got cold while we ploughed through our dishes - not smooth. If we were to return, we would order the courses, one by one, and hope for more graceful delivery. The problem - we shouldn't have to do that.

Despite it's rocky arrival, the food was good. We had the calamari and Thai sausage salad ($11), the Korean BBQ steak frites ($15) and from the daily specials, the pork hotpot ($14 + $2 for rice).

As for the salad, the greens were fresh and the calamari cooked only slightly. The sausage, from Chou Chou Charcuterie, was tasty with distinct Thai seasoning. It did look a little under garnished, especially for the price.

The Korean BBQ steak was perfectly cooked and rested and the quality of sirloin was better than many I've had. It didn't however, have nearly enough Korean BBQ marinade flavour, which is by definition heavy. The frites, were ok, but there were way too many of them and could have a been crispier. My big problem was the condiments. The steak was served with a jalapeño relish - I liked it, but when placed next to ketchup - made me feel like I was at a picnic. Which leads to the next huge problem - ketchup!! I like ketchup on my fries, but not at a nice restaurant and not with steak and frites. It should be aioli and since we're going Asian, here's a mindlessly simple idea - wasabi aioli. Not a creative idea, but waaaaaay better than ketchup.

I have no complaints about the pork hot pot.  It had a good level of heat and was served attractively in an Asian style hot pot. Patty and I both liked the use of golden beets, reminding us of the more classic daikon, but tasting better. We were also relieved to be served braised pork (shoulder or leg, I'd guess), instead of the usual overcooked and dried out loin. I lied, I have one minor complaint - the jalapeños, looked like the kind they use on nachos. I like nacho jalapeños, but they're not very elegant. 

The wine list is great, if you can get it. I'll explain: on the menu there is a very short and largely boring wine list. I liked that everything was by the glass, but I was struggling to select an interesting wine. When I expressed my troubles to the server, she explained that there was a much longer list available if I was interested. Why did I have to have a problem first? Let me know there's another list when I sit down. The second list is the same as Hugo's Grill used and I really like it. It's annotated, has lots of different price ranges represented and some really fun and interesting wines. Once given the good list, we were immediately served by the sommelier. The guy knows his stuff and we were really happy with the Sandhill Barbera he recommended. (note: I've encountered this sommelier in different restaurants over the years and my impression is that he likes to pick your wine for you, he'll do it in conjunction with your likes, dislikes and price range, but he likes to do it. I can't blame him, it's the fun part of his job - my recommendation, let him do it.)

We were a little grumpy about the server neglecting to wipe down the table after we'd eaten tapas with chopsticks, you can imagine what that looks like, but we were otherwise happy with her friendliness and were pleased with her menu knowledge.

Sanuk has some work to do, but it's a nice change and could be a real asset to the local dining scene. The tapas size is too large for my understanding on the concept, but on some of the dishes, they could improve that by simply scaling back the starch - no one comes for the rice or the fries. My feelings about tapas, is that two people should be able to comfortably eat 6 plates - no one in Victoria does that, so I'll be really impressed when someone does. If Sanuk, can start working on the details and create some sophisticated Asian fusion cuisine, they'll have created something unique in Victoria and I'll be a happy camper.  

value of food 75/100

quality of food 73/100

wine and beverage 76/100

service 78/100

ambiance 82/100

average 77/100

Reviewed November 14, 2006