Foodgasmic oysters and king crab legs!! Seriously, they are MIND-BLOWING amazing! I am a lover of fresh seafood, especially oysters and crab legs; it is very rare to find oysters and crab legs that blow my mind because it all essentially tastes the same. That said, I also had a range of very good, good enough and blech dishes at the same meal; hence, the 4 stars.
OK AMBIENCE. We have seen Baku numerous times on our way to South Park Mall and wondered if it was like Zuma (my BFs all-time favorite restaurant upon which all other pan-Asian | Asian fusion restaurants are compared). The answer? Not quite. There is a cute patio outside that was much too hot for us to enjoy, maybe next time.
Inside, it tries to be trendy and hip like a Morimoto, Hakkasan or any other modern vibey LA/Miami Asian restaurant but sort of falls flat and feels a little dated and underwhelming. I can't quite put my finger on what makes me feel this way, maybe the really bad lighting or the cramped quarters (even though the restaurant was sparsely attended). It just didn't feel upscale (and not in the minimalist way either).
MEDIOCRE SERVICE. The service was exactly on par with what you would expect from an upscale restaurant. There was nothing remarkable about the service. They can improve by wiping down the table between courses when they're clearing off the plates. This isn't something that I usually notice but if I feel like I need to put my napkin on top of my table, that's a really good sign that it needs a good wipe down. Overall, the service was fine; our food was served, cleared away and drinks refilled promptly and courteously.
ALCOHOL. We had a Moscow mule and a fruity concoction that I asked the bartender to prepare; they were heavy on the alcohol pour but mixed wonderfully as to maintain their intended flavors.
A WIDE ARRAY OF CULINARY PERFORMANCE. If it weren't for the oysters and crab legs, I may have given the experience 3 or 3.5 stars, right around average. I've had:
AMAZING:
+++ oysters. When they were served, we were told to be prepared to have the best oyster experience ever. He was absolutely right. I usually want to throw all the fixings on: cocktail sauce, horseradish, tabasco, salt, pepper, and lime -- but the sweetness, and the soft buttery texture of these divine oysters eradicated the need for the extras. It was like these oysters weren't farmed in the ocean at all, they didn't have any salty or gritty texture to them at all; truly, they were unlike any of their usual counterparts.
+++ Alaskan crab legs. The crab legs were meaty, sweet and didn't have a fishy aftertaste at all. They serve it in this heavenly lemon butter ponzu sauce that just perfectly complements the sweetness. The portion is huge enough that my BF and I barely polished it off.
VERY GOOD:
+++ crispy rock shrimp. The shrimps were crispy and served with a hot mustard sauce, very similar to Zuma.
+++ traditional miso. It threw me off that it's sweet and a little sour but the fresh scallops in it really made me grow fond of it.
+++ spicy tuna roll. Very fresh, densely complex and quite spicy.
OK:
+++ yellowtail. You get three rolled up pieces. This is fine if it was more complex than plain yellowtail such as a nice ponzu sauce or crispy tempura flakes (like Zuma does); it was good but not stellar.
+++ panacotti. The fruit panacotti had vanilla custard that was pretty bland. I'm not one for over decadent sweetness but the panacotti seemed to err at the opposite spectrum and left my palate wanting more.
BLECH:
+++ salmon tatake. I LOVE albacore tatake that sits on a semi-sweet citrus ponzu sauce with stripped daikon. This wasn't it. The salmon is cooked, even with the fresh crab, it's really not the right texture to turn into a tatake.
+++ mango toffee. Too many nuts, the very dense cake didn't taste like mango -- Starbucks could have done a better dessert.
+++ pork belly. The pieces are REALLY fatty and greasy; not in the savory bacon (yum!) way.
COME FOR THE OYSTERS AND CRAB LEGS.
If the oysters and king crab had been your run-of-the-mill variety, we probably wouldn't return because other than that, the only thing we would order again are the crispy shrimp. However, the oysters and king crab legs are absolutely incredible and worth every penny of their market price tag.
10.7.2016 Update. We went for a second time on a rainy Friday night and because it was busier, the service was slower. I'd skip the desserts altogether next time.
I can see why others say that the portions are not commensurate to the hefty price tag. I will definitely vouch for the freshness and premium quality of their seafood (for example, in contrast, Cowfish uses imitation crab in their rolls). That being said, if you come here, stick to the popular food items or fresh sushi because not everything on their menu will otherwise garner a satiating dining experience.