Two weeks ago a new restaurant opened on Jose Maria Morelos across from the El Encanto Inn and Suites on what was a parking lot and grove of trees. The owners have done a stunning job in creating a great environment. As you walk in the gated entrance, the first thing that you see is a large mesquite tree that was transplanted at this location. There are two major sections of the restaurant – an outdoor dining area and a covered dining area with a concrete banquet along the wall. There is also a bar with seats and a lounge area for a drink while waiting to be seated.
The chef, Guillermo J. Gomez has created a very interesting menu that melds his experience as a chef in Argentina, Italy and Mexico. Drawing on local produce, he merges his influences into a set of appetizers, main courses and desserts. The presentation is excellent and Manuel Gonzalez, the manager was on hand to describe the amuse and appetizers to us. It is easy to see the Italian influence in several of the dishes as they include pasta or pastry.
The menu presentation is interesting as it is on high quality scalloped paper on a board with a small clip holding a sage leaf. There were some many interesting choices on a relatively short menu that we had a hard time deciding. Choosing from the long list of appetizers – seafoods, vegetables, beef – Beth selected their Hearts of Romaine Salad and I chose the Tuna Tiradito. While we were waiting for our appetizers, we were presented with an amuse that was delicious and I ordered a bottle of De Cote Atempo Chardonnay from Queretaro, Mexico. It is the first time that I have experienced a Chardonnay from central Mexico – usually I have Valle de Guadalupe wines.
The Romaine Hearts were served with two halves of a hard-boiled egg, garlic croutons and an excellent creamy Caesar dressing. I snuck a taste, and it was very good. My tuna was served with jicama serrano, passion fruit and black garlic oil. The result was a very exciting combination of sweet and spicy.
Chef Guillermo dropped by our table to see how we were enjoying our appetizers. This gave us a chance to ask some questions about his background and the style of his cuisine. He also visited several of the other tables after seeing us. Through the evening, we watched him controlling the line from outside the kitchen, making sure that the presentation of all of the dishes was to his high standards.
We also had a visit from one of former neighbors in Zacatitos, Matt Vallone. It turns out that Matt and his wife Rachel are involved in the restaurant. Paying attention, I noticed that they were both working. There is a display area of dishes and accessories, and Rachel was making sure they were ordered carefully. Rachel had designed all of the menus and materials and I am sure they were both involved in the design of the restaurant itself and it has similarities to their modern home in Zacatitos.
For our main course, Beth ordered the Fugazza Mortadella with fresh burrata, pistachio, oregano, onions on pizza bread. Our server made sure that we were aware that it was pizza. The result was that, while she only ate half of it (and brought the rest home), she said it was her favorite pizza in all of Los Cabos and even better the next day. I ordered the Pork Belly Tortellini with an eggplant-tomatillo sauce, crispy guanciale and mint. The server said that it was his favorite. It turned out to be mine too. It was absolutely delicious.
We decided to force ourselves to have dessert and selected two to share. Beth’s choice was the Coconut and Lemongrass Sorbet and mine was the Ricotta Fritters. The sorbet was actually served in a peeled and hollowed coconut with grilled pineapple, saffron juice and flowers crisp. The presentation was amazing and the flavor matched it. The Ricotta Fritters were served with citrus creme fraîche and lavender infused maguey honey and also did not disappoint.
As a former owner of two restaurants, given that Sage had only been open five days, it ran with efficiency and good spirit. The young staff had great uniforms and were very well trained. They knew the details of the menu items and the background of the restaurant. Overall, this was an excellent experience and we will definitely go back soon and take some friends.
For more information about Sage Baja visit their website at https://www.sagebaja.com/ or visit them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086020480370.
