Hello, my name's Knedlikova and I'm a SaSaZu addict.

Which is rather unfortunate for me really, as unlike all my other many and varied, comparatively inexpensive addictions (wine / kebabs / norsky salat / swimming / Coronation Street etc), without resorting to the usual junkie means of turning tricks, mugging little old ladies, botched corner shop robberies and the like, I can't afford to get my fix here on more than a few select special occasions a year...


Still, I’ve probably been there maybe half a dozen times since it first opened a year or so back – even worse for an addict – tantalisingly just round the corner from my apartment. Since then, I’ve successfully managed to drag along Mr K, a visiting Mummy K, Mr Smorgasbord, and several as yet un-aliased foodie friends on the slightest premise of a celebration, as part of my ongoing attempts to rope in as many fellow SaSaZu co-dependents as possible.

The below are all photos from collective past visits – apologies in advance for the quality of some of the photographs; for some reason I seem to suffer extreme camera curse whenever I visit SaSaZu (possibly due to classic addict hand-shake in my desperation for impending culinary hit).

With SaSaZu itself effectively serving as my dining dealer, it is only appropriate that their crib should be pimped-out accordingly, with gaudy faux Buddha statues and OTT giant Chinese lanterns adorning the former warehouse interior. Needless to say, I love it... ;-))



As with any addict, I have my substances of choice at SaSaZu, the ultimate high in my case being the SaSaZu roll in all its many and varied incarnations. In fact I swear I would cheerfully sacrifice all other foodstuffs for ever more if I could just live on SaSaZu rolls alone for the rest of my natural life.

Of all of these, my absolute favourite and obligatory start to any meal here has to be the Empire Saigon Roll at 120kč a pop – a rice paper roll filled with grilled shrimp, mint and basil and served with a truly divine cucumber sauce. This for me is the crystal meth of cuisine – one hit and you’re hooked for life...


In the background is pictured the Singapore Crab Chilli at 190kč, which consisted of a portion of lightly battered and fried soft-shell crab served with two separate dipping sauces – one peanut and one shallot and garlic. I liked this, but possibly not quite as much as a lot of other dishes on the menu.

A very close contender for SaSaZu favourite is the SaSa Crispy Roll at 290kč. A half-salmon, half-tuna roll wrapped in nori and served with wasabi and black sesame sauce, this truly exquisite dish has in itself to count among top culinary experiences in Prague – fast track to an instant gastronomic high...


Third favourite on the SaSaZu front is the delicious Hong Kong roll at 185kč, another rice paper roll stuffed this time with cucumber, dorado, mint and apple soy.


The Hong Kong definitely comes with a kick, though somehow I don’t experience quite the same intensity in cravings for this particular roll as for the previous habit-forming two.

A new potential addictant recently added to the SaSaZu range is the Cha-Zu-Rha roll at 245kč, a chicken and banana roll served with Mui Tau leaf, Thai basil, fried onion and carrot mandarin sauce. All the ingredients came served collectively on a big platter, so you can effectively roll your own here.


I liked this, but not nearly as much as the fresh (as opposed to fried) rolls previously described – I’d probably pass on this in favour of the far superior Empire Saigon and SaSa Crispy Roll on my next visit.

Last (and also least) on my long list of rolls are the Bali Spring Roll (165kč), a crispy roll made with shrimps, banana and Malaysian chives with miso sake sauce, and the Jasmine Chicken Roll (175kč), a grilled spring roll stuffed full with tender chicken, jasmine tea, shiso leaf and mong bean.


Sorry about the quality of the photos – I think these were taken on Mr K’s camera phone for some reason. Either way, somehow neither of these seemed to hook me in the same way the others did – they’d do in a fix, but don’t come anywhere near to the highs induced by some of my previously documented dishes of choice. The methodone of SaSaZu rolls if you like.

Anyway, that’s more than enough on the roll front – let’s move on now to the SaSaZu mains.

One problem with SaSaZu is that it’s a bit hit-and-miss as to the size of the portion you’ll get when ordering off the somewhat haphazard menu – one person may end up with a main course size meal, and the other only with an appetizer size portion.

I’ve always got round the problem by just ordering several dishes and sharing with whichever dining companion I’ve successfully roped in to accompany me, but if you’re looking to get the most bang for your buck size-wise, probably the most amply proportioned options on the menu are the Vietnamese Ga Curry (195kč), Red Curry and Shrimps (295kč), Hanoi Shrimps (210kč), Singapore Lamb (395kč) and the (according to Brewsta rather questionable) Pad Thai at 240kč.

Pictured below is the Ga Curry, a more Thai-than Vietnamese style sweet curry topped with fried onions and served with cold rice noodles and water spinach. This combined with the Empire Saigon Roll is definitely one of my favourite combinations here for inducing true SaSaZu gastronomic bliss.


I was quite bemused by the concept of the Singapore Lamb (I spent the best part of my childhood on that equatorial little island, and – like in the Czech Republic come to that – definitely do not recall ever seeing a single sheep), but the dish itself was truly delicious, with pleasantly tender lamb and a sweet laksa-style sauce. The naan was warm and flavoursome, but given that there were two of us sharing on this occasion, we could definitely have done with another slice.


Other dishes on the SaSaZu menu are generally more bite-sized and are best filled out with a side of Buri Bop (a.k.a. white rice) or Egg Fried Rice at 55kč for a miniature bowl (best go for one per person so as not to feel short changed).

Some of these smaller dishes I’ve had in the past include the Indonesian Chicken Saté with emping and pinda sambal sauce (155kč) and Tai Tai Truffle Entrecote with sauté kabayaki and ginger truffle sauce (295kč):


the Bombay Butter Chicken, skewered marinated in yogurt, garam masala and lime, tandoori baked and served with roti bread (255kč):


and finally the Goi Buoi Pomelo Salad of grilled prawn, pomelo, coriander and crab with a zesty lime dressing (195kč).


Admittedly some of these were a little while ago, but I definitely remember being pretty happy with them at the time, except for perhaps the Bombay Butter Chicken, which fell rather short of the usual SaSaZu induced euphoria of most other dishes.

I’ve also tried many other things on the menu back in the days when I did not obsessively photograph my food before eating – Brewsta has several more dishes depicted on his own blog entry on the place. I think I’ve tried everything his party did at some point except for the Coconut Corn Soup and that weird-looking pad thai omelette thing, and pretty much agree with all his assessments. That said, being infinitely more measured in his praise than I, he is clearly not a potential fellow member of SaSaZu Anonymous just yet... ;-)) In addition, I’d also recommend the Papaya Salad (175kč), which is definitely as close as I’ve come to the genuine Thai article since I was last on the good old Khao San Road.

Usually I’ve pretty much long since O.D.’d on sublime SaSaZu substances by the time dessert rolls around, though last time I went with my friend Mr Smorgasbord, he somehow managed to talk me into splitting a SaSaZu Cheesecake at 155kč – talk about enabler! Still, a sweet end to this last particular SaSaZu food bender at least...



All that said, even such an irrevocable SaSaZu fiend as I can hardly fail to recognise that not quite everything is perfect with the place. Service is friendly, but at times comes across as rather over-attentive and contrived. The kitchen has an unfortunate tendency to rush out all your various dishes at once, so you need to be quite insistent when ordering if you personally prefer your meal to be a more leisurely, paced out affair. And finally my biggest bug-bear of all is that the wine list is a total rip, with even the cheapest bottle of Czech Ryzlink starting off somewhere round the 700kč mark (being addicts in more ways than one, Mr K and I always have a sneaky glass or two at home for free first to make up for it... ;-)) ).

So there we have it for my beloved SaSaZu, unrepentant trafficker of fine fusion food in Prague, for this week – I know it might not necessarily be everyone’s personal poison, but I for one am definitely not intending to break the habit any time soon... ;-)))