Me Geisha Marina d’Arechi: Japanese Fusion Restaurant at Salerno’s Exclusive Touristic Port

Posted by Rowena Dumlao Rowena Dumlao - Giardina 12/16/2021

Me Geisha Marina d’Arechi: Japanese Fusion Restaurant at Salerno’s Exclusive Touristic Port

From whichever angle you look at Me Geisha Salerno, it reveals total success. Created in 2013 by Giuseppe Tuosto, an Italian - American entrepreneur, the succession of years glided towards an achievement of pegging its position as one of the best Japanese fusion restaurants in Salerno. Seven years later, he opened another Me Geisha in Salerno. This time it is at the Marina d'Arechi, a beautiful and spacious touristic port designed by architect Santiago Calatrava located at the south coast of Salerno, near the Arechi Stadium. Inside the port, there is a private beach and a few places to eat including the newly-opened Me Geisha. Exclusive and well-organized, it is advisable to reach Me Geisha by taking the frequent vans that service the people inside the port after leaving your car at the parking lot.

The fact is, the reason why he opened Me Geisha in the first place was because he noticed a deficiency of fine Japanese restaurants during his visit to Salerno. Italian in origin but lived almost all his life in the US, he had already opened flourishing Asian fusion restaurants both in New York and Los Angeles. Then he decided to trace back his roots and traverse his way to his origin, Italy. He immediately found the connection to Salerno and decided to stay.Tuosto’s aim was to bring the tradition of Japanese catering to Italy where seafood, the protagonist of the dishes abound and leave the imprint of the reality of Oriental catering. The outlook of Me Geisha was conceptualized by the late Rodelio Aglibot, a well-known Asian fusion chef who was also known as The Food Buddha in the US.

In the middle of 2020, Giuseppe found the perfect sushi chef to run the kitchen. Maurìlio Araujo is a very talented sushi chef who originated from Brazil. He moved to Portugal in 2004 where he later mastered the art of making sushi. Following the path of sushi-making, he gained fundamental experience in the restaurants in Brazil, Portugal and Italy. In 2019, he won the First Sushi Cup Portugal then represented Portugal in the prestigious international event, World Sushi Cup 2019 in Japan where he finished as one of the top finalists.

Maurìlio proposes a menu of classic Japanese dishes with the integration of remarkable combinations of flavors. Decidedly, the raw materials are chosen for their fine quality and with the chef’s intricate work, the food at Me Geisha simply becomes the destination for those who are looking for exceptional Japanese food. Japanese fusion is an eclectic approach to the original dishes that are merged with ingredients and ideas from various cuisines. Fusion doesn’t mean that the genuine essence of the traditional is off-tracked. Maurìlio has the perception of putting together tastes that inspire the palate and quality of the raw materials that he lays as the main component of each small creation. Me Geisha has a straightforward culinary philosophy which is dubbed as the 3B: belli (beautiful), buoni (delicious), and benessere (healthy).

The menu has an ample selection of cooked and raw proposals that also have meat and vegetable options. Cooked options are categorized in: Tempura (€18 to €30), Small Plates (€10 to €25), Robata (€20 to €32) and Rice Dishes (€5 to €22). While the raw options are quite interesting: Carpaccio (€16 to €36), Tartare (€20 to €39) and Signature Starters Crudo (€19 to €45). The sushi selection are: Gunkan (€16 to €28), Me Geisha Rolls (€10 to €32) and Nigiri Chef Selection (€28). Dishes with special ingredients like Kobe Wagyu are created into diverse raw and cooked plates (€32 to €60 per 100 grams), Blue Lobster (€16 per 100 grams), and King Crab (€25 per 100 grams). The wine menu has been thoroughly thought of giving a very selection of Italian and French sparkling, white and rosè wines plus a small number of reds.