Sarastro — dining with a library vibe

Sarastro KL fascinates with its library decor, with the entrance from the Milllennium Lounge to it, in a door cleverly concealed amidst book shelves. It’s more “library” than the other Library restaurant I once dined at.

The lounge deserves a stopover too before dinner, as the bartender does his “thing”, as he pours and shakes, presenting two cocktails in a cloud of icy smoke. We sipped on Cherry in Martini and Purple Rain in the restaurant that exudes a 70s vibe, facing a piano and other musical instruments on a stage for a performance that takes place from Thursday to Saturday.

We ordered our dinner — nine appetisers or tapas, one salad, three main courses and three desserts for the five of us.

We crunched on crispy White Bait tossed with togarashi (a Japanese spice blend) and deepfried, and enjoyed it with the lightly spicy aji verde, a Peruvian cilantro sauce. I couldn’t stop eating another deepfried appetiser – the Portobello Fries, served with whole grain mustard aioli and balsamic drizzled over them.

Of the more substantial appetisers, I liked best the Baby Octopuses, sauteed and then sprinkled with chilli flakes, bonito and seaweed strips, touched with a little sweetness and chilli heat.

The Sriracha Chicken Boxing made sweet and spicy bites. The deepfried chicken drummettes had been tossed in that Thai chilli sauce, dried chillies, curry leaves and a drizzle of honey. Garlic Prawns, which had tiger prawns sauteed with smoked paprika, finished with lemon juice and Italian chilli flakes, turned out well, with balanced flavours.

Slices of Smoked Duck Breast, lightly torched and served on a bed of shiitake slices and edamame were tender and tasted good with the vegetables.  Deepfried Softshell Crabs with a Vietnamese dip were just ordinary.

Spanish Meatballs with herbed tomato sauce and goat cheese were soft and doughy. The Seafood Croquette tasted like a fish cake.

Okra Thai Salad was fresh and welcoming, with its unusual combination of sauteed okra, white pearl corn, lettuce and beef bacon tossed in a tangy Thai dressing. It had a sprinkling of chopped bunga kantan, giving a fragrant aroma to the salad.

The best of the four main courses we chose had to be the Lamb Rack, served with truffle mash and creamy aioli. The lamb, seared to medium, was juicy and tender. It was well paired with the flavourful aioli and the truffle mashed potatoes.

Chicken Piemontese which had chicken breast stuffed with sundried tomato pesto and mozzarella cheese, crumbed and deepfried, fell a little short in its flavour. It could have been better with cheddar added to the mozzarella to give it that saltish lift. The chicken was served with truffle angel hair.

Our medium rare Miyazaki Wagyu Tenderloin was perfect as it was, without any embellishments. It didn’t need the rather sharp yuzu chimichurri dip,  The arugula salad with tomato and goat cheese sufficed.

The Softshell Crab Sambal Linguine was tossed in a rather hot and pungent sambal oelek and mushrooms. It was not really my favourite.

We all loved the rich and fudgy Chocolate Brownie, its sweetness tempered with a little sea salt sprinkled on it.  I found the Churros topped with cinnamon icing and served with a white chocolate dip a little limp.

The Sago Mango Pannacotta was a little odd with the sago but I liked the mango with it. It has two private rooms, one of dining and the other for karaoke.

Sarastro KL is located on 8^th Floor Tribeca Serviced Hotel, 215 Jalan Imbi, Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur, tel: 03-2727 2280, 014 327 3889. It opens at 5pm and is closed on Sunday.

 

 

 

 

,