Fine Dining at A restoran

A restoran, located at Banani is a new fine dining experience that offers a variety of European dishes. Owned by the lovely couple Ashfaq and Mehzabin, the restaurant is themed in a nineteenth century style with iron chandeliers and complementing old school interior design. Coupled with soothing jazz music, it is a wonderful escape from the overcrowded spots and offers a quieter and classier dining environment. 

For starters, you can order the French Onion Soup that is freshly prepared and served with toasted bread and grated cheddar. Also recommended is their Prawn Mayo Sandwich, which comes with Prawn tossed in mayonnaise and finely chopped green leaves served on toasted homemade brown bread.  The Chef's Special for the appetiser is the Chicken Schinitzel, which is a chicken cutlet served with homemade coleslaw. 

Other European appetisers include the Patatas Bravas, which is a baked potato with Spanish chilli and tomato sauce, the Chicken Liver Pate - a French Entrée - made with chicken liver and blended with many herbs and olive oil and served with toasted bread as well as the Chorizo and Bean Stew which is Italian sausages pan fried, cooked in tomato sauce and served with white beans and homemade bread. 

If you however want something lighter for your appetiser, you can order the Greek Salad. The Greek salad is a blend of fresh lettuce, garden fresh tomato and cucumber mixed with extra virgin olive oil, black and green olives and feta cheese, is the perfect way to start your dining experience in A restoran and will leave you ready and wanting more.  

The owners who are also the chefs of A restoran were heavily inspired by the English famous hotspots such as the Carlton and Ritz and thus offer an outdoor section dedicated to the English afternoon tea. The tea menu offers a wide selection of flavoured twining tea that is served with an assortment of tea sandwiches including smoked salmon and capers as well as assortment of sweets that include lemon and tartlets, shortbread cookies, Victoria sponge cake and a lemon drizzled mini-loaf.

The chef's recommended dishes for the main course includes the T-Bone Steak cooked and served with mashed or roasted potatoes , white beans and béarnaise sauce. You can also try out their Rump Steak, Butter Poached Lobster and Chicken Roulade. 

The lobster is the best you can find in the Bay of Bengal and is butter poached and served with creamy lobster bisque and pan seared scallops. The chicken Roulade is a deboned chicken rolled up with special herbs and stuffing and served with sautéed vegetables and an exquisite beurre blanc sauce.

For desserts, the Ultimate Crème Bruilee and the Lemon Polenta Cake with Crème Anglaise is highly recommended. The Crème Bruilee is a creamy, rich custard base topped with contrasting layers of hard caramel while the Lemon Polenta Cake is a moreish dessert cake with polenta and a hint of lemon. Another fantastic desert item you can try out is the Jumble Berry Crumble! A personal favourite, the Berry Crumble is a mix of berries with short bread and crumble topping that is served with your choice of ice cream or whipped cream.

A restoran is a welcome change of pace from the usual overcrowded restaurants. They offer a unique variety of dishes and also offer their customers an altogether different dining experience. If you are looking for a quieter evening with only your friends, some wonderful music and some European tastes then A restoran is definitely for you! You might enter the restaurant very hungry but you will exit the restaurant satisfied and surprising, inspired. 

By Naveed Naushad  
Photo: Sazzad Ibne Sayed