Sarma – No.4

We really enjoyed Oleana, the last Middle-Eastern restaurant we dined at.  So Sarma, a Turkish inspired restaurant, seemed the perfect choice for a birthday dinner.  It’s another small plates style restaurant where they recommend 2-3 dishes per person, meaning that once again we get to sample and share lots of different things…something we never have a problem with…bring it on.

While we were deciding what to order, we were brought over some warm flat-breads to start us off, perfectly packaged in a paper bag, and as we were somewhat hungry, we dove in.  Note…bread is a filler.  Don’t overdo the bread! Remember –  2-3 courses per person!  Save room for the yummy food!    Sarma has an extra twist though.  In addition to the menu, wait staff come around and offer nightly specials at the table…more temptations. and more food.  We couldn’t resist partaking in the freshly made stuffed eggs when they were offered, and at a mere $4, it was a no-brainer.  It was great fun watching all the additional food trays going around and added to the bustle and entertainment in the restaurant.Once again we needed a glossary to explain some of the dishes, which was conveniently provided. How about a Butternut Squash Pastitsio served with truffle and a Puttanesca.  A Pastitsio ,we read, is a baked pasta dish usually served with meat and a béchamel sauce (or as they described it mac ‘n’ cheese). Our dish was with the squash instead of the meat and was served in individual cubes which were then breadcrumbed and deep fried – genius.  The addition of truffle and the puttanesca (a garlicky tomato sauce) added to it.  I mean when is truffle too much?

I had read about the cornbread at Sarma, I know it sounds strange to order cornbread at a middle-eastern restaurant, but this version, thick and with feta, hot peppers, sesame and honey, was A-maze-ing.  Quite filling too.  Hmm – we might not make the 2-3 dishes per person.We did manage to squeeze in some Monkfish Dolmades and lamb loin chops, but honestly the cornbread really did fill us up.  We had no regrets though, it was absolutely more-ish and something I would recommend – I think it’s that sweet savoury thing again that the Americans do so well (memories of the Johnny Cakes at Neptune…mmm)

Dolmades – something stuffed , usually pepper, tomato, aubergine or onion. 

I got a little confused by this as our monkfish appeared to be wrapped in cabbage leaves, which then leads to the name of the restaurant:

Sarma – something wrapped.  Popular choices are vine leaves, swiss chard or cabbage.

Let’s not nit-pick.  The food was great, I only wish we could have sampled more.  But once again, I would not have sacrificed the cornbread.