One good meal always leads to another, and last Tuesday I had the good fortune (yet again, YAY!), of tagging along as FoodieAdam's plus one to try out the dinner menu at highly popular, local icon, Naim, in Paddington. I had been super excited for this all week, heading there straight after a long day's work, we were early for our 6pm reservation.
We were promptly seated by the super friendly staff. The setup hadn't really changed much from its Shouk days, which made sense as it was still a Middle Eastern inspired restaurant.
Menus were soon provided. One drinks menu with a bar menu on the back was provided along with a dinner menu. Options were concise but covered all essential proteins and also had a vegetarian option.
Our drinks were first to arrive. We shared both the Arabian Night and the Persian Sour. While the Arabian Night was sweet with a light hint of mint and very pretty, my favourite was the Persian Sour, as the pineapple juice really added some zing to the drink which in turn made it very appetising.
The first of our food to arrive was a shared platter. We had originally ordered the duck pate board, but that was sold out. Chef Vince took that as the perfect opportunity to let us try his experimental beef brisket. It was served with tasty bread, sultana salad and a mustard sauce. We found it to be flavoursome and delicious, with sweet and spicy tones. The brisket was surprisingly firm, but still broke away with ease.
After our entrees, our mains soon came out. We had the beef and chicken that evening.
Iron Fist, who desperately wanted to come that evening and loves his middle eastern food, told me that no matter what, I had to try the Tabbouleh, which we did in the dish of Crispy Skin Chicken Breast. The tabbouleh was heavier than a normal salad, and not as crispy. Nevertheless, it provided the balance that only vegetables could give when paired with three gigantic pieces of chicken breast. I loved the firm but moist texture, contrasted with the crispy skin.
Our other main was the Flat Iron Steak, served with Jerusalem Artichokes, Tomato Raisins and Smoked Jus. It was cooked medium rare by default, which was rare enough for me, any more well done wouldn't have been. I loved the smoky tomatoes which were fresh and light on the moist meaty texture of the tender beef. Coupled with the rich sour cream, it made for a very well balanced, delectable plate.
When the dessert menu came out, I could see Adam's eyes flash with glee. Always the dessert addict, he called the shots for dessert (subject to my approval of course).
First dessert was the Semifreddo made up of dark chocolate pie, roasted peanut crumble and halva. I found it to be quite an intense chocolate hit that wasn't excessively sweet. The frozen custard was as rich and creamy as you would expect, the shaved halva and peanut crumble added layers of texture to it.
Our second and final dessert was the Peaches n Cream Pavalova, which contained maple roasted peaches, Baharat Cream and Lemon Meringue on top of a bed of warm ricotta. Much lighter than the semifreddo, it was both sharp due to the lemon meringue as well as comforting from the warm ricotta. A dish of contrasts which went down very well.
Taste: 7.5/10
Value: 7/10
Service: 9/10
Environment: 8/10
No comments:
Post a Comment