A Cantonese Ha Gow of steamed prawn dumpling, a Vietnamese salad of thinly sliced beef tossed with star fruit, fragrant mint leaves and green papaya with vermicelli noodles, peanuts and nuoc cham, an Indian Dahl of yellow lentils slowly cooked in ghee with cumin and fresh coriander, simple Indonesian Curry Puffs stuffed with potato and green peas, Chicken Martabak with pickled cucumber and sambal manis, Peking Duck strips with cucumber and spring onion rolled in manadarin pancakes dipped in a perfect hoisin made in the kitchen and not from a bottle as in most 'Chinese' restaurants in Bali; black and gooey, not grey and sickly sweet!
This new venture to showcase the culinary talents of Will Meyrick has been so eagerly awaited for so long that the result could have been an anti-climax! It is not!
The regular 'foodies' of Bali [expats and tourists alike] were well aware of what Will can achieve with Thai cuisine after his exploits in opening Husk at Sofitel and Blossom at Sentosa, but the addition of Malay Indian, Vietnamese, Indonesian and Cantonese dim sum to the menu presents the Bali dining scene with feast of Asian tastes rarely ever found in the one location and certainly not at this quality level. Another first for Bali!
The Thai touch is still there of course. Thai food as it should be with vividly contrasting dishes that are alternately sweet, sour, salty or hot. Pungent flavours to attack your senses, and titillate the taste buds. The intensely sweet Pork Hocks, pieces of pork stir fried with tamarind and tamarillo till crunchily perfect. Beef slowly braised in a Penang curry with chilli, peanuts and Thai basil, the beef so tender yet a millions miles from bland.
The enormous menu causes a major problem that can only be solved by many repeat visits. Every item sounds so good, with the presented dish following through, that the talent is to order a spread of dishes that contrast and compliment each other. No mean feat as too much of the same taste spoils the end result.
The stylish and spacious bar and lounge area has it own Sarong Tapas menu, a mix of Asian style tapas and Dim Sum. All finger, chopstick or fork dishes. A perfect example is the simple sounding, but outstanding, Ha Gow of Spinach, young leaves wrapped around chopped garlic, chives and crunchy water chestnuts, served in their steamer basket, on the side a homemade chilli sauce and a 'wow' sauce of red Chinese vinegar and ginger!
Old favourites abound on the Thai menu. Betel Leaves topped with salmon, shrimp galangal and coriander, or with raw tuna, lemongrass, shallots and lemon basil. Egg Nets, a David Thompson standard, a net of egg rolled around a mix of pork, coconut, caramel bean, sprouts, ginger and peanuts. The Grilled Scallops served in a tasting spoon, topped with shreds of sweet crispy duck mixed with Thai basil, young coconut and a peanut nahm jim, cause sighs of contentment from every table.
Will's signature dish, or one of them, is his Salad of Crispy Salmon with watermelon, mint, Thai basil, roasted chilli and a shallot dressing. Not far behind is the Salad of Steamed Prawns with pomelo, garlic, lemongrass, mint and nahm jim.
The Indian dishes on this menu are also excellent. A Lamb Rogan Josh curry with yoghurt, cinnamon, paprika and garam masala and a Vindaloo of Pork Belly with potato, nutmeg, cardamom and chilli lead the way. How can you describe a curry as luscious? Well that is the word that comes to mind when first tasting the Butter Chicken. Large chunks of tender chicken from the tandoor, immersed in that buttery sauce, with quarters of Roti Canai on the side for dipping into the sauce. Or for wrapping around the meat, dunking in the sauce, and eating with your fingers in true Indian style.
Even the simple stir fries are full of contrasting tastes. Squid with cashew nuts, chilli jam, galangal, wing beans and Thai basil, Chicken with ginger, cashew nuts, baby corn and green shallots, Beef with chilli, garlic, black beans, snow peas and asparagus.
Seafood gets the same treatment. Snapper is perfectly grilled over coconut embers after being marinated in turmeric, lime juice and lemongrass, Sulawesi style, a touch of sambal matah in the topping adds to the flavour. Or Snapper in a Thai green curry with Thai basil, okra and pea eggplant. Ajwaini Fish Tikka cooked in saffron, cardamom, turmeric and chilli. The fiery Sichuan cured Tuna [large slabs] topped with finely grated carrot diakon, sweet basil peanuts and a Chinese plum sauce is one of the star attractions and not to be missed.
To finish on a sweet note the sample plates of Indian and S.E. Asian Desserts is a must! Durian Pancakes, Duck Egg and Ginger custard with palm sugar caramel or Taro Cakes with crispy shallot and mandarin with fig compote are just examples.
With such a menu of vastly different cuisine backgrounds it is only to be expected that the staff training [kitchen and waiters] must take some time but with food this sensational even the occasional mistake would be quickly forgiven. Even though they tried to have an extended soft opening during their staff training period it did not work out that way as Sarong has been busy every evening since it opened. Two months old and Sarong is already one of the great restaurants of Bali. What an achievement!
Reservations are almost essential.
Yet another example of just how lucky we are to be living in Bali. To be able to enjoy feasts like this and at these prices makes us the envy of Asia, and the world!
