Built into a loft-style space above the retail hub of Swanston Street, the gruelling flight of stairs climbed to reach Sahara ensures you work off what food you are about to eat. Once inside, however, it is quite an oasis: stained glass lanterns, indoor wall-plants, exposed bricks and raw-wood tables make this place feel more like a comfortable rainforest than a desert. Close to city campuses, this cafe is a favoured hangout for post-lecture refreshment with Sahara's renowned pear juice/frangelico combination.
The food is gourmet and international in flavour with a variety of mains, desserts and sides available. The antipasto platter (roasted garlic, skewered rosemary mushrooms, Hellenic yoghurt balls and hot Turkish bread) is a favourite with drinkers but those after something more fulfilling will not be disappointed - Turkish bread pizza, steaks, burgers, pasta dishes and a tasty mixed grill combination are all on offer too. Casual but classy, Sahara makes a nice destination for afternoon tea, dinner and drinks or a flirty first date.
Maya Linden
Open
m
t
w
t
f
s
s
Breakfast
Lunch
O
O
O
O
O
O
Dinner
O
O
O
O
O
O
Late
O
O
O
O
O
O
Tue-Thu noon-11pm Fri-Sat noon-1am Sun noon-11pm
Cafe and International
Entree: $6-$8
Mains: $12-$25
Dessert: $7
Payment accepted: MasterCard, Visa and EFTPOS
All reviews and ratings are the expressed opinions of our users, and in no way reflects the opinions of yourRestaurants, its staff and its affiliates.
Posted by:
Angry diner
|
25 June 2010, 2.42pm
Give it a miss
The good: 1) Koftas - nice; 2) Turkish bread with dips - excellent; 3) Chickpea dish with mezze - nice; 4) Great view onto Bourke Street, albeit with a freezing breeze blowing through the glass slats. 5) Music was good but unfortunately it was muted by our concerns over the following bad points.
The bad (lots): 1) The sundried tomatoes tasted off - they had an awful taste to start with, followed by a tangy aftertaste. We brought this to the attention of the staff, who returned rather defensively to say they are freshly prepared today and it must be the marinade. So we said the marinade must be off. Eventually our concerns were heard and we were appeased with the bread and dips which were excellent. 2) Very limited menu options and BEWARE the lunch options! They are the same as what's on the regular menu at a lower price, but it's no discount; you get less food! 3) We were the first customers at lunchtime (1215) but the service was excruciatingly slow. Given we ordered everything at once, we would have expected to be there no longer than 30-45 mins, but it was over an hour. 4) The lamb tagine with cous cous and pomegranate is a bit of a misnomer. There was hardly any meat contained therein and of what was there, 25% or more was fat. Also, I might have had THREE pomegranate seeds through the entire dish. It wasn't exactly a pleasant surprise when the waitress removed the lid! At $19.50, it's a complete rip-off! 5) The meat in lamb kebab wrap that comes with the (scaled-down) lunchtime mezze was a little chewy.
Food:
Visit: Fri 25 June 2010
Mealtime: lunch
Service:
Atmosphere:
Posted by:
nom-nom-nom
|
3 November 2009, 11.14pm
Go for the atmosphere, not neccessarily for the food..
Its great to be able to sit with a view of swnaston street without feeling like you're dying from passive smoke. As Sahara doesn't have a balcony on the first floor (we didn't venture upstairs to the wine bar), the window seats are the best in the house. Being a week night, there were only a few other diners, but its easy to see the palce packed on a weekend.
Ambience is great, although we would have liked to see a few more offerings on the menu. Mains are priced around the $20 mark, which may be due more to location and ambience than actual quality. However, there were no real complaints with the lamb stew and 'Moroccan' fish and chips; just nothing outstanding. Presentation could also be worked on
Service was good, though the food didn't tempt me to go back anytime soon. I really wanted to love this place, so hoping we just made unfortunate menu choices..
Food:
Visit: Tue 3 November 2009
Mealtime: dinner
Service:
Atmosphere:
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