Amira Ragab enjoyed delicious food at Sash Café on a slow afternoon and didn’t regret a single second of it. A journey to the café in Riffa, on the far side of the island, reveals a masterclass in neoclassical elegance and culinary ambition that is well worth the drive.

Commuting to the far side of the island is not always what I do – I am, by preference, a creature of habit and most at home in my own neighbourhood. When the chance to visit Riffa as a passenger princess came calling, saying no was simply never an option – particularly with Sash Café on the agenda, a name that had been on everyone’s lips for all the right reasons: the food, the atmosphere and that effortlessly polished service.

We began, rather gloriously, with a transgression: a dish borrowed from the breakfast menu, which runs until two o’clock, and therefore requires no apology whatsoever. The Trio of Bruschetta arrived as three distinct compositions on toasted bread, each making its own quiet argument. The grilled halloumi with pesto was charming, the balsamic avocado, composed. But it was the bruschetta crowned with pepperonata and feta that stopped conversation entirely – the sweet, slow-cooked peppers yielding against the salt of the cheese in a combination so straightforward and so right that one wonders why it isn’t on every menu in the Gulf.

From the appetisers, the Signature Black & White Nachos delivered exactly what great sharing food should: a perfectly calibrated crunch, grilled chicken treated with evident respect, Pico de Gallo with enough acidity to cut through the richness of the Monterey Jack cheese and guacamole that tasted as though it had been made moments before reaching the table. Addictive in the most unapologetic sense.

As a truffle devotee, I had already decided on the Mushroom & Cheese Flatbread even before the menu had fully been set down. It was, indeed, the dish I found myself blabbering about on the drive home – a sour cream base enriched with cheese and sweet onions, generously piled with wild mushrooms and finished with a whisper of truffle that managed to be present without being showy. It is the kind of thing that quietly ruins you for lesser versions. I will be returning for this alone.

Sash Café’s Charming Ambience

Between courses, we paused to properly take in the room – and the room, it must be said, rewards the attention. Sash Café is the sort of place that makes you want to linger considerably longer than planned: a space that layers European neoclassical grandeur with quietly clever contemporary touches, all executed with genuine conviction.

Louis XV bergère armchairs in champagne gold flank sculptural brass coffee tables of an almost liquid, free-form quality, while deeply tufted, plum Chesterfields and a bold black-and-white marble chequerboard floor give the space a pleasing tension between the classical and the bold. Overhead, elaborate plasterwork ceiling roses frame cascading crystal chandeliers, casting everything in warm, honeyed light.

The masterstroke, however, is a wall-mounted baroque shadow box, housing a curated assembly of porcelain birds – an unexpectedly poetic detail in a place that could so easily have settled for mere opulence. It hasn’t.

Flavourful Gourmet Main Courses

Back to the food. The Honey Mustard Chicken Salad arrived with the quiet confidence of something that knows it has nothing to prove – grilled chicken, heirloom tomatoes, toasted almonds, peppery arugula and baby spinach, all brought together by Sash’s own honey mustard dressing. Refreshing, substantial and brilliant. A full meal on a plate – as a salad should always aspire to be but so rarely is.

My companion, drawn towards something with a little more street-food spirit, chose the Chef’s Sliders – homemade beef patties in brioche buns with cheddar, tomato chutney and peppercorn mayo, served alongside fries. The verdict was delivered between bites rather than after: gourmet instincts, approachable execution, thoroughly satisfying.

The mains, when they arrived, were the sort that remind you why you dine out in the first place. The Signature Chicken & Wild Mushroom Risotto – creamy, generous, perfumed with garlic and thyme and finished with Parmesan – was a reliably beautiful classic; the sort of dish that earns its place on a menu by simply being exactly what it promises.

The Chicken Piccata, however, was the table’s unanimous favourite. Deeply savoury, pan-seared Parmesan-crusted chicken breast with a shatteringly crisp crust, served alongside slow-roasted crushed potatoes – yielding within, golden at the edges – and finished with a sweet sundried tomato glaze and butternut. It arrived looking like something between a painting and a promise, and delivered entirely on both.

Refreshing Beverages and Signature Desserts

Throughout the meal, the drinks wove themselves into the experience with pleasing ease. The Mint Lemonade mocktail served as the palate’s punctuation mark – bright, bracingly fresh, resetting us neatly between courses. The Watermelon Peach Iced Tea was a genuine revelation, a signature I had not encountered before and shall most certainly seek out again. The Strawberry Mojito arrived made to perfection, and the Rose Latte, ordered by my companion, garnered the sort of focussed, contented appreciation that speaks louder than any enthusiasm.

No proper meal ends without dessert, and Sash obliges magnificently. The Sash Signature Skillet Cookie – warm, freshly baked, chocolate-chip-studded and crowned with vanilla ice cream – is the kind of pudding that produces an involuntary smile. The Biscoff Lotus Delight crêpe, with its Lotus biscuit crumbs, brown sugar and mascarpone, was elevated entirely by those crumbs – a textural masterstroke that transformed a good crêpe into a genuinely memorable one.

Sash Café knows precisely what it is, and is thoroughly, admirably unapologetic about it – in its interiors, its service and, most importantly, on the plate. The journey to Riffa, it turns out, was entirely worth it. It always is when the destination is this good.

GO: CALL 1789 9991 FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TO MAKE A RESERVATION.