Lavista Restaurant: Great Food and Ambience

by Iyath Adam

For our ‘Eating Out’ article this time, we visit Lavista Restaurant, located on Hithigas Magu, Male’, near the Bridge View Platform.

Although Lavista Restaurant has been open for some time, this was our first visit to the place, and we were excited to try out their dishes!

Walking in, the first thing you notice is that the place is quite big; two floors with indoor and outdoor seating on both levels. The interior is quite sleek with overheard wood panelling, bold light fixtures, and lots of green plants all around. On the ground floor, there is also a Baskin Robbins ice cream counter with fan favourite flavours such as Mississippi Mud and Three Cheers Chocolate.

We opted to sit in the inside area of the first floor. The servers were quite fast, and we were promptly provided with a menu.

There were a great many options at Lavista Restaurant, from different pasta, rice, and side dishes along with a Thai corner. A special list of mocktails were also in the drinks menu, as well as coffees, teas and such.

We chose to go with a mango mule mocktail along with a chicken satay appetizer and two main dishes; beef broccoli sizzler and Thai seafood fried rice. The sizzler option was available with either fried rice or plain white rice, and we went with the latter.

First to arrive was the drink. A mixture of mango puree, cucumber slices, lime juice and ginger beer, the mango mule mocktail was refreshing – tangy and slightly sweet with the distinct, crisp taste of the cucumber coming through too. The drink was also very cool to look at when served, with the contrasting layers of the clear, icy soda layer above the mango puree and cucumbers.

Then, came the chicken satay appetizer with a side of peanut sauce. Although the dish was quite different to traditional chicken satay – with flatter pieces of chicken and a spicier peanut sauce – the taste was quite satisfying. The sauce was less sweet and more on the spicy side, but nevertheless went well with the mildly savoury flavour of the chicken. Certainly, a good start to the meal!

Now, for the mains!

The beef broccoli was made in a black pepper sauce and the portion was big enough for two people. The sauce was flavoursome and peppery with lots of tender pieces of beef, broccoli, bell pepper, celery, and mushrooms. When eaten with the plain white rice, the taste was well balanced, and not overpowering at all.

The Thai seafood fried rice was tasty and pleasant with lots of seafood and veggies in it. Definitely a good choice to go for if you want something hearty and filling.

Generally speaking, the ambience and food at Lavista Restaurant was great, and we’re looking forward to going back and trying more from their menu!