Restaurant review: Lush, Larnaca

By Andreas Vou

A restaurant located right on the beach might not strike one as the ideal place to go in mid-November but the vast array of options makes it as appealing now as it is at the height of the summer. When it comes to seaside restaurants in Cyprus, you are spoiled for choice yet there are fewer better options in Larnaca than Lush Beach Bar & Restaurant, where there is just about something for everybody.

Makenzy has, over the last ten years or so, gone from just a little-known strip containing a handful of old-fashioned taverns to being absolutely filled with modern beach bars and eateries. While the ones that have emerged in the last couple of years seem as though they are trying to jump on a trend, Lush stands out from the crowd.

There is a distinct ambience in Lush which you feel upon entering the vast indoor area, with very open colours along the surrounding walls, several rows of white dining tables and classic wooden chairs with soft, elegant music playing in the background.

A similar formation is replicated outside consisting primarily of large, comfortable couches as well as the traditional set of stools surrounding the outside bar but while it remains perfectly fine in the day time it is no longer as popular at night when the temperature drops significantly.

The restaurant offers an amazing variety of both traditional dishes as well as increasingly popular foreign dishes. You can find just about anything on the menu, from traditional burgers to pasta dishes, from souvlaki to seafood. Particularly, however, Lush stands out for having its very own sushi section which contains just about any type of sushi one could want and have platters ranging from 12 pieces to 42, from €14 to €42 respectively, depending on one’s appetite.

In the end, I went for the pumpkin soup (€5) as a starter, a rich and tasty offering served with croutons and fresh cream. In order to try a bit of everything, we opted to share a Cretan salad – barley crisp rolls with freshly diced tomatoes, capers, dry onion, feta cheese crumbs and fresh mint, drizzled with olive oil – as well as a wild mushroom risotto (€9.60) – a very rich, creamy dish packed with flavour – the maturity of the cheese in this dish was rather intense.

For main, the Bisque Sea Bass was too tempting to turn down (€16) – a dish containing roasted marinated sea bass fillet served in bisque sauce. The sauce was rather creamy but smooth nonetheless while the dish was met with sauté spinach and black tortellini along with a smoked salmon filling.

The all-round service was good in terms of politeness and the ability to give suggestions in regard to certain food preferences though going at a busy time meant that it was not the quickest. And while the quality of food was, and always tends to be, excellent, it can be rather pricey.

For those who like to wind down after a big meal, their selection of cocktails is unique in comparison to the offerings that found at most beach bars and are definitely worth a try.

The general experience was a pleasant one, from quality of food to its aesthetically pleasing interior and good service, and while its rather expensive dishes might make it difficult for it to become one’s regular eatery, it is certainly a great place to try out.

VITAL STATISTICS

SPECIALTY: Seafood (€16-€24)

WHERE: Makenzy beach, Larnaca

CONTACT: 70008089

PRICE: €35 per person