Run by the phenomenally successful Victor Drai, who took the restaurant and nightclub world by storm in Las Vegas, Rare is an intriguing, flamboyant restaurant, located on the enviable Sunset Plaza Strip.
Its decadent all-black exterior is carefully balanced with its flamboyant personality on the interior. A delicately lit dining room, with the burning glow of candles creating a pleasant warm atmosphere, is complimented by art deco paintings and the satisfying hue of large circular red chandeliers intelligently placed over the floor.
“The entire evening was a delight.”
After taking our seats, we ordered two intriguingly named cocktails. As you will know by now, cocktails are always pleasures, but particularly when the mixologist truly has a passion for his craft. Interview with a Vampire, with its vodka base and chilli infused St Germain, berries and jalapeño blew us away with its delicate heat, whilst the delightfully named On Sunset, created with tequila, chilli infused St Germain, honey, lemon and ginger delivered the sweet heat we were looking for. Both were crafted to perfection.
It was soon time for our attention to turn to the food, which we could only hope would be as intrinsically delivered as the pre-dinner drinks. Taking in our surroundings, the tableware was immaculate; the servers presented themselves perfectly, and the evening was topped off by the ambient music playing in the background.
To start, we ordered a mixture of four of their recommended dishes: spicy Pacific tuna tartare - a perfectly balanced dish containing chilli, shallot, avocado and crunchy taro; crispy calamari -lightly dusted and sautéed with fresh garlic - cooked very well and easy to palette; the seasonal sou - a fantastic combination of yellow tomato, grape tomatoes, crostini and micro basil was flavoursome yet refreshing. However, the pièce de résistance was the chilled heirloom watermelon, with honey-thyme and goat’s cheese. A taste sensation I can only highly recommend.
Impressed by what had already passed, the anticipation for main courses was growing by the second. The first order of the day was crispy skin Skuna Bay salmon, dressed with sweet corn, zucchini, edamame, grape tomato, peppers, and lemon beurre blanc. The lemon butter was the perfect accompaniment for the variety of flavours, and was very well matched with the light, yet delicious salmon.
The second dish, a 7oz fillet steak with grilled shrimp and a burgundy reduction, was cooked to perfection. Tender, juicy and full of flavour, the steak by itself wouldn’t have been out of place. Combined with the grilled shrimp and fruity burgundy reduction however, it delivered the perfect “Surf ‘n’ Turf” combination.
Both dishes were accompanied by an array of side dishes, including caramelised Brussels sprouts, macaroni and cheese and Yukon Gold mashed potato, all of which added to the wonderful flavours we had encountered across the evening.
We were recommended the Fèlsina, Chianti Classico Riserva, Siena Italia, 2009 as the wine of choice, based on our dish selection, and we certainly weren’t disappointed.
Unfortunately, we were unable to manage dessert, but the entire evening was a delight. We would highly recommend Rare to anyone.
The Bill: £68 per head
