Located in Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur, Tarma claims to be a restaurant that serves Iraqi street food. I've never been to Iraq myself, so I can't verify the label but I'm going to assume it's 'authentic'. If I'm not mistaken, it also seems to be a family-owned restaurant, as all the staff members I saw were foreigners.
Location and Ambience
If you plan to head there, I do not recommend driving. We had to pay RM10 to the questionable parking attendant to park. As for the restaurant itself, the outside had a few people smoking shisha, while the inside was quite quaint with middle-eastern styled decorations and colours.
The eating utensils and teacups, in particular, had a distinctive style, which helped build the shop's ambience. And as previously mentioned, all the staff seemed of Iraqi descent and were friendly enough. So, in terms of ambience, it was a pleasant experience that managed to build the illusion that you're sitting down somewhere foreign.
The Food Itself
The first thing I should point out is that the portion is massive. And if that wasn't enough, most of the dishes come with rice and bread, which are refillable. Unfortunately, my friends and I were too full to take the offer. But you know, it's a good thing the portions are sizeable because food and drinks for one person will average around RM40.
The taste though? I'm Malay, and I typically eat my food drenched in 'kuah' or sauce (for the rare chance someone non-Malaysian reads my blog). I find that many things I ate there seemed too dry for my tongue. That being said, I did enjoy the Tashreeb, lamb shank cooked in red tomato sauce. So if you're like me, I recommend anything saucy.
The Takeaway
While I didn't enjoy the eating experience as much as I would have liked, it's important to point out the possibility that 'authentic' Iraqi food is not for me. I'm sure someone with a different palette would wholly enjoy the food served at Tarma. After all, the restaurant managed to thrive all this time by keeping true to its flavours.
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