Stepping ‘into’ Lemon for the first time after what had been another hectic day at work I was immediately rewarded with an ambience that is easily the closest thing to perfect for a hungry journalist looking to wind down.

If you’re visiting Lemon, make sure to take in the soft mood lighting, simplistic décor and chilled out tunes. While you’re at it, here are some food picks.

My evening meal commenced with two starters: Crab Cakes with sweet chili and mustard sauce & Prawn Balls with coriander sauce

I tried the crab cakes first and they really were quite tasty but the star of the starters were the Prawn balls. Tasty on their own and with their respective sauces, the choice of coriander sauce, I think, was inspired and really complemented the flavour and texture of the Prawn balls exceptionally well.

Next up was the Prawn and Spinach Soup. Let’s get this out of the way first. Order this soup, it is phenomenal. I generally have a bit of a love hate relationship with prawns and pure hatred for spinach and the idea of the two in soup isn’t something that would normally appeal to me but I put my faith in Chef Koluu’s hands as should you.

From the first taste I was amazed and the spicy flavours which were done just so as to not overpower the prawns which were of course present in very generous portions, blended in with a subtle taste of spinach that does just enough to actually be a vital component of the whole dish. On a whole the soup is very much leaning towards the Thai spectrum of cooking, especially with regards to the spice and of course the prawns.

One bowl of soup later and I was near certain that more food would not be required despite what looked like a small portion. At Lemon you will soon come to realize that what appears like small portions are actually very generous ones and you will leave stuffed. For my main course I tried the Leg of Roast Lamb Stuffed with Apricots and served with orange sauce, Mediterranean potatoes and a mixed salad.

Now this was an interesting dish, particularly for my palette which is generally suited to excess chili with any kind of meat. This dish was however far more complex. The lamb itself was prepared to perfection; however the apricots in combination with the orange sauce lend a whole other layer to the dish. Not exactly sweet and full of a sort of dry herb flavour, it was certainly different and I say this in the best way possible. If you’re the type who’s been consuming a series of different curries with rice, the majority of your life, then this dish may be just the kind of difference that you’re looking for.

Whilst the starters, soup, and main courses were significantly above par, if there was one thing that sold me (and this might be heavily influenced by this reviewer's severe cravings for all things sweet) it was the White Chocolate and Cardamom Mousse. From the first bite, I was in heaven; I had not even realized how well the pure sweetness of white chocolate could complement the exotic taste of cardamom until now, all of it topped with a heavy dusting of extremely tasty chocolate powder. Exotic and comfortingly familiar at the same time, this dish comes very highly recommended.

Lemon also doubles as a stylish place to have drinks, and I’m pretty sure more people will catch on to the fact from July 1 when you can expect a sharp upswing in traffic to the bar for its daily happy hour from 5-7pm.

If the service at happy hour is anything like their dinner service (and I’m certain you needn’t expect anything less) then you can also look forward to some varied cocktails with none of the waiting around that many other bars in the city are infamous for.

The restaurant also offers a lunchtime menu for those of you looking to get in from the heat for a pleasant and relaxed meal and I’m told that the restaurant also does catering for parties, both large and small, with a wide selection of menus. Overall, a trip to Lemon is something that you might well owe yourself, and you may want them listed down in your address book as well.

(Reviewed by Channa Fernandopulle)