Marco Polo Lavishes Its Riches In Redmond

Marco Polo: 115 Bel-Red Road, Redmond; lunch, Mon.-Fri. 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m.; dinner, Mon.-Sat. 4-10 p.m., Sun. 3-9 p.m. MC and Visa. Smoking section. Reservations: 641-1174. ------------------------------------------------------------ If you are a serious restaurant explorer you've probably ventured north to Marco Polo in Lynnwood. But now fans and neophytes won't have to trek beyond the Eastside to find the same eclectic menu and savory dishes.

Owner-chef Abdul Karim Qureshi serves an even grander feast of Italian, Middle Eastern and Pakistani specialties at his new restaurant in Redmond, where lunch as well as dinner is served.

The second Marco Polo is larger and more impressive than the original tucked away in a strip mall off Highway 99. Archways of latticework and richly colored fabric with a trace of gold are subtle reminders of Silk Road treasures.

If your table isn't ready when you walk in, you can study a wall map tracing Marco Polo's 13th century route from Venice to the mouth of the Persian Gulf, through present-day Afghanistan and Pakistan, across the Gobi Desert and to the court of Mongolian Emperor Kublai Khan.

The restaurant is selective about re-creating Marco Polo's culinary adventures - lucky for us, considering Marco Polo's glum description of crossing the Gobi: "'Tis all composed of hills and valleys of sand, and not a thing to eat to be found on it."

No such problem at his local namesake. I was eager to try the second Marco Polo restaurant because I've never been disappointed by the food at the original restaurant, and I've barely made a dent in exploring the menu. My favorite dish - lamb buryani - was just as tasty and interesting as the first time I was served this mix of fragrant basmati rice, chunks of tender lamb, herbs and spices, garbanzo beans, raisins and almond slivers.

My companion - who doesn't eat meat - was faced with a meager choice between vegetarian curry and fettuccine Alfredo until we conferred with the waitress, who expanded an appetizer offering into an entree. The result was a melt-in-your mouth eggplant ricotta dish. Thin slices of eggplant are sauteed, filled with a rich mixture of cheese and tangy tomato sauce, and then rolled into a dish that proves the beauty of eggplant is more than skin deep.

What makes Marco Polo such a delightful place is the care that goes not only into the main dishes, but also into the side dishes and sauces. I found myself spooning up the remains of the honey mustard dressing even after my salad greens were long gone. The chutney sauce, a blend of jalepeno, onion and yogurt, is a peppy sidekick to pakhora, an appetizer of vegetable morsels dipped in a spicy garbanzo flour batter and deep fried to a golden-brown finish. It also perks up several chicken and lamb dishes.

At lunch, many of the dinner entrees are half price so you can experiment with something new without making a big investment. For $4.95 try the shish tawauk: chicken marinated in garlic, lemon and Middle Eastern spices, then cooked on a skewer and served with rice and pita bread.

The time to really indulge your curiosity is the last Sunday of the month, when a $12.95-per-person dinner buffet is served from 3 to 9 p.m. Last month the spread included a lamb curry, chicken tandoori, seafood fettuccine, samosas (a pastry filled with beef and vegetables) and chutney, rice pilaf, green salad, tabouleh, puree of broiled eggplant, marinated vegetables, bread and fresh fruit. Reservations and a big appetite are recommended.

Restaurant reviews are a regular Wednesday feature of the Seattle Times Eastside Life section. Reviewers visit restaurants unannounced and pay in full for all their meals. When they interview members of the restaurant management and staff, they do so only after the meals and services have been appraised.