There is a criminal shortage of Malaysian / Hainanese food in Cincinnati. If you're bored of the bog-standard Chinese-American food, try Citrus & Sago. Absolutely blew my girlfriend and I out of the water today with their moist/crispy AF roast duck plate with perfectly cooked bok choy, and flavorful beef rendang. Their namesake sago dessert was also delicious and very traditional. This is one of the only places we've encountered in Cincinnati that is really doing unapologetic and uncompromised Southeast Asian cuisine. Definitely worth the trek, and the prices are very reasonable. In summary: If you want to support an authentic, family-owned Malaysian restaurant, vote with your money. Or subject yourself to a future where corporate asian foods a'la Panda Express reign supreme. -shudder- read more

I really enjoyed the food at Sago! We had the Roti Canai, Haiwanese Chicken, Crispy Pork, and a beef curry, along with a side of garlic rice and roasted vegetables. Four of us enjoyed this spread and while it was all very tasty, I felt like we could have had a bit more food. I'm taking one star off for portion size-price ratio, but I also don't want to under-value the time it took to make these diverse and complex dishes. The star is also off for just offering bottled water - a no no for the environment. I very much enjoyed each of these dishes - the Roti was so light and flaky, I could have eaten a whole one in no time, especially with the lentil sauce and spicy sauce it comes with. The Haiwanese chicken is poached with a sweet and savory sauce on top that I found irresistible. The Crispy Pork half pound was perfectly crispy and sized bites so you can just pop them into your mouth. Next time I go, I want to try more of their appetizers, the pickled vegetables, and the roast duck. It's not a large place, with seating for about 5 parties and an order at the counter style. I can't wait to return! read more

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A hidden gem that you must check out! I had the pork dumplings and Hawainese chicken, both flavorful and delicious. The host was really friendly and Chef Paul also came out to talk to our group after our dinner. It's clear he takes pride in his cooking, his family, and the community. He also does catering as well as private parties in the restaurant. It's important to support Cincy's independently owned ethnic restaurants, so please patronize Citrus & Sago! read more

My father and I visited Sago for a late lunch. We are fans of Thai, Indian, Ethiopian, and other foreign cuisine and were excited to try Malaysian. This small and unassuming shop is very clean and the staff was lovely. They explained each dish to us and served it hot and very obviously fresh. They are currently still using paper products even for dine in, but this did not bother me one bit since the food was delicious. I had the curry cod and he had the Beef Rendang, both of which were delicious and fragrant, paired with wonderful rice and fresh fruit and veggies. I hope they are able to switch back to normal plates and silverware soon as that tends to improve the dining experience. Would definitely recommend checking this place out, and hope to visit again on future visits to Cinci. read more

After moving to KY from NYC it was hard finding decent Cantonese food not only for me but for my husband who has a gluten allergy. Let me just say that our experience here was extremely pleasant! Kyle was very hospitable and knowledgeable regarding the menu's items. The food was 10/10 so delicious. Truly a gem! Will definitely be returning read more

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A cozy restaurant in Mt. Lookout that prepares excellent roast duck! I've been here twice and have enjoyed the duck both times. In fact, I enjoyed it so much that my husband and I ordered the whole duck the second time ($32). The skin is perfectly crispy while the meat is juicy and tender. As a California native, I have been looking for a place to satisfy my roast duck cravings. The garlic rice and pickled veggies are also delicious side options, though a larger portion would have been nice. On top of the great food, the service is personable and kind. Around the holiday time, they gave us a complimentary goody bag with Lindt truffles which was a sweet touch. The chef also came out to introduce himself to us. You can tell he truly cares about the quality of his food. This is absolutely a place that is worth trying! read more

Sago - Malaysian Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

We have been back to this restaurants several times in the past few weeks because we have activities around the area and every times it is always delicious with various orders. We bought to go to on the way out. Authentic Malaysian food in Cincinnati. I can feel and taste the back home food. We started going here during the Covid time and now you can dine it. The only thing you need to watch out is to go early because not too many tables and parking could be difficult in the busy neighborhood. read more

How do you such a great treasure. It's in the small village of Mount Lookout. It is very small upfront with very few tables. And I know in warmer weather it'll be a nicer experience (because it was so cold outside it made it uncomfortable.) but the people were very friendly and the food was awesome. I know when I travel through the small communities I'd like to find a go to place and I will definitely be back here. I know and understand good Malaysian/Indonesian food and this was a great surprise. Please check out the menu and check out this awesome restaurant. You will not be disappointed. read more

This is an interesting little place that my friend and I stumbled upon. The service was absolutely fantastic - I dont know his name but he came with recommendations, friendliness and water for my pup. I had the roast duck with dry noodles and my had a dish that I cant remember. Mine was tasty but I think my friends reeeally enjoyed hers. It's hard to get good vegetarian food so she was pleasantly surprised. read more

Sago - Malaysian Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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What a gem...Paul and company have something special going on here in Cincinnati with there amazing Malaysian European fusion. Ordered for a family of 6 probably we got the roast duck(superb), hainese chicken, the roti canai(lentil curry with spicy paste was amazing), got the bok choy and mango rice. We left belly's full and super satisfied, offer dine in but have to make a reservation first. The server was outstanding, wish I remembered his name, I feel I am not doing justice for what kind of service he provided because it was very good and he had amazing recommendations. Paul the cook and looks like owner came out to greet which was nice, seems like he really cares about who comes in to eat. But if you're ever in Cincinnati, must stop at this place, you won't be sorry Check them out! read more

Our fam gets cravings for C&S and it never disappoints. Consistently delicious, we get a variety of the rotisserie meats

I don't usually write reviews because I'm lazy but yal this food is sooooo good! Definitely one of Cincinnat's hidden gems. 100% recommend!

I was So super impressed by this place. I obviously got it Kerri out since restaurants are closed right now and they were so nice to deliver it to me even though I was outside of their delivery area just a little. I got an entire pound of pork belly char sui. It was out of this world dynamite. I ordered at the end of the night so they were out of the buns for the pork but I cannot wait to buy some and put that on it with some pickled veggies. I also got a couple orders of the pork dumplings and they were so good the sausage inside is delicious in the coconut rice also impressed read more

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Being a Eurasian and from Singapore, this place was a MUST try for me! My husband and I made the drive down from Tipp City and had no regrets whatsoever. I was eager to try the Hainanese Chicken Rice and Nasi Lemak with Beef Rendang since it's what I was most familiar with (I grew up eating these almost on a daily basis) I have to admit, the Chicken Rice hit the spot for me! Even the accompanying chili sauce he made was superb. The chicken alone was juicy and tasty! My husband ordered the Nasi Lemak and we enjoyed that too! The Beef Rendang was a little different from how my mom makes hers but nevertheless, I still enjoyed it. The coconut rice was great and I loved the peanuts that came with it. We then ordered the Roti John, mind you... it's definitely different from back home but it was a GOOD different! I sincerely enjoyed that sandwich...Gah! Sooooo tasty! We also ordered the Crispy Roast Pork, more Hainanese Chicken and Sago Gula Melaka to take home - NO REGRETS! Paul is an amazing chef and I love how he remains true to this particular cuisine. You will NOT find your typical made-up American Chinese food here, and I am GLAD! My husband and I truly enjoyed the conversations we had with Paul before leaving his restaurant and will definitely keep coming back! Terima kasih, Paul! We will see you again for more of your makan! So shiok! read more

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AMAZING! Best Asian cuisine in Cincinnati. We lived in Asia and traveled to Malaysia and this food is just as authentic as being back over there. We live out of town now but always have to get Sago whenever we're in Cincinnati!! Can't go wrong with anything thing on the menu. read more

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Excellent food! My friends and I went during Asian Food week and we all LOVED what we got. I got the vegetarian samosa for an appetizer which came with pickled onions and a green sauce, an entree of the rotisserie chicken with vegetables and coconut rice (which was so good I forgot to take a picture!) and for dessert the Sago Gula Melaka. The stars of the show for me were the rotisserie chicken and the Sago Gula Melaka for dessert. The Sago Gula Melaka is tapioca pearls in coconut cream. It is slightly sweet and extremely delicious, if you get one thing from Citrus & Sago definitely get the Sago Gula Melaka for dessert it will not disappoint! Service was prompt and staff were very happy to answer questions about the menu. read more

Sago - Sago Gula Melaka - Malaysian Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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Homemade food made with love. So good and super cool people too. Never have had a bad meal there. Teh tarak is super good too it's a tea from Malaysia read more

Love this place it fills a food gap for sure. I wish there was more dine in space. They don't have a liquor license so byob. read more

Sago - Malaysian Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Very impressed. I had been wanting to try this place out ever since I saw it opened up. I don't know what took so long, but wow. I've never had takeout that was presented and looked so good when I got it home. Plus, everything was so fresh and flavorful. We will definitely be ordering again, can't wait to try more on the menu and eventually dine in! read more

It has been a quiet year on Yelp for me, however, with my recent dining experience at Citrus and Sago, it would have not been right for me not to boot up Yelp me to share this to the community. Simply put, Citrus and Sago is hands down the best Asian cuisine in the city of Cincinnati. I have lived in Shanghai for 5+ years and travelled to almost every country in Asia - the dishes here, although limited, are amazing. It truly reminds me of my time traveling across Asia. They nail the fundamentals of Asian cuisine while providing an innovative and slight unique spin without ruining the beauty of the original dish. Who would have thought after years of scouring the Asian supermarkets and the Asian restaurants of northern Cincinnati for authentic Asian Rotisserie, I would stumble upon this hidden gem nestled around the corner in Mt Lookout Square. The menu is limited, however, I do not think there is a not a dish they do not kill it. Get the Roast Pork with the crispy skin, its delicious and like bacon on steroids. Try to roast duck, it will make you rethink only eating French duck breast - the skin is so crispy and meat tender. Hainan Chicken is so juicy, flavorful, and the sauce is out of the world. On that note don't underestimate the importance of the sauces, the spicy sauce is an innovative pairing to the roasted pork. The duck sauce is rich and savory. In addition to the Rotisserie, the other south East Asian dishes are also spectacular. If you are a fan of more spicy dishes, try the Roti with the curry sauce - the Roti is so crispy and the lentil curry is so delicious. The Nasi Lemak is also delicious and booming with flavor - a perfect pairing of the stewed beef and the rice. You are not going to get a sit in fancy dining experience at this time, but trust me, this place is worth a try. I can confidently say for the dishes they serve, its the best in Cincinnati. On a side note, I have both ordered from phone as well as meal delivery apps. Both have worked out well and very timely. Try it and thank me later. read more

Great food and they serve larger portions now (thank you, chef). However, we went in tonight for takeout and no one was wearing a mask. Why? Not sure I'll be back until this changes. Edit: To clarify, only the kitchen staff were maskless, not the cashier who was handling customers. read more

Food is delicious! The pickle vegetable is absolutely delicious pairing so well with the fatty meat. I would loose if the portion is bigger and more vegetarian options read more

Sago - Hainan chicken - Malaysian Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

This place opened recently on the square in Mt. Lookout, in the old El Camino space. It is still tiny, no more than 20 seats, with an old church pew making up over half of them. The menu is similarly no frills, but lots of delicious choices. Malaysian food is sadly neglected in the US, but it is every bit as good as Thai and Indian. DLW is a famous duck fan, and she loved the roast duck, crispy skin and juicy meat. The veggie side was uninspired, and the rice was so-so. I had nasi lemak with beef rendang, a dish I have had several times in other places, and love. It came traditional style with coconut rice, pickled curry vegetables, cucumbers and roasted peanuts, with a touch of chili sauce. The only criticism I have is I wish I could have had more chili sauce. No liquor license, so we had soft drinks from the fridge. The owner came out to talk with us, probably because we were the only customers, but he could not have been nicer. Get out there and patronize this place, Cincy! read more

I usually very skeptical to try Asian food in USA as I am very picky (price, taste and quality) BUT this newly restaurant Euroasian restaurant prove me wrong. This restaurant owner is Malaysian and I got to give thumbs up! WHY? I went two-days in a row, ordered and tried almost everything in the menu with same friends. read more

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Looking for something flavorful, the duck noodles are delicious, even the roasted duck on its own! Ala carte comes with the garlic rice and pickled veggies they are complementary to it and add a unique taste to a smaller portion sized meal. Hainanese Poached Chicken is also fabulous choice. read more

Delicious Malaysian food. Must try the dessert, sago (tapioca) with gula melaka (palm sugar) and coconut milk - simply tasty. read more

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4.5 star Chinese restaurant by NYC standard. This place charges extra $ by claiming it as 'Malaysian, Modern European, Barbeque'. All the dishes like roast duck, roast pork, Hainan(a province in china) Chicken are Chinese cuisine. This would be a model for Chinese Chipotle-style restaurant . Hope you could reduce the price and make it into a chain. Under the same amount of spending, I'd go to Great Tang in West Chester for the more refined authentic Chinese meal, and Far East Center in Dayton for better roast pork and duck. The food tastes great by all means. read more

The easily the best crispy duck and crispy pork in Cincinnati as well as other delicious dishes not usually found in other restaurants. read more

Sago - Crispy duck, crispy pork, BBQ pork buns, dumplings, beef rendang, mango rice. - Malaysian Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

This place is such a hidden gem. I moved from Los Angeles over a year ago and have been so hesitant to try Eastern/Southeastern Asian cuisine for obvious reasons. The food here blew me away. I came here for dinner with a friend who is North Indian and I'm Chinese and we were amazed at the Malaysian food being such a interesting and delicious mix of both of our cultures while being uniquely its own thing. We both got a Roti Canai with a lentil curry for appetizers (the roti felt so reminiscent of the flakey green scallion pancakes I miss) and then for entrees she got the Sayur Lodeh and I got the Hainanese Chicken Rotisserie Meal and we both took home leftovers. We had such a pleasant conversation with Paul the head chef and owner of Citrus and Sago too. My friend and I definitely left with both our stomachs and souls nourished. We will both be regulars here (prices are amazing for the quality, authenticity, and portions esp for both of us being broke students). The hours are limited (as are many of the restaurants in the area with the pandemic really affecting small businesses) but I promise you if you make an effort to catch them when they're open you will not be disappointed. read more

Sago - Sayur Lodeh - Malaysian Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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Quick review of the food: ordered a hainanese chicken plate and the bbq pork plate. Both come with a side of pickled and stir fried veggies which really help compliment the meal... both were delicious!! I'm so ecstatic to find a place that serves the hainan chicken dish (seriously Cinci?) I cant wait to try the roast duck here! Service is friendly.. Will gladly return to try out their other dishes! read more

I ordered delivery from this restaurant earlier in the pandemic. Overall the food was really flavorful and well done. In particular the roti canai was amazing in terms of flavor and the texture of the roti. The Hainanese chicken was also tender and flavorful, and the roast duck was not the best I've had but still a solid option, especially in Cincinnati. My main complaint was the asam fish--the fish itself was completely flavorless and the sauce on it was fine but uninteresting. read more

Sago - Roti canai, roast duck, hainan chicken, asam fish - Malaysian Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Delicious food and super friendly service. We had the BBQ pork and the Stir fried Bok choy with tofu and thoroughly enjoyed them. Their mango rice was a great treat. read more

My sister in law suggested I check out Citrus & Sago...why havent I been here before?! Ive been completely missing out! We ordered a cross selection of the menu and not one thing disappointed. The pork sandwich was perfect. Ingredients fresh and authentic...dont forget dessert! Ordering was a breeze online and they bring it to your car- bonus for a sometimes busy Mt.Lookout (Note this during Covid). Is tomorrow too soon to go back?! read more

Don't let the place fool you when you walk in. You might not be expecting much since the place is small and simply decorated, but boy, do they make amazing roast duck and pork. I'm from Cleveland and the roast duck is even more fresh and juicy at this place. It's hard to get fresh duck where the skin still has a nice crunch to it. We met the owner, Paul (who used to own Straits of Malacca in Mason - was sad when it closed down) and he came out to talk to our group and give us some free samples. Very down to earth guy who just focuses on the food instead of all the other distractions of a restaurant business. Also, we had amazing service - I wish I remembered his name, but he was very attentive and wanted us to have a good experience. The garlic rice and Hainanese chicken was good too! I will definitely be back and hope to try some of their other dishes. It's good to see Cincinnati have more ethnic food options than Americanized Asian food. read more

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Beautiful, complex and thoughtfully prepared food! So happy they are in Mt Lookout Square.

Well worth a stop. The food was tasty and the owners were pleasant and friendly. I would definitely go back.

My friends've been here before so they recommended this place to us. We finally got to check it out. My fiancé and I got a half duck, the beef rendang and roasted bbq pork. The duck and the beef rendang are really good. They roasted the duck really well and the skin is still crispy while the meat inside is still tender. Give it a try and you will be blown away. My second favorite is the beef rendang. I never tried this dish before so I cannot tell how authentic it is; but the flavor packed a punch. Very tasty dish. My least favorite is the bbq pork. I've tried many bbq pork at different restaurants, not in cincy but also at Chinatown in SF, NY. I found the BBQ pork here is very lean, and the meat itself is not flavorful, the flavors is more from the sauce drizzle on top which is a bit underwhelming for me. It is not like any kind of bbq pork that I've eaten in which the meat itself is very tasty and juicy without any sauce. I agreed with the owner explanation that he wants a lean pork dish to balance out a more fatty roasted pork dish on the menu since not everyone likes fatty meat. Since I told the owner that I prefer a lil bit more fat for my bbq pork, he brought me a sample of roasted pork to try. It is very good but I am not a fan of roasted pork in general since it is a bit dry. I guess if you order roasted pork and then drizzle bbq sauce on top, it may go well together and more flavorful. Anyway, the food is really good. I definitely recommend everyone to try if you are in the area. The owner is super nice and friendly. He is definitely passionate about his food and restaurant. Hands down for one fo the best roasted ducks and beef rendang in town read more

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We stopped in Saturday night about an hour before close. We opened the door and were greeted with wonderful smells and a welcoming bright interior. We ordered the roast duck, roast chicken, curry, and sweet chili shrimp. All meals came with rice, salad, and wonderful pickled vegetables. The duck was perfectly roasted and was paired with a delicious sauce, this was same for the chicken. The chicken curry was a yellow curry warming with the perfect amount of spice. The chili shrimp also amazing. After the meal we talked to the chef and he said the menu would be expanding soon which means the next time we go back we can experience even more great food. This is definitely a great spot to go Wednesday- Saturday as they are not open everyday of the week so be sure to check their hours! read more

I can't say enough good things about this place, the crispy roast pork and roast duck are AMAZING. The mango sticky rice is just a nice balance of all flavors, sweet with a hint of mango flavor. The skin on the crispy roast pork and roast duck is so crispy! The owner and the manager are so friendly, we will definitely come back again, there are more dishes waiting for us to try! read more

Sago - Crispy roast pork and roast duck, sooooo good! Definitely will come back again! - Malaysian Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

The food here is amazing! Highly recommend the bbq pork buns I could literally eat 10 in one sitting! Also the crispy pork is amazing as well! read more