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| - Finally made my way to Fattoush and I have to say "mmm mmmm good!" Not since my old neighbor, a refugee from Iraq, moved out have I had I experienced such robust flavors combined with healthy food. Lord I miss that man!!!
So yeah there isn't much of an atmosphere, the pictures don't really fit in the molding that was hung to frame art, but does that effect the food? Absolutely not! Physically, not much has changed since this place was the Green Leaf Cafe which was the predecessor to the Persian Garden. Except that the food here is less on the fusion side of Mediterranean flavors and more middle-eastern authentic Iraqis with a little Jordanian thrown in.
I love that you start out with the green lentil soup or salad with every meal. The name of the restaurant actually comes from said salad, which is a mix of romaine, tomatoes, cucumber, mint and toasted triangles of pita bread, covered with a tart balsamic vinegar dressing. But the soup is where it's at. It's unlike your average lentil soup - smooth and creamy, with bits of pasta. Very mild. It's a nice homey touch which is really what this food is all about. And that homey touch comes naturally, as the two main staffers are brother and sister. Their mom often helps out in the kitchen (and dad is busy cooking in Scottsdale).
When we arrived there were just two tables with guests, so we had our pick of eating spots. And there were a steady stream of people coming in for take-out throughout our visit.
The menu is actually quite large considering their kitchen is about the size of my bathroom. On this visit, my sis and I decided to sample as much as we could to get a feel for the place. She was a little iffy as she had never had this kind of food, but once the dishes started rolling out, she quickly became a fan. We started with the fava beans, mixed with olive oil, garlic, and lemon. Main courses consisted of the Falafel Plate which comes with warm pita, hummus, pickles, and tomatoes and Chicken Shwarmas which were spiced perfectly and had juicy - dare I say succulent chicken. We topped the meal off with some freshly made baklava and rolled our way out to the car for our trip home.
Just after the soup course, a large Ford taxi pulled up and out of it piled out 8 full grown (some more fully grown if you get my drift, than others) ME men. It was sort of like the proverbial clown car... I mean seriously I didn't know you could get that many men in one car. They headed straight for the table next to us and then things really started to pick up. Four of them ordered Lamb Kuzi and the rest all got something different. Let me just say that my sister had to hold me down because their food all looked so good. Their table was literally crammed full of dishes with smells so good that I swear my nose grew just trying to get a better whiff!
Our meal came to $25 but in retrospect, we really didn't need all three dishes and could have easily gotten out of there for about $16. Service was attentive, food was phenomenal (and healthy - how often do you find that?!!), and it's only .5 miles from my house. This is probably the best ME food that I've had at a local restaurant and the place would definately warrant the coveted 5-stars on the food alone, but the afore mentioned atmosphere knocks it down one. It may have taken me years to get over to Fattoush, but it won't be long before my next visit! That Kuzi is calling me!!!
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