Blogs : Restaurants and Bars

Belly Up to the Falafel Bar

Got garbanzos? They do at Chick-O-Pea’s, which offers organic falafels in freshly made pitas, and a bar of 25 toppings and salads to go with them. One of the bar’s greatest hits is the salsa fresca, reports rworange. It has fresh ginger, “a swell addition” to the usual tomato-onion-cilantro-chile blend. Even better than that is the simple but delicious zchug, made with cilantro, parsley, tomatoes, hot peppers, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, spices, and salt. “I wanted to ‘zchug’ it, LOL,” quips Agent 510.

The bar’s range includes hummus, baba ghanoush, Lebanese slaw, cauliflower salad, harissa, aioli, and daikon salad.

The chickpea soup is surprisingly rich for a vegan broth, says rworange, chock full of greens with some kidney beans and noodles, plus plenty of olive oil. Lab kusa is also pleasant, a light, hummus-like spread made with zucchini. The fries are great, but the dips that accompany them are less exciting than they sound (Mediterranean pesto, saffron aioli, jerk seasoning, and Sahara dust). Another option, pita fries, are pre-fried.

For dessert, there’s regular and apple baklava, plus “choclava.”

Chick-O-Pea’s [East Bay]
1926 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley
510-540-8880

Board Link: Berkeley: Chick-O-Pea’s - The falafel place with a falafel bar

Posted by Cicely Wedgeworth | 0 comments
Tagged with: san francisco bay area, restaurants and bars, falafel, falafel bar, toppings, middle eastern, middle east

Daily Afghan Bread and Dumplings

Among the Afghan, Pakistani, Persian, and Middle Eastern staples on offer at Afghan Market, jmarek was psyched to find baked goods and dumplings, made in-house. “The bread was fantastic—it turns out the market makes it fresh daily.” Also excellent: leek bolani (stuffed flatbread), with “great flavor and nice spice.”

“I’d put this above the De Afghanan bolani and way above the one sold all over at the farmers’ markets,” jmarek says.

Afghan Market [East Bay]
1500 Monument Boulevard #F12, Concord
925-825-2344

Board Link: Fresh Afghan Flatbread and Bolani Daily at Afghan Market, Concord

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Tagged with: san francisco bay area, restaurants and bars, afghan market, middle eastern, persian, pakistani, bolani

Farm-Fresh Cupcakes

Tucked away on a street close to the Temescal Farmers’ Market is an outpost of delectable cupcakes by the Cake Ladies, says cfarivar. They’re made with organic ingredients and local produce when possible; the strawberry cupcake sports a fresh berry on top. The Cake Ladies also do a delicious strawberry scone, and the coffee is from Ritual Roasters. For those with food allergies, they sometimes have gluten-free (and vegan) goods on hand, and other allergen-free cupcakes can be had with a week’s notice. Cupcakes and scones run about $3.

The Cake Ladies [East Bay]
438 Avon Street, Oakland
510-316-4660

Board Link: Cake Ladies in Temescal

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Tagged with: san francisco bay area, restaurants and bars, cake ladies, cupcakes, farmers market

Trend-O-Meter Says: Mezcal Cocktails Are In (6/3/09)

Mezcal is a tequilalike spirit made from agave, but smokier and rougher around the edges. Spotted at: San Francisco’s Elixir bar, in the Isla Zapoteca cocktail (pictured), with 1.5 ounces each of Del Maguey Crema de Mezcal and lemon juice, 1 ounce clover honey syrup, 1/2 ounce Velvet Falernum, and a splash of soda water; written about on food scribe Josh Ozersky’s The Feedbag blog; and at Mayahuel, the new NYC tequila lair, where it’s mixed into drinks like the Smoked Palomino, made with amontillado sherry, mezcal, grapefuit, and lime.

H. Joseph Ehrmann, owner of Elixir, says, “There is no mezcal of quality that has a worm in the bottle.” However, in Oaxaca, Mexico, where the majority of mezcal is made, people often drink it with a side of sal de gusano, a.k.a. worm salt, a seasoning made from ground-up worms that live in the agave plant. Ehrmann sometimes uses it to rim cocktails like the one pictured.

See more food trends, or tell us what trends you’re spotting.

Posted by Roxanne Webber | 0 comments
Tagged with: restaurants and bars, trendometer, mezcal, food trends, wine and drinks, cocktails, mayahuel, elixir, josh ozersky, h. joseph ehrmann

Fresh Turkish Food in Arlington

Pasha Turkish Cuisine is so new that it doesn’t even have a website up, but according to litchick this “cute little joint” is already packed.

Here’s what to order:

• Homemade bread, which comes with dips: olive oil, a garlicky relish, and a creamy spread with yogurt, sour cream, walnut, and garlic
• Zucchini fritters, with garlic yogurt sauce
• Grilled lamb kebabs, served on salad greens
• Anchovies in a cast iron pan with mixed vegetables in a spicy tomato sauce

“Everything was very fresh,” says PinchOfSalt who loved the “textures and bright flavors,” and the tab, which was only $25 including tip for lunch for two.

litchick says the staff are “friendly but a little overwhelmed right now. Considering they’ve only been open six days and have been slammed, I’d give them multiple thumbs up for handling it with grace and a smile.”

Pasha Turkish Cuisine [Arlington]
669-A Massachusetts Avenue, Arlington
781-648-5888

Board Link: New Arlington Chow Find: Pasha Turkish Cuisine

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Tagged with: boston, restaurants and bars, pasha turkish cuisine