don't lavash home without trying the kibbeh...

We caught up with some friends at Lavash Cafe in Clintonville. This was our first time going but I had read some good things about it. I decided it'd be nice to be thorough in our assessment of the menu so i ordered a number of appetizers and sides so we could get the big picture.


kibbeh described from their menu as: "...cracked wheat and meat shells filled with seasoned ground beef, onions and pine nuts..." + side order of falafel

This was my second time trying kibbeh. The first time was at a Greek Festival in the Short North. Their kibbeh was mystifying to me. How'd they bake around the meat? It was like eating a bread shell filled with tasty beef. This was delicious. Would have been exceptional if it was warmer.

Their falafel was pretty good. Pretty mild taste and softer than I would like but the price was right. 6 for $2.50? Who's messing with that?


mojadara described from their menu as: "...rice and lentils cooked with special herbs and spices, topped with carmelized onions..."

For my meal I tried the mojadara and a beef kebab as recommended by a Columbus foodie. The beef kebab was a real treat -- tender with peppers and onions that all had a great grill taste . The lentils were pretty good. I like lentils having grown up with them as a kid. The Indian diet is all about dal and the various forms of lentils. Their mojadara could have used some more seasoning or something with a kick. The side salad which was a veggie infused form of tabouleh was a little bland too. Lavash's food reminds me of my own cooking because I cook with a lot of beans, cous cous and vegetables -- just could have used more seasoning.


lamb shish-kebab, saffron rice, pita, beef shish-kabob, salad

Lamb tasted good, saffron rice was flavorful, and the pita bread was yummy.

For dessert I split the rice pudding with Betty. Again growing up in an Indian household -- I had way too much exposure to ultra-sweet-sweets. Gulab jaman, lassi, chum chum, jalebi, you name it i ate it and we also had lots of baklava. For some reason though the sweets taste good i don't crave them -- and prefer American desserts over them. They do have a tremendous selection of baklava for those who can't get enough of it. We tried some of our friends and it was very delicious. The rice pudding was wonderful though.

All in all a good trip out. I definitely prefer this place over Aladdins -- and though I prefer to cook this genre of food at home -- i definitely see us coming back here with friends in the future and putting down some more kibbeh.

naw man...I assure you there are not dogs on this pizza...I swear...

Made it back to Columbus to catch the 2nd half of the Cavs-Celtics game at one of our favorite dine-in pizza joints in Columbus - Hound Dogs Pizza. We had the usual half pep-half sausage with smoking joes crust, hot sauce, and side of ranch. The pizza was tasty though the smoking joes crust was slightly off. Smoking joes crust means that they increase the calorie count of the pizza a hundred-fold -- covering the pizza crust with garlic butter. The garlic butter was not as salty-season-y as it normally is. Regardless the pizza was tasty as funk. Funny thing is the leftovers tasted even better cold.


unflattering shot of smoking joes crust, hot sauce, half pep-half-sausage pizza delight

look it's the Easter Brunchy...

This was my first time celebrating Easter. Had a great weekend visiting friends and fam and this was the perfect way to end the weekend with a family brunch of tomato basil quiche, shrimp cocktail, fruit salad, apple pierogies, cheesy broccoli, and ham. This with all the great candy in our easter basket got me thinking i could get used to this holiday.


pineapple, boiled eggs, fruit salad, shrimp cocktail, empty cup of coffee


mimosa, ham, apple pierogies, basil tomato quiche


all the previously mentioned + broccoli cheese and newspaper

Ian Fleming presents Steakhouse Royale...

On Saturday the fam went out to Fleming's steakhouse after a great day of sight seeing at the Akron Art Museum and Stan Hywet Mansion. I guess this place is a chain but the food was tremendous.



They had two options for butter with the bread -- one plain and the other was a garlic sun-dried tomato option with other veggies in it. Good stuff.

I started off with the New England Clam Chowder.

New England Chowder

It was pretty good but more potato-y than i would want from a clam chowder. Now if it was billed as a potato soup with clams...then i would have truly enjoyed it. I prefer my chowder clammy and creamy.

I also tried their wedge salad. Who knew iceburg lettuce could taste so fantastic? I credit it to the blue cheese dressing obviously but still very delicious.

I also split the seared tuna appetizer with betty.


seared tuna


Great tuna. Way too wasabi-ful sauce set my nose and eyes on fire but man this was shaping up to be one of the best meals ever!

I ordered a straight up filet over medium.


filet, chipotle mac and cheese, sauteed mushrooms

Mine was cooked a little too much but still tasted great. Had sides of sauteed mushrooms and chipotle macaroni and cheese. The mac and cheese was very tasty and original! Sauteed mushrooms weren't bad but nothing's touching Top's Steakhouse. Everyone really enjoyed their food. I would go back for special occasions because the food and dining atmosphere are on point -- but the menu is a bit pricey for my wallet comfort.

what exactly is a Surf and Turf Burger?

Betty and I were in Cleveland this weekend and hit up the Moosehead Hook and Ladder pub with some friends. Imagine if a pub was put into an old Firestation and there you go. This place has a unique warm dining atmosphere. When it came time to order drinks I was underwhelmed with the beer selection but their menu was eclectic though difficult to read. Because I'm a nacho hound we started off with the seafood nachos that had shrimp, crab, and provolone on it topped with a lobster cream sauce and jalapenos on the side. They were simple and sweet but very delicious.


seafood nachos

After some contemplation I had to go with the Surf and Turf burger. What exactly is a surf and turf burger ??? --


surf and turf burger

a beef patty with a crab cake on top and grilled crispy onions. I got mine medium. Everyone was waiting for me to try this beast of a sandwich. When I took the first bite I was very surprised with how well the crab and beef actually went together. The burger itself was a little bland probably to allow it to go with the crab cake seasoning. All in all the flavor was decent but not mind altering -- the burger could have benefited from some form of bold condiment -- there was a tabasco-tartar sauce that was okay...but I could have gone for a more spicy mustard or even bacon -- but all in all a pretty unique burger. The rest of the table was a little underwhelmed with their food but I enjoyed what I tried including the fried grouper fingers. Overall the Hook and Ladder was a great place to catch up with friends for the mood and decent food. I would definitely go back there to try some of the other eclectic items on their menu.

mucho nacho bowl about sumpin'...

A classic cholesterolking meal is the nacho bowl. You can customize it depending on what you got in the house. Tonight we had the following:



Hidden below the toppings is seasoned ground turkey topped with shredded monterey jack cheese, chopped onion, then topped with seasoned black beans. I used coriander, cumin, and bay leaves with the black beans. All of the previously mentioned is then topped with sour cream, salsa, jalapenos, and then striped with the red and green el yucateco hot sauces. How you gonna hate on this meal?

i've died and gone to adriaticos...

This is Adriaticos pizza -- my favorite pizza in Columbus, OH. This is Adriaticos pizza with half pep-shroom half ham-pineapple and an order of their breadsticks with all 3 sauces. Any questions?