CLE: Middle East Grill

[ricain]

I wanted to call attention to a new, excellent restaurant in Cleveland suburb Shaker Heights, OH: The Middle East Grill.

I've been twice now and each time after the first bite I've looked up and exclaimed to my dining companions "Wow!" Which doesn't really happen a lot.

The chef is Lebanese with French training. I had a Mesaa'a which the chef had transformed with some lamb into a French-style stew. The ingredients were incredibly fresh and flavorful, spices aromatic. I cannot wait to go back.

http://www.middleeastgrille.com

[NancyH]

I recently lunched there with a friend - we were the only patrons for lunch that day (though it rained cats and dogs all morning, which might have had something to do with it). Service was fabulous, and we got to chat with the owner a bit. He's put a bit of cash into it; the decor is upscale and lovely. But the bottom line is the food - and we thought it was very mixed. We started with house salad and bread. One salad came with the entree we later shared, and it was served first, together with warm pita bread.

We next shared an appetizer sampler:

The sampler, per the menu, included "hommus / baba / tabouli / grape leaves / kibbie / falafel" and two dips - tahina and yogurt dip.

The kibbe was delicious.

I thought the taboule was too much parsley and not enough bulgar, but my dining companion prefers it that way. She really liked it.

We both loved the dolmas.

You can see in this photo the rough texture of the hummus, which should be smooth and creamy.

We both liked both dips.

I didn't think the spreads on the sampler plate were nearly smooth enough. The baba had a great smokiness to it, but I couldn't get over the grainy textures, and the hummus, as you can see, was terribly gritty to my palate, though my dining companion really loved it. We next shared a vegetarian entree:

Mesaa’a: chickpeas / eggplant / sautéed vegetables / nuts / rice

This dish lacked any profundity at all - we both agreed on that. Though our server insisted that the chickpeas were made from scratch, the taste and texture screamed "can" as loudly as the tomatoes shouted "food service" (a shame, because tomato season wasn't over yet). Even the pickled turnips lacked pop.

We also shared a dessert, which the menu discloses comes from the fabulous On the Rise Bakery:

Pear Frangipani Tart

For me, the food just didn't match up to the ambiance or the price points. But perhaps they deserve another try.