Lodos

[dumpling]

This new Turkish/Mediterranean restaurant on River Road in New Milford(next to where the Henley's used to be) is something different and exciting in something of a morass of sameness. I was there last night with alanZ, his wife Lauren and another neighbor. I think this was alanZ's third trip there this week and our first.

The first thing in evidence for a relatively new restaurant(two months) is seamless seemingly effortless service. The manager immediately recognized alanZ. Our water glasses were promptly attended to throughout the meal. We were given good guidance as to what to order and the manager inquired as to our satisfaction.

The menu while having some things which were relatively familiar(musaka, humus) also had some unique items such as sigara boreka(sort of like a spring roll with cheese). We ordered the humus, the baba gannus and the sigara boreka as appetizers. Then the musaka, the iskender(sliced lamb and beef over garlic bread and yogurt) and a special of the day, the dorato(phonetic). I'm still not sure what fish it was but Lauren thought it tasted like a porgy.

The humus had a nice pleasant taste. The baba gannus was outstanding and just woke up the taste buds. Very nice with the bread served and we went through the bread fast because we were so enamored of the baba gannus. The boreka was wonderful crispy and hot, with what we thought may have been feta cheese in it.

The iskender and the dorato were good. Lauren really liked the fish which had a fine delicate taste.

The winner of the night, the thing we all waxed rhapsodically about, was suprisingly, the musaka. As the spelling differed from the Greek moussaka, so did the taste. I have always found moussaka good but quite heavy. This musaka was incredibly light and had a mix of spices and tomatoes that was quite transcendant. It seemed basically a ground meat and tomato dish but truly pleased our jaded little palates. It is now only a weekend special but we suggested to the manager that he add it to their regular menu.

We asked the manager just to give us what dessert he wanted, along with some Turkish coffee. He brought out a plate of baklava and coffee custard topped with cream and almonds. When I took a bite out of the baklava, I was for the third time that evening so pleasantly suprised. It was lovely, the best baklava by far that I have had, although I have not had a lot. The milk custard was also quite nice, as was the coffee. A great ending to a satisfying meal. Addditionally, the manager brought out, on the house, a nice arrangement of fruit which was decorated with some carved rind. The only flaw in the seamless service, if flaw it was, was they were in no rush to bring us a check so we sat for a while which was no hardship since we were not in a rush.

The prices are quite reasonable. It's BYO and there is a Wine and Roses across the street. Starting August 6, they will be having entertainment on Friday nights including belly dancing and zither music.

Do not go to this restaurant. I want to get a seat.

Regards,

Dumpling

Edited August 2, 2004 by dumpling (log)

[Rosie]

Please post the address and phone #. Is it BYO?

[dumpling]

Lodos

690 River Road

New Milford, NJ

(201) 265-0004

fax (201) 265-5090

Hours: 11:00 a.m.-10:00 p.m.

Brunch on Sundays

Free delivery available

Open 7 days a week

As I said, they are BYO. They also have an excellent Lunch Special-$6.95 for Soup or salad, one cold appetizer, one main course and one dessert.

[Rosie]

One more question----Is it BYO???

Thanks.

[dumpling]

Went back to Lodos yesterday. Not as busy as on Sunday. Interestingly, for a two month old restaurant, the other people all seemed to be repeat customers, and all quite happy with their dishes as I caught the general comments around the room.

I was with a friend. We ordered one appetizer and two entrees. Entrees are big here and things are served family style. So bring your stomach. The appetizer, lebni, was thickened yogurt with mint, parsley and walnuts. Again nice pairing with the bread, which itself was crispier and better than on my prior visit.

Our entrees were 1)Lahana Dolma, cabbage stuffed with lamb and rice served in a tomato, mint and yogurt sauce with a little kick, and 2)Istim Kebab, lamb kebab draped with strips of eggplant and coated in a little brown sauce. Again quite satisfying, the tenderness of the lamb kebab was wonderful and the taste just lingered in your mouth.

For dessert, we had the kadayif-the shredded wheat, honey and walnuts. When I told my friend she really should have tried the baklava, the waitress overheard us and brought out some baklava on the house so my friend could try it. Again lovely with Turkish coffee although the baklava and the kadayif together probably are not generally good to order together because the sweetness quotient is a little much.

Edited August 5, 2004 by dumpling (log)

[camden]

Based on Dumpling's review, we went to Lados Saturday night for dinner and we were not dissapointed. In addition to having great food, the service was excellent and the prices very reasonable.

We had the baba ganoush and the fried calamari as appetizers and both were tasty. The baba ganoush was velvety smooth with a subtle smoky flavor. The calamari were as tender as can be and totally greaseless.

For our entrees I had the special chicken kefki which were four chicken patties that had a ton of spicy flavor.This dish came with both a bulgar pilaf and a rice pilaf. My wife had the mousaka and it was as good as we expected. It came with rice only but both entree portions were large.

Did I mention the bread was divine? I'm watching my carb intake these days so I rationed myself to 2 or so slices but I could have eaten the whole loaf. It isn't pita exactly (no pocket and sliced verically like an italian laof) but warm and fresh baked and perfect to sop up the baba ganoush!!

Dessert was buttery Baklava for my wife and Turkish coffee for me. Both proved to be an excellent end to a delicious meal.

Next time we go I think I'm going to get the lamb chops that looked great going by to another table. Or maybe the fried eggplant or maybe.......

Thanks for the lead on this one Dumpling!!!!!

[Rosie]

Welcome to eGullet camden. Looking forward to reading reports on all the places you dine at.

[menton1]

Thought we would give this restaurant a try last night. We went by at about 6:45PM and the place was absolutely empty! We do feel uncomfortable eating in an empty restaurant, so we didn't go in. Place should not be empty at 6:45 on a Sunday night-- Looks like they might not survive...

[menton1]

Oops-- wrong thread!

Edited December 1, 2004 by menton1 (log)