Cookin again

[Zardnaar]

I recently went to one of my favorite middle-eastern/Mediterranean restaurants. They used to be a chain with several locations in Texas, but they’ve had some struggles, resulting in several closures. I have no idea how many remain.

One nifty thing about them is they put fried chicken drumsticks on their buffet, presumably for kids & picky eaters. I’ve tried them and found them to be lightly breaded, perfectly cooked…and criminally underseaoned. I still get them on occasion, dipping them in their garlic spread or other condiments or whatever. (Maybe next time, garlic spread & tabouli…)

If this were a simple family-owned restaurant, I’d ask to talk to someone about them. I could easily imagine them using seasoning similar to shawarma or some other classic cultural spice combination.

Combined with their already apparent skill at COOKING those drumsticks, Mediterranean Fried Chicken could become a thing.

I can even envision Samuel L. Jackson doing commercials for MFC. The dialog almost writes itself…

Have I mentioned my Arabic food addiction....

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Have I mentioned my Arabic food addiction....

Yes you have!

The place in question is an all-you-can-eat buffet. It’s not the best restaurant we go to for that cuisine, but it’s good enough, relatively close, and there’s a wide variety. Most of the better places are a bit of a drive to get to. Worth it, no question, but often not a realistic option. There’s something to be said for a decent meal that’s actually on your way home as opposed to a 30 minute trek.

Plus, they DO have some things that aren’t available in most other similar restaurants. For instance, they have both tamarind and rose water on their drinks station. (FWIW, both mix nicely with iced tea.) And I haven’t asked for one lately, but pre-COVID, they actually did one of the better lamb shanks in our part of town.

 

[Zardnaar]

Yes you have!

The place in question is an all-you-can-eat buffet. It’s not the best restaurant we go to for that cuisine, but it’s good enough, relatively close, and there’s a wide variety. Most of the better places are a bit of a drive to get to. Worth it, no question, but often not a realistic option. There’s something to be said for a decent meal that’s actually on your way home as opposed to a 30 minute trek.

Plus, they DO have some things that aren’t available in most other similar restaurants. For instance, they have both tamarind and rose water on their drinks station. (FWIW, both mix nicely with iced tea.) And I haven’t asked for one lately, but pre-COVID, they actually did one of the better lamb shanks in our part of town.

Heh.

We often go to places due to convenience. Think I found a better breakfast place than our favorite

Ones 2 minutes away the other 5-10, traffic lights, parking etc. And i might get out voted because our local still has wife's favorite eggs Benedict.

On a draw she wins. Hmmnn.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

You have your wife; I often defer to my parents- especially Mom.

 

[Zardnaar]

You have your wife; I often defer to my parents- especially Mom.

We did trial out letting the cat vote. He voted with the wife. I had my suspicions when she was the interpreter.

 

[R_J_K75]

We often go to placed due to convenience.

Same here. A lot of the good, semi-upscale places are either downtown where parking is terrible or a 30-minute drive to the suburbs, which makes taking a ride share pretty expensive. I'm not going to a chain restaurant if I'm going to sit down, I want to have a few drinks and have a good meal. Otherwise, it's take-out when I don't feel like cooking.

 

[Zardnaar]

Same here. A lot of the good, semi-upscale places are either downtown where parking is terrible or a 30-minute drive to the suburbs, which makes taking a ride share pretty expensive. I'm not going to a chain restaurant if I'm going to sit down, I want to have a few drinks and have a good meal. Otherwise, it's take-out when I don't feel like cooking.

I don't go to bad places for convenience but I might pick an 7/10 over 8 or 9 because of it.

Cities not that big and parking's not a major issue. Fast night dine out home by 6pm after work.

 

[R_J_K75]

I don't go to bad places for convenience but I might pick an 7/10 over 8 or 9 because of it.

I try not to either but if I do its usually something quick so I don't expect much

 

[Zardnaar]

I try not to either but if I do its usually something quick so I don't expect much

You can get quick and nice though.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

So, for those who celebrate, what's the plan for the Fourth of July cookout?