Companion(s): Jasmine
Ok so I haven't posted in a while. I admit Jasmine has kept me rather distracted. :) Why am I boring you with all this mushy stuff? Because it's Valentine's Day (or at least it was when we went to Cedars) and my love for this restaurant is right up there with the best I've been to. Of course I love Jasmine more, but as restaurants go, this one has absolutely stolen my heart. Might have been the company, but with a name like Cedars, it's gotta have the potential for culinary wood... and I'm talking totally aroused taste buds here, not "the chicken tastes like wood" (with apologies to The Sugar Hill Gang... and if you haven't already guessed, this restaurant is an "Eater's Delight").
So Like I said, is/was Valentine's Day, and silly Buddha that I am, I decide to take Jasmine (who is Lebanese, by the way, hence the Aladdin reference) to a Lebanese restaurant. I've had Jasmine's home made Lebanese food, and it was truly amazing... all her Siti's (Arabic Grandma's) recipes. An untried restaurant on Valentine's Day has the potential for disaster. Especially when your significant other grew up eating that style of food. We've been wanting to try the restaurant for a while, though, and agreed that we would risk it. The restaurant was dimly lit and very romantic... the decor and background music made us feel like we had stepped in to another world, or at least another country. So far, so good. Our waiter was Arabic and truly knowledgable about the restaurant and the menu. He asked if we had never been there before, and when we said "No." he recommended the Special, which was a 2 person version of their "Arabic Feast for Four". It consisted of three cold appetizers, four hot appetizers, a platter of meats and veggies with portions of three of the entree meats from the menu (chef's choice), steamed rice and veggies, and a dessert.
The cold appetizers were brought out first... the hummus was remarkably creamy, some of the best I've ever had.
The baba ghanouj was wonderfully smoky, THE best I've ever had by far (and if you can disagree, you must be smoking something yourself). If I had to pick one can't miss item on the menu, it would have to be this. The tabbouleh was good but not as much bulgar as I was expecting, and a bit oily, but excelent flavor over all. This was served with fresh Syrian (pita) bread that was still warm and puffy from the oven. Truly amazing. Though we didn't get to try it, it is interesting to note Kibbeh Nayeh (Raw beef kibbeh, a lebanese delicacy) is also on the menu.
As to the hot appetizers, The safiah (meat pies) were wonderful, great flavor. Seasoned ground meat in a puff pastry. The fatayer Jasmine says sere just like her Siti's. The cheese rolls were cheese strips fried in a light crispy wanton-like wrapper. But my favorite of the hot appetizers had to be the felafel... far and away the best felafel I've ever had. They were almost like an arabic hush puppy... very light, very flavorful. All of the hot appetizers were served with a tahini sauce (which is supposed to come with the felafel) that was very good.
At this point we were bordering on full, and still had the entree to come... the entree platter (on the menu as the Mixed Grille) was huge and contained nice sized portions of three of their meat entrees. The kafta kebab was beef very well seasoned with a unique blend of spices. The shish kabab is the tenderest most flavorful lamb I've ever had in my life. Finally, the shish tawook (grilled chicken skewers) was amazing... wish I knew what kind of seasonings they used. Oh my wow good! This mammoth platter of meats was accompanied by steamed rice and vegetables - the veggies were all perfectly tender crisp, and the baby carrots exceptionally sweet.
Dessert (not that we had room for it, but we forced ourselves) was fruit, honey and whipped cream. Simple and light, which is good, as we could not have finished anything heavier. We took home enough food for us both to have VERY large lunches the next day. $50 for two is a bit pricey, but considering the quality and the fact that we four meals out of it, well worth every penny.
I've never given a reviewed restaurant a 10, as it is rare to fine a restaurant where the quality of the food, the service, the atmosphere and the price are all exceptional. However Cedar's has truly achieved culinary nirvana. This was one of the 10 best meals I've ever had in my life, so in this case I'm giving it 10 (big Buddha) bellies dancing. If you are in Orlando, don't miss Cedar's!
One final note, the post is dated from when we ate there, even though I am just now getting around to writing it up. Thank Buddha for iPhone voice memos. -FB
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