LOVIN' LEBANESE
Alcazar offers a variety of savory delights for a sweet price
By Richard Foss
When it comes to most immigrant cuisines, we first become familiar with a fast-food version. In the case of Lebanese fare, that meant Americans ate falafel and kebabs, tabbouleh and hummus. These are all good fast food, and even healthy when compared to their Yankee counterparts of burgers and pizza, but nowhere close to the delicacy and complexity of a real Lebanese banquet.
If you're in the Valley, the best place to experience that variety is Alcazar. Though it's located in a modern building that is devoid of curb appeal, the interior is comfortable and nicely decorated in Middle Eastern high style. The menu is vast and the dishes well described - which is good, because the average L.A. diner won't recognize even a tenth of them. I found the restaurant by accident while looking for something else and had a wonderful salad and the best kibbe I had ever tasted. Those lamb and pine nut meatballs coated with cracked wheat were absolutely perfect, and I resolved to go back as soon as possible.
On my second visit, my dining companion and I decided to order an array of starters and to share one main course. After some negotiating, we decided on Hummus Alcazar ($6.50); Sawdat Djej, a dish of chicken liver sautéed with pomegranate sauce ($7.50); and K'bbeh Naye, a dish of raw beef with cracked wheat ($7.50).
As I occasionally do when at a restaurant I really trust, I had ordered one item containing ingredients I actually don't like much. Chicken liver has a combination of taste and texture that I often find cloying, though there are certain presentations that render it palatable. The combination of pomegranate juice, cilantro, garlic, and lemon does the job perfectly, the sharp, tart, and peppery flavors all contrasting with the full, meaty liver in interesting ways. Lest it be thought that making it "palatable" to me made it inedible to someone who likes chicken liver, my liver-lovin' companion liked it equally well.
I had never tried K'bbeh Naye before but ordered it because it seems to be one of the signature dishes of any restaurant with a big Lebanese clientele. Spiced raw beef can have a wonderful creamy richness, but worries about mad cow disease have made steak tartare and such dishes unfashionable. As someone who regularly drives in Los Angeles, I expose myself to greater risks than this on a regular basis - and rarely, I might add, with as much pleasure. The K'bbeh Naye was very good, almost like a thick, meaty salsa to be scooped up with the fresh, warm pita bread that accompanied it.
The Hummus Alcazar was the traditional hummus of ground chickpeas, oil, and spices, but topped with fava beans. I like favas in just about anything, but in this case the flavor of the beans was obscured by the garlicky hummus. Though it was still a nice dish of hummus, this was the only item in the meal that failed to live up to its potential.
For our main course, we selected an old standard of a beef and eggplant kebab ($12.95), which was served with a grilled tomato and our choice of several different starches. We selected a smoked bulgur wheat, which was similar to couscous but vastly superior. How one smokes wheat is a mystery to me, but why is not - it was delicious. The kebab was too: The eggplant and chunks of marinated steak were both tender and flavorful. But on our return, we'll probably try something a bit more adventurous.
An array of enticing desserts was offered, but we had dined so well that we merely resolved to leave room on our next visit. There was no question we'd be back; when I find a place like this, where two people can dine elegantly with two glasses of decent wine for under $50, there will be a return visit. Alcazar is an unlikely find, but a treasure, a place offering the world Lebanese food of high quality and great subtlety.Published: 01/06/2005
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