Sweet on Desserts
Rosie Nemr, whose last name means tiger in Arabic, is as tame as a kitten with her customers. She’s your host at Cafe du Liban, a charming, cozy Tarzana restaurant specializing in Lebanese, Armenian and Greek dishes.
At first glance, little about this place (the former Mediterranean Feast) sets it apart from other storefront restaurants on the Boulevard. Of course, it’s directly adjacent to Coffee Junction, so this may be the only Southland mini-mall where you can be entertained by a belly dancer on a Friday or Saturday and then go next-door to hear a folk singer.
The food is cooked on a charcoal grill or the traditional saj griddle. Atmosphere is furnished by ceremonial swords and a variety of brass plates mounted on the white brick walls. But perhaps the cafe’s most compelling feature is a large pastry case filled with homemade puddings, fancy baklavas and ornate French pastries.
The first page of the menu is dominated by appetizers (mezze), including delicious hummus and baba ghannouj, the former available either plain or mixed with sauteed lamb and pine nuts. The boreks (spelled “bourac” here) are flaky baked turnovers filled with either cheese or spinach. Labneh is a thickened yogurt spread strongly flavored with fresh mint.
There are grape leaves stuffed with a mixture of rice, onion and parsley. The best meat appetizer, for my money, is makanek, delicate, thumb-sized lamb sausages redolent of cloves. And don’t miss khubz bi-zaatar, the Lebanese bruschetta. It’s pita bread brushed with olive oil, thyme, tart ground sumac and sesame seeds, toasted to a golden brown.
Most main dishes are broiled kebabs served with a fluffy rice pilaf mixed with toasted vermicelli. The kitchen makes a beautifully tender lamb shish kebab. Spice-crusted quail (four to an order) come out juicy and crisp. Another smart choice is kofta kebab, in which the meat is ground lamb or chicken.
On Thursday evenings, the cafe makes wonderful lamb meatballs (dawud basha) spiked with cumin. And most nights there’s a sort of Middle Eastern stir-fry called ghallabba: shrimp, lamb or chicken, sauteed in butter and tossed with tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, green peppers and spices.
Now, about that dessert case. The top shelf has homemade puddings, and brother, are they exotic. In addition to a creamy rice pudding and an above-average flan, there are mughli and mhallabi, two ultra-traditional Lebanese puddings made by Nemr herself. Mughli is made from brown rice flour flavored with spices and brown sugar, topped with ground almonds and orange blossom jam. Mhallabi is similar, only the flavorings are coconut and rose water, with a pistachio topping. For many, these puddings will be an acquired taste.
Nobody should have trouble with the various baklavas, however. And the French pastries--petit fours-sized objets d’art with names like strawberry Napoleon, rum baba and cappuccino mousse tarte--recall the pastry shops of Beirut in its glory days. In fact, these pastries are handmade by a local Israeli woman, expressly for the restaurant. Don’t you love L.A.?
BE THERE
Cafe du Liban, 19223 Ventura Blvd., Tarzana. Open 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-midnight Friday-Saturday. No alcohol. Parking lot. American Express, MasterCard and Visa. Dinner for two, $21-$38. Suggested dishes: zaatar, $2.75; baba ghannouj, $4.50; hummus with meat and nuts, $8.95; skewer combo, $16.95; quails, $12. Call (818) 705-3194.