Oldie but a goodie - Falamanki

Ever since I came back to live and work proper in the big smoke, I have always been fond of Lebanese food. I was first introduced to the cuisine (and the delights of Edgware Road) many years ago by a friend from my MSc who had told me the food was really fantastic and even directed me to some of the nicer places to go. One of the first restos she ever took me to was Al Dar on Edgware Road. There are several branches around town and the closest one to where we live is in High Street Ken - this particular branch is no longer called Al Dar but renamed as Falamanki last year. Thankfully, the only change was to the name and the food has remained delish :)

As usual, we ate like pigs but still found space to gobble up the complimentary baklava that was served with our tea!

  Mezze - houmous, batata harra (spuds fried in onions and peppers), and okra in tomato sauce

JD's main of chicken shawarma served with garlic and chilli sauces

My main of grilled lamb cutlets - yum :)

New Year eating - Comptoir Libanais

Having survived a hectic enough New Year's Eve service, it was very nice to have the weekend off and just chill out. This involved our first trip to the cinema in 2010 to see "Sherlock Holmes" (good Friday night entertainment flick!) and of course, some eating!! I had heard good things about Comptoir Libanais, a chic Lebanese casual dining deli behind Selfridges so we decided to head there for our Saturday lunch. We arrived just in time to nab a couple of seats by the front window (by the time we left at around 2:30pm, there was a substantial queue of customers waiting to be seated) and tucked into some grub. The deli itself is very nicely decorated with a bustling atmosphere; the food was alright but not good enough to deter us from going back to Al Dar for excellent Lebanese food. Similarly, when compared to other casual dining places, Leon offers far more superior food than Comptoir Libanais. It was nice for a visit but I don't think we will be going back.   

Strawberry Fanta in the middle shelf!!

Our order: fruit juices (carrot & apple, apple & orange), baba ganoush (too sour and too cold), chargrilled chicken couscous salad (too cold and not much flavour), kofta tagine (OK but not bursting with flavour) and mezze platter (nice falafel and tabbouleh, hummus pales in comparison to Al Dar)

Eating in London - Al Dar

Our last meal out in London before heading home for Chrimbo - at one of our favourites, Al Dar. Our usual haunt is the one in High St. Ken but its closed for refurbishment at the moment so had to make do and slum it with the Sloaneys at Al Dar on Kings Road instead :)

Ordered way too much food as usual but did feel nicely sated afterwards :)

Some starters - the best hummus ever, fried spuds with onions and peppers, aubergine cooked with tomatoes, garlic and onion.

Mixed grill - yum!