Monday, July 24, 2006
Le Mezzé
76 Murray Street
July 21st, 2006
In the heart of the Byward Market is somewhere new that serves up Lebanese food with all the quality and service of a fine restaurant. Le Mezzé is at 76 Murray Street, the location of the former Café Crêpes de France. On a warm summer evening, its patio made for an inviting place to sip some wine and eat a good meal.
When my girlfriend and I were seated a waiter dropped top quality olives, pickles and pita bread at our table. The service remained attentive for the duration of our stay.
We ordered a bottle of Shiraz, somehow thinking that the Arabic named wine would go well with Lebanese food. We were right; the wine was excellent (and fairly reasonably priced).
We both couldn’t resist ordering some starters. She ordered an eggplant dish, which was one of the specials of the day. It was topped with fried pita chips, pine nuts and a yogurt sauce. It was excellent. I had opted for something that sounded even more exciting. Kibe Naye was described as a “beef tartar”. I had to take the chance. It was a large serving of raw ground beef, with spices and topped with olive oil. It melted in my mouth.
For our mains my girlfriend had the terbally chicken. Charbroiled chicken topped with a spicy tomato and pomegranate sauce. It was okay, but the spicy tomato over powered the pomegranate too much. You could barely taste the tangy fruitiness, if at all. I chose the lamb kabob. The lamb was grilled with a Dijon sauce. The meat was tender and was complemented by the wonderful sauce. Both dishes were accompanied by sautéed fresh vegetables and some fair rice.
This is certainly taking Lebanese food up a few notches from what we are use to. Lebanese food can certainly be dressed up. Le Mezzé does a good job of this, and its location will encourage many to try it out.
July 21st, 2006
In the heart of the Byward Market is somewhere new that serves up Lebanese food with all the quality and service of a fine restaurant. Le Mezzé is at 76 Murray Street, the location of the former Café Crêpes de France. On a warm summer evening, its patio made for an inviting place to sip some wine and eat a good meal.
When my girlfriend and I were seated a waiter dropped top quality olives, pickles and pita bread at our table. The service remained attentive for the duration of our stay.
We ordered a bottle of Shiraz, somehow thinking that the Arabic named wine would go well with Lebanese food. We were right; the wine was excellent (and fairly reasonably priced).
We both couldn’t resist ordering some starters. She ordered an eggplant dish, which was one of the specials of the day. It was topped with fried pita chips, pine nuts and a yogurt sauce. It was excellent. I had opted for something that sounded even more exciting. Kibe Naye was described as a “beef tartar”. I had to take the chance. It was a large serving of raw ground beef, with spices and topped with olive oil. It melted in my mouth.
For our mains my girlfriend had the terbally chicken. Charbroiled chicken topped with a spicy tomato and pomegranate sauce. It was okay, but the spicy tomato over powered the pomegranate too much. You could barely taste the tangy fruitiness, if at all. I chose the lamb kabob. The lamb was grilled with a Dijon sauce. The meat was tender and was complemented by the wonderful sauce. Both dishes were accompanied by sautéed fresh vegetables and some fair rice.
This is certainly taking Lebanese food up a few notches from what we are use to. Lebanese food can certainly be dressed up. Le Mezzé does a good job of this, and its location will encourage many to try it out.
# posted by Ottawa shawarma @ 4:14 PM 
