Written by Katja Davidoff
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On Wednesday December 3rd, three CELOP faculty and six students took the number 57 bus to Garlic and Lemons restaurant. I had not been there in almost a year and I was pleasantly surprised to see that the restaurant had expanded, allowing for lots of room to sit.
Garlic ‘N Lemons offers an array of Mediterranean food that one can get in the restaurant or catered. The menu is a simple offering of large roll ups or plates with side dishes. The portions are generous and fresh. The service was very fast and efficient. If you are not already familiar with this type of cuisine, I suggest you look at the menu first, as the servers expect you to know quickly what you
want. They politely and efficiently expect customers to order as soon as they get to the server counter in order to keep the line moving.
One of my favorite types of Mediterranean food is a Shawerma. This is their specialty. It is a type of roll up with chicken and various spices and sauce inside a pita or another type of bread called Saj. One can get the Shawerma with chicken or beef, and spicy or not spicy. It is a great combination of meat and spices. Another offering is a Shawerma plate, which is the inside meat and sauce served Shawerma style without the bread. There are also meat kebabs and meat kebob roll ups.
The restaurant offers veggie roll ups with vegetables, Falafel, or Halloumi, for anyone who is vegetarian or does not desire to eat meat. Many dishes are sold as a combo where one can get garlic and rice pilaf, Tabouleh Salad, Greek Salad, Falafel Fatoush Salad, Cous Cous Salad Cauliflower, Hummus, Grape leaves, Rice & Lentils, Baba, Mousaka, Green Beans, French Fries, or Spicy Potatoes as a side dishes. The meat is cooked rotisserie style and cut fresh for each sandwich. In addition to my favorite Shawerma roll up, I love the Fatoush salad. The combination of the salad with the spices and the lemon juice make this one of the freshest salads I have ever had. The hummus is also creamy and fragrant. If you have room left for dessert, the Baklava is pure sweetness.
I was pleased that the students and the faculty seemed to really like the food. Maria Palermino ordered stuffed peppers, grape leaves and rice. When I asked her what she thought, her answer was “OMG, OMG”. Many of my students planned to come back at a later date. That was proof enough for me that they were not just being polite when they said the food was really good. The prices are also very reasonable for the generous portions. I hope to have lunch there again soon.