Yesterday the Chicks had a "night out with the girls". We had dinner at Rita's Lebanese Cafe on North Allen Street in Albany, NY. It's a quaint little restaurant not far in from Central Avenue, for those of you who are aquainted with the area.
The inside is cozy and colorfully decorated with photos and paintings of Lebanon and all things related. In the background you can hear softly playing music, which a couple of times I had to restrain myself not to get up and do an impromptu belly dance. LOL! Those drums get me every time!
Going around the table from lower left there was Barb, Maureen, Catie, Kathleen, Liz, and me. We had just finished appetizers of stuffed grapeleaves, hummos, tabuli, baba ghannouj, pickled turnips, olives, and a cucumber dip called Labneh. We were about to dig into our main entrees of kibbee, felafel, and pita wraps of chicken and beef. Everything was soooooo good! The flavors and aromas were intoxicating. You can smell and taste the cinnamon, allspice, mint, and garlic in some of the dishes. It's real comfort food like you used to get at Grandma's house....if your Grandma were Lebanese. LOL!
Thanks again, Rita and Tony for a wonderful dinner and a good night out with the Chicks!
We'll be back again for some more of your delicious food!
3 comments:
Cool!
I had a friend growing up who moved to Lebanon where her father taught at the American University there, till things got too violent (like coming to work and finding his office shot up) and they came home to America. I've always been intrigued by Lebanese food and culture, wondering what Leslie went through there.
We love this restaurant, too. My daughter asks to go there often - she loves the cinnamon rice and the fennel tea. Rita and Tony are wonderful and always make you feel special and welcomed. Sounds like you all had a great time. I just love neighborhood restaurants like this. I hope this one stays in business for a long, long time.
That looks wonderful and I am glad you had such a great time!
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