Mediterranean Grill: A Taste of Europe and the Middle East

When you hear the word "Mediterranean," it may conjure up images of many things depending on your own personal experiences, travels and education. Personally, I think of dark blue waters, olive oil, lemons and grilled seafood. What's amazing to me about the Mediterranean Sea is that for a relatively small body of water, so many different countries border it: Italy, Greece, Turkey, Cyprus, Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Algeria and Morocco and more.

If a restaurant is named , what can one expect to find, given the many different countries represented under that moniker? The menu is pretty extensive, although it definitely leans towards the Middle Eastern side of the Mediterranean. In fact, the website says "Mediterranean, Persian, Food, Kebobs" at the top of the page.

I love Persian food. I fell in love with it after tackling the enormous beef sultani platter at Reza's in Chicago (one of only two girls to ever do so in the presence of a proud Persian college friend).

We started with the hummus ($5), melanzana (oven roasted baby eggplant sauteed with mushrooms, scallions, tomatoes, and feta cheese baked into a homemade crust, $6) and dolmeh (stuffed grape leaves, $5.50). The basket of warm pita bread went well with all of our appetizers. The melanzana was piping hot and delicious. Melanzana is Italian for eggplant, and feta is a Greek cheese so this was a distinctly Mediterranean offering. Stuffed grape leaves are available all over the Mediterranean, and each country has their own name for them (dolmeh is the Persian name for them, dolmades is the Greek name for them, sarma in Turkey, etc.). The dolmeh were good on their own but even better with a fresh squeeze of lemon juice. The appetizer list also features spanikopita (the Greek spinach and feta pie, $6) and a mazeh (combination of any three appetizers, $16).

Salads include Greek (imported feta, cucumber, red onion, kalamata olives and tomato dressed in our house vinaigrette, $9), tabouli (cracked wheat, diced tomato, onion, parsley fresh lemon juice and olive oil served on a bed of lettuce, $9), Caesar ($9), ottimo ("excellent" in Italian, black-eyed peas, diced tomato, carrots, shredded cabbage, walnuts, chopped fresh dill and scallions with fresh lemon and extra virgin oil dressing, $10) and shirazi ("from the Iranian city of Shiraz", diced tomato, cucumber, onion and fresh herbs with house dressing served on a bed of lettuce, $9). Aash (spinach, wheat noodles, cilantro parsley, red beans, chick peas and herbs), black bean and lentil soups are also available by the cup or bowl.

For our entrees, we had the combination ground beef (koobideh) and lamb (kebob) platter ($25), which was the best of both worlds. The koobideh was flavorful and juicy while the lamb was succulent and surprisingly not gamey at all. The lamb was perfectly cooked. In addition, we had the fesenjan (Persian meatballs, sweet and sour gravy with pomegranate paste, walnuts and saffron, $18). The fesenjan may seem like an unusual mix of flavors but is very typical of Middle Eastern cooking, which often combines sweet and sour or sweet and salty ingredients. I had never tried it and was intrigued. It was the type of dish that grew on you. The first bite was my least favorite, but it got better with every single bite. When I had it reheated the next day it was even better than the previous night. If you're not in the mood for so much meat, there are three pasta dishes available (lasagne, ziti and fettucini alfredo).

For dessert, we had the baklava sampler (chocolate, traditional and shredded, $6) and the consensus of the table was that the traditional was the best. All three had the flakey layers, honey, walnuts and cinnamon, but we felt the classic did not need any improvement. The chocolate baklava did not have chocolate phyllo dough but rather a drizzle of chocolate sauce.

Though Mediterranean Grill is a BYOB, we did not bring our own alcohol. I opted instead to try the homemade doogh ($2.50) though there is a bottled variety as well. This salty yogurt Persian drink with herbs was not quite my cup of tea, but I could tell that it paired well with the food of the region. Sodas, coffee and tea are also available.

The decor includes earth tones, Persian rugs and beautiful tile. It is quite a warm and inviting space, kind of like you're entering someone's home. We were greeted immediately, sat promptly (even without a reservation) and enjoyed a fantastic array of mostly Middle Eastern foods. I'd recommend this restaurant to anyone who has a yearning for Middle Eastern food, although if you're trying to please multiple requests I'd say this restaurant also has a decent amount of Greek and Italian offerings.