[eat] Exploring Wichita’s Mediterranean Scene
Until about five years ago, I’d never even heard of hummus, not to mention falafel or stuffed grape leaves. But the first time I set foot in a Mediterranean restaurant, I was hooked. You wouldn’t think of Wichita as the place to go for great Mediterranean food, but that’s just one of the many culinary secrets ICT has up its sleeve. There’s a plethora of quality hummus-slingers in the city. Here’s a guide to the local Mediterranean scene.
Bella Luna
Atmosphere: Business casual; good place for a working lunch or a first date.
Go for: The hummus. I don’t know if it’s the best in the world, but it might be the best in Wichita. The sandwiches are also favorites, particularly the chicken schawarma, the chicken salad and the steak sandwich.
Avoid: The salads, unless you’re seriously hungry for a foot-high pile of lettuce, veggies and dressing. Delicious, yes, but a bit excessive for a light meal. Order the half size instead. The dry, over-seasoned falafel also falls short.
N&J Cafe
Atmosphere: Casual, diner-like; lots of students and older folks.
Go for: Cheap, filling meals. Try any of the sandwiches or a sampler platter, and make sure to get extra baba ghanouj. It’s the best I’ve ever had.
Avoid: The grape leaves, which are served warm and fall apart easily.
Nouvelle Cafe
Atmosphere: Well-decorated but not too upscale or intimate; good for dinner with the family or a friend.
Go for: “The Lebanese combo platter,” suggests Dustin Deckard. “It’s huge, and can be split between two people (especially if you started out with some hummus or kefta), but you’ll probably want this plate and the leftovers all to yourself.”
Avoid: “The crab cakes. If you’re going to bother spending $12 on crab cakes in Wichita, just get twice as many from the Dillons deli and serve them however you like.”
Mediterranean Grill
Atmosphere: Strangely decorated, but friendly.
Go for: Great salads and pasta dishes.
Avoid: I haven’t met an entree there I didn’t like.
Byblos
Atmosphere: Very busy. Try going at off-peak times for better service.
Go for: The shawarma sandwich and the falafel.
Avoid: If you’re a cook, Viktor Tarm recommends skipping the cafe altogether and hitting up the market. “They have the only falafel mix I’ve tried that tastes good. They also have a great supply of bulk tahini, labneh and several varieties of feta that are awesome.”
Adrian’s Cafe
Atmosphere: Oddly located next to Best Buy and Accessories City at 21st and N. Rock Road. The cozy interior is much larger than it looks. Live music adds a little something extra.
Go for: The falafel. “It was the best falafel I’ve ever had, hands down,” raves verb Editor-in-Chief Shea Sylvia. She also gives thumbs up for the vegetable cous cous and the greek salad.
Avoid: The hummus. It’s a bit bland.
Rain Cafe and Lounge
Atmosphere: Mediterranean restaurant by day, gay bar by night. Really!
Go for: Friend-of-verb (and, uh, boyfriend-of-me) Luke Geddes recommends the hummus.
Avoid: Luke says stay away from the falafel; it’s too dry.
But wait, there’s more…
Other Mediterranean places recommended by verb readers include Cafe Istanbul (120 N. West) and Mediterraneo (505 S. Webb). What is your favorite Mediterranean restaurant? Sound off in the comments.
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My wife and I like the hummus at Oeno Wine Bar… its nummy!!!
The fattouch salad at Le Monde is the best I’ve had in Wichita.
I’ll second Ashley on the salad at Le Monde. N & J’s rocks my world.
Is Istanbul still open? I loved that place last year, but I never seem to find the doors open for business these days.
I’m disappointing that LeMonde was left on this list… I think they have killer hummus. The steak hummus is my favorite and they also have the sweet biscuits that ROCK!
Oooh, I agree on the sweet biscuits at Le Monde. I’d forgotten about them until now. I know where I’ll be for lunch tomorrow. Will check out the steak hummus as well.
I LOOOOVE the chicken swarma hummus appetizer from N&J’s…. it’s my Mom and I’s fav in town, and the pita chips are to die for. Their market is also fantastic. I love the dried apricots, and a bag of pita chips last me, well, a day…. THAT good.
Also, Heat, the hookah bar behind Jimmy John’s between Central and 13th on Rock, has killer buba ghannoujsh .
Nouvelle has a great seafood crepe, and their tomato bisque is totally fab. My fam had to recreate it at home, it was that good. The decor is great, but the table arrangement seems a little empty. No me gusta.
Bella Luna isn’t really as good as everyone says it is. Sorry guys! Have never liked it. They have a pizza app. that’s alright, but I don’t even remember it. Just too busy. And the chicken is always dry. Lame-o.
I disagree that you should avoid the grape leaves at N & J’s. I like that they’re served warm and I think they’re delicious!
I love Bella Luna – get the hummus every time and take home the extra…all of my meals have been great! Last time got the Orange Roughy – phenom!
And, I second the tomato bisque at Nouvelle…so good!
Don’t actually eat at Piccadilly, but DO buy their fattouch salad dressing to use at home. It’s their own recipe, it’s awesome, and it’s pure Wichita. Antoine Tobia was a titan of ICT, and some of his recipes show it.
[...] Steph Barnard has shown us, Wichita has a pretty big Mediterranean food scene, so it’s not hard to find [...]
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