Cedars Mediterranean: a restaurant review. If it weren't illegal and very socially unacceptable to climb on a food bar and use it as a slip and slide, I'd be covered in baba ganoush right now.
Cedars is a serve yourself Mediterranean restaurant just south of 121 on Preston. The menu is limited and so far, I approve of everything I've tasted except 2 items. More on that later.
The ordering is easy and the staff is pleasantly nice. They are mostly Russian so by their standards, they're probably giddy with enthusiasm. By mine, just right. They take your order in an efficient way without being hurried and they never initiate conversation. You have the choice of different kabobs. I chose lamb.
The food bar is divided into three sections, hot veggies, salads, and dips. All are vegan and gluten free. I will not to count off for this because it's not making a well known dish in a GF way but making a dish that IS GF.
I sampled the pomegranate eggplant, a tahini cashew sauce with mushrooms and cauliflower, roasted cauliflower, citrus quinoa salad, spring salad with artichokes and hearts of palm, caprese salad, walnut dip, hummus, and baba ganoush. They had names for these dishes and I'd use them if I remembered because there's nothing quite like using a pretentious food term and then acting condescendingly shocked when others ask what it is. I mean, why else would we eat half the food we eat? But I digress.
I will not describe my entire meal except to say that the roasted cauliflower and walnut dip made me utter in appropriate noises. The salads were extremely fresh, except the caprese- it was like eating white rubber on red styrofoam. The only place in town to get a good tomato is Tru Fire and I'm still trying to bribe them for their contact.
A server asked in very broken English what I wanted to drink. I asked what they had that was non carbonated and he looked nervously around. I'm guessing he needed a translator or I inadvertently threatened the family goat. I found out on a subsequent trip that you have to pay for the drink with your order and they trust you to be honest. Oops.
Point off for process.
I ordered lemon aid and I was not disappointed. Real lemon, loads of mint, and lightly sweetened. I wasn't expecting real lemons so my first drink made me pucker like the old church ladies at handshake time. I will gladly pay the $2.85 for this again.
Every dish was a lesson in restraint. Lightly seasoned veggies shined above the accompanying sauces or dressings. The dips were creamy and perfectly textured. No lumps in the hummus and only small ones in the ganoush. The lamb kabob showed up and I was blown away. It was actually lamb. Salt and pepper and lamb. You could taste the lamb. Most places mix beef with their lamb and I'm not a fan (gyro excluded) it was juicy, tender, and evenly cooked.
The two dishes that made me recoil were the roasted zucchini and potato salad. They tasted very strongly of alcohol. Not the fun kind, either. The rubbing kind. I asked my server about it and he said there was no alcohol because it would make the Muslims mad. I believed him. Make me mad and I'll write a scathing review. Make the Muslims mad and the little kid selling candy bars outside your place is likely to blow up.
Whatever the secret ingredient was, it was about as palatable as vegemite and another reason why America needs to win more wars.
I give Cedars. 8.5 out of 10.
Process with drinks, lack of English speaking wait staff, and veggies that tasted like they were sautéed in Bill Clinton's jock strap keep them from a 10.
Terrific food, clean space, kitchen in the open - I highly recommend you give it a try.
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