Nicholas Restaurant

For months I'd been reading reviews of a tiny hole-in-the-wall family-owned Lebanese restaurant that is simply outstanding. My boyfriend and I finally ventured to the spot and it was, as to be expected, really great. When they say Nicholas Restaurant is small, they mean small; 6 two-person tables to the right of the entrance, probably the same amount to the left. I was scared there would be a long wait but we managed to beat the crowd and were promptly seated. Middle Eastern decor, music and staff greeted us at once and made me feel like I was on a little tiny vacation of sorts. 

It took forever to try to choose between a hummus appetizer, lentil soup, grapeleaves, mezza, a sandwich and kababs but finally we settled on a falafel meal and a beef kafka sandwich. My meal came with an appetizer of pita & hummus and a Lebanese salad and wow, get some pita and hummus if you go. The pita comes straight out of the oven (or however it's prepared) and it is humongous. Parties of more than two received a pita that had to be 20 inches in diameter. It was great. The hummus was authentic and mild and with the sweetness of the pita, tasted just about perfect. We practically got full off of just the pita and hummus but when our sandwiches came we managed to make room. The tahziki sauce was probably the best I've had anywhere and, once again, the bread was just sweet enough, just soft enough, and just perfect enough. Plus, since we'd gotten so stuffed on the appetizer, we got to take home the second halves of our sandwiches and enjoy them all over again the next day. I would have loved to have tried some Lebanese desserts, their fresh peach juice or their strawberry yogurt drink, but I decided to stick to the basics and work on getting out there again to try one of the many other menu items I had to pass up.

This food was so good and, more importantly, it made me feel good. I love eating at local restaurants, especially this type that is family-owned and makes real, good food. The thing I hate most about chain restaurants is the fact that food has to be perfected beyond normality so that it tastes the same whether you get it in Atlanta, Denver or Portland; there's no flair that goes into it, no love from the chef who unthaws the same thing every day, measures out the exact amount of prepackaged mystery mix every serving and has little pride in what they serve. I look for quality over quantity. I look for locality and exclusivity over frozen meals shipped across the country. You support your community, it grows and thrives. You support big industry, it monopolizes. 

You obviously make the choice for yourself, but I prefer to keep my money in my community and help the little people realize their dream of sharing what they love with their friends and neighbors.