So recently I went to a local (eastside Indianapolis) restaurant that a friend had mentioned as being good on social media. The wife and I went in. They had a local artist featured on the walls. The atmosphere was really nice. It smelled good. My mouth was watering with anticipation.
They had lamb listed as the special. The waitress said it was leg of lamb. I love lamb. My mouth watering is now bordering on drool. While it was early for dinner, we were nearby and wanted to try the place…but now I was getting hungry. So obviously I bit the market price bullet and ordered it.
When it came out I immediately noticed two things. First, even though every other dinner on the menu listed GREEK POTATOES as the side (another favorite and the perfect side for lamb), this dish came with a scoop (a cafeteria scoop) of rice with a drizzle of gravy on it. Second and more importantly the “leg of lamb” was a pile of meat that looked like roast beef (from the same cafeteria) and it was in a heavy brown gravy.
I am not one who enjoys the prospect of cook spit, so I never send anything back. Besides, I learned long ago not to judge food until you taste. A different presentation will frequently have a happy result.
Not this time. The “lamb” was dry and if it had flavor, it was thoroughly buried beneath the gravy.
The wife’s food was good, and the cake we had for desert was pleasant as well. (I try not to let anything be completely ruined, though it was a tough salvage after that disappointment.)
Because I am determined to start my weekend with a positive attitude. I will not be reviewing this restaurant. It may have been a series of bad luck errors, and loving the eastside I will not disparage this place until I have given them a second chance. So I am not going to review them.
Instead I am going to tell you about a pair of Lamb Shanks (pictured above) I ate some 7 months ago.
So I had occasion to be just south of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma in the city of Norman. Not somewhere I would have gone without business calling, but for the record I will say it is a very nice place….and the food choices are spectacular. I mean there are cities twice the size of OKC that don’t have its dining opportunities.
This one isn’t fine dining though.
In fact, if you pulled up to it off a map search, I would be surprised if you went in. The building has seen its better days and it doesn’t look much nicer when you go in. Frankly it looks like a second world diner with 4 or 5 tables in it.
But they had lamb, and I was told it was real Persian food. For those who don’t know, the Persians (aka Iranians) are masters of seasoning and make what is arguably the best of all middle eastern fare. I scanned the menu and ordered the two lamb shank dinner with saffron rice and a coke.
When he handed my my Styrofoam cup I got a little worried. Still, I filled it with soda and had a seat.
When my food came out, my eyes lit up. I mean just look at that plate. The glistening of warmed fat speckled with spices, contrasted by the golden glow of the saffron atop my rice. In short. It was perfect. Over the next two weeks I made trips out of my way four times to eat here (there were a lot of great options too)…and anytime I am travelling 40 across the country, I assure you I will stop in.
If you love lamb, and want to know what it should taste like, stop in to this clear Blue Ribbon Team winner. Maybe I can convince the owners of a certain eastside Indy restaurant to try it.
Cafe Saffron – 770 Deans Row Ave, Norman, OK 73069
This is an earned and unpaid review.
