International Dining and More
Ethiopia, Ireland, Palestine, Iran, India, Greece and Hawaii. What do they have in common? Well, aside from the fact that I love to travel to these very interesting and culturally-rich places, I also love every bit of their cuisine. In fact, all of these countries have uniquely interesting and gastronomically fulfilling foods that hit my taste buds and I was very glad!
The East-West Center experience that brought me to at least 10 cities in 4 states in the US last year, not only provided me a wider and deeper understanding about international issues, it also took me to unforgettable dining places with great, mouthwatering nourishment.
Exemplary Ethiopian
Ethiopian restaurant is flourishing in Washington, DC with a number of most-dined destinations. One of which is Zed’s Ethiopian Cuisine located between M St. NW and Olive St. in Georgetown Washington, DC. The place is owned and personally managed by Zed Wondemo, an Ethiopian-born restaurateur who loves to share good food and hospitality with people from all over the world visiting or living in Washington and its neighboring states.
Photos of famous personalities who had dined in this place were posted on the walls inside the brightly decorated restaurant. Some of them were US president George W. Bush, US State Secretary Hillary Clinton, Mike Tyson and more. Ethiopian decors and African artworks were also part of the house’s decoration.
It was in this restaurant that I, together with SJS colleagues Yee Peng Foo (Malaysia) and Dandy Koswaraputra (Indonesia), had our first taste of Ethiopian food. The hearty dinner was composed of spicy beef stew, chicken curry and three other recipes. Spicy food characterizes Ethiopian cuisine. All of our orders were placed in a huge platter for everyone to partake.
As a replacement of the usual spoon, fork or knife, we were given a soft, spongy-bread called Injerra (Injira). Injeera is made of fermented teff flour which is about 10 inches. At first, I thought it was a folded hot towel to clean our hands as there were no utensils provided. But surprisingly, I was told that one should tear-off a small portion of injeera to get the food from the plate to the mouth. So, I ate the piquant fodder with injeera which was initially difficult as the soft bread could not hold the meat and easily slipped-out.
Traditional Ethiopian cuisine employs no pork of any kind, as most Ethiopians are either Ethiopian Orthodox, Muslims or Jews, and are thus prohibited from eating pork. A full-bodied African beer normally ends a great dinner. But I had warm water to compensate the spicy taste.
Interestingly Irish
Irish cuisine is indeed very interesting especially when you have it for the first time during the celebration of St. Patrick’s Day when almost everyone and everything is in green, even the food - - from the appetizers to main dish to desserts to drinks. Why not? Green is associated to the color of St. Patrick, the first bishop of Irish believers in Christ.
Irish cuisine has two of the most important ingredients, the bread and honey. The bread that is made in Ireland knows many variations, and the most common are: wheaten bread, blaa, soda bread and Waterford. Honey was used ever since the early Irish cuisine as the main ingredient of a traditional beverage, named mead.
Palatable Palestinian
Palestinian food is as colorful as the countries culture and history. In our visit to the Islamic Center of Columbia in Maury County, Tennessee, we nibbled on food that people in one of the most-talked about conflict areas in the world – in Galilee, in Gaza and in the West Bank, have on their tables.
After the very enriching discussion with the group of Islamic center president Daoud Abudiab, they treated us to a great Palestinian menu composed of rice, chicken, vegetable salad and vegetable rolls that looked-like Chinese lumpia. The very colorful rice caught my attention as it was flavorsome and distinctively tasteful. It was prepared by Abudiab’s wife who is a Palestinian.
Palestinian food is spicy but mild. Lunch is the main meal of the day that usually takes place at around two in the afternoon.
According to the Institute for Middle East Understanding, the basic ingredients for many Palestinian dishes include rice, lamb, chicken, fish and vegetables, and common spices include cinnamon, allspice, cardamom, nutmeg and black pepper. Olive oil and samneh (clarified butter or ghee) are the most common cooking oils.
Pleasurable Persian
At Noon O Kabab restaurant along 4661 N. Kedzie Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, our group met for a dialogue with Arab-American author and columnist Ray Hanania. It was during this meeting that I finally experienced authentically pleasurable Persian food.
So, why in this restaurant? Noon O Kabab offers original Iranian/Persian style home-cooking, generous servings and yes, excessive fresh seasonings. Some of which come all the way from Iran where the owner Amin Naghavi is a native of Tabriz town.
We started our lunch with an appetizer called Baba Ghannouj , that’s roasted eggplant blended with tahini, fresh garlic parsley and lemon juice topped with olive oil. It was followed with Persian Saffron Chides Soup composed of carrots, celery, Persian Saffron, tomato, and chicken breast with the “business secret” spices. With the appetizers and the soup this delicious, one would be full enough even before the main dish is served.
Then came the Joujeh and Koubideh, a combination of one large skewed of juice boneless chicken breast, a skewed ground sirloin with charred tomato on the side and Adass Polo, a wonderful mix of lentils, raisins, caramelized onions, saffron and Persian barberry served with Persian rice. For a drink, a boohg or yogart drink with mint was really refreshing.
But other than the healthy and nutritious food, what was instilled in my memory was the quiet ambiance, softly lit dining hall decorated with exquisite Persian tiles on the walls and alcoves depicting the country’s fables and tales and the melodious Persian music.
Greek Gusto
The birthday celebration of Susan Kreifels, East-West Center Media Coordinator, has brought us to Roditys , a Greek restaurant in Halsted St., Chicago, Illinois.
We were accompanied by Rummana Hussain, an EWC alumna who works for Chicago Sun-Times, together with her sister, Almas,. The group trooped to this popular deity- worthy classics that has been serving the Greek gods and the ordanaires since 1973.
Few of my favorites were the Flaming Saganaki Cheese made of mozzarella cheese, lemon, butter and brandy (may be the secret to this scrumptious hot appetizer). Another one was the pastichio, the house specialty and the Greek’s answer to Lasagna. Athenian salad, Tomato Rosamarina soup, and Grecian Style chicken for my main course completed the authentic Greek dining experience.
Of course, how could I not remember the attentive service persons that helped us with the surprise birthday cake for Susan and joined us in the singing of the happy birthday song. That was very memorable!
Healthily Hawaiian
Hawaii is a tropical country in the pacific. Its cuisine is a blending of many different cooking styles influenced by the groups of immigrants to the island; Filipinos, Japanese, Portuguese, Koreans, Americans and Chinese.
But I learned that with the establishment of Hawaii Regional Cuisine in 1992, Hawaii’s locally grown ingredients like cattle, macademia nuts, pineapple, potatoes, lettuce and taro were utilized to create a sophisticated mixed of recipes using diversified ethic cooking methods.
My Ateneo classmate and friend, Vangie Pineda-Sison, who now resides in Hawaii with her family, brought me to Makino Chaya, a restaurant inside Aloha Tower in Aiea, Hawaii that offers a buffet of more than 40 dishes, from sushi to chicken to noodles.
This Japanese restaurant also serves some Hawaiian dishes. For a pupus or appetizer, a Macadamia Nut Hummus and Shrimp Ono Nuiwas (coconut battered shrimp) was the best. Main dish favorites include Teriyaki Beef or Chicken, Char Siu (delicious rich, red spareribs popularized by the Chinese immigrants to Hawaii) and Lau Lau - beef, chicken, butterfish or pork wrapped in Taro or Ti Leaves.
But more than the great taste of these meat recipes, I was amazed of how similar to the Philippine the fruits and seafood menus available in most of its restaurants. Delicious pineapple, meaty tuna and more... you can get them fresh from the deep-blue seas that surround this huge, beautiful and breathtaking islands in the Pacific.
