Gothamist: Street Eats: The Original Pizza?

janelle

Fri, 06 Oct 2006 11:59:25 -0500

while i don't consider myself any kind of expert on mediterranean food, bedouin tent might be my personal faviorite in the city - i normally order the salad platter, and they have an amazing soup whose name ecapes me right now. i have had possibly the best babaghanouj ever at moustache, and i always go one of the zaytoons locations for falafel sandwiches.

israeli falafel

Thu, 05 Oct 2006 17:58:34 -0500

otherobject: i guess you haven't had the falafel sandwich at azuri on w.51st.

Jo

Thu, 05 Oct 2006 16:40:55 -0500

I presume everyone is piling on regarding the Park Slope and Manhattan picks, Bedouin Tent in Boerum Hill is def not stingy on the seasoning. Their whole menu is outstanding. As mentioned, Zaytoon's is another great pick not far from there.

bobster

Thu, 05 Oct 2006 16:25:01 -0500

Sounds a little like lamacun (pronounced lah-mah-joon), which is a great Turkish alternative to pizza that's made with ground lamb (or possibly beef) and without tomato sauce. Not sure where you can get it in the city, though, but I suspect you can track it down in Queens.

kelly

Thu, 05 Oct 2006 13:36:58 -0500

i would totally agree with the two previous commenters. zaytoon's zaatar is definitely superior.

QNS

Thu, 05 Oct 2006 13:00:27 -0500

I agree. People who know what good Middle Eastern tastes like would not go to either of the places Gothamist recommended.

otherobject

Thu, 05 Oct 2006 12:41:02 -0500

I would actually avoid the two listed locations as neither sells a satisfying zaater bread-they tend to be stingy on the seasoning. The best is at Zaytoons in Carroll Gardens-fresh, toasty and wonderfully seasoned. A variation on it that can be done at home is take a piece of pita (toasted is best) dip it in some good EV olive oil and then dip it in the herb mix. This is available in Arabic food markets-just ask for zaater seasoning or just zaater (zaater in Arabic means thyme and is used interchangably between the seasoning and the mix used for snacks). I'd also say you should avoid the versions sold in Israeli markets and restaurants. All of the ones I've tried are very oily, light on the seasoning and rubbery but very poor quality is always the case with all Israeli versions of Arab foods.

anonymass

Thu, 05 Oct 2006 12:11:51 -0500

There is a wonderful Syrian bakery on Atlantic just off Court that has great variations on this theme as well.