Last week I popped into Babel for dinner, as part of Estrella Dam’s yearly program to partner with restaurants that offer tapas-type menu options. Many regions around the Mediterranean offer meze, a type of appetizer on their menu and Babel delivers.
I ordered Burrata with grilled pita, osprey bluffs honeyed dates, thyme, pomegranate. Of note, the burrata cheese is made in house and this was a wonderful start to my meal.
Next up came the Manti, a dumpling that is baked and was filled with sujuk meat, served with pressed yogurt and garnished with sumac and Aleppo pepper spices.
A little fried food is always welcome and then the fallafel arrived: dark on the outside, vibrant green inside and topped with green harissa and served with tahini for dipping.
The warmer weather has arrived here in Toronto and Babel’s front windows were opened up, giving one a summer feel. It was a no-brainer to order a glass of Estrella Damm (or two).
Babel’s menu has many inviting menu options, making it difficult to choose so I encourage you gather your friends and order lots of dishes and share everything!
I opted for the braised lamb shank, served on a bed of Israeli couscous, roasted root vegetables, pressed yogurt, topped with a house BBQ sauce and garnished with crunchy pomegranate seeds. This dish is a winner and no doubt it is a signature dish that is sure to be a popular order.
The dessert menu, small but varied and enough to evoke you to order something: I see Knafeh – I order Knafeh. A dessert I first had in Turkey, popular throughout the Levant, it is made of kataifi pastry (resembles shredded wheat), tossed in melted butter and placed in a baking vessel with stringy mozzarella type cheese in the middle.
It gets baked until golden then brought tableside where your server will pour the cool orange blossom syrup over the sizzling Knafeh. It’s crunchy, it’s soft, it’s aromatic, the stringy cheese in the middle, the sweetness of the syrup all make this odd-sounding dessert one of the best sweet treats to eat in this world.
Come to Babel, order the Knafeh plus many of the shareable savory menu items, then come again and order something different.
Babel also is open for lunch, offers a weekend brunch menu and there are many options for vegetarians and pescatarians.
