Elie’s Mediterranean Grill
Birmingham, Mi
Located in posh Birmingham, Elie’s strikes a nice balance between upscale and approachable. Dining is especially lovely with warm interior decor and the soft glow of Birmingham lights just beyond the windows.
While Mediterranean fare is often known for its lamb and beef, there is an entire world of vegan flavors that also await. Traditional naturally vegan dishes include: falafel, tabbouleh, hummus, baba ghanoush, grape leaves, mjadara, and bulgur. Too tough to choose among this noteworthy group, so I ordered most of them! I not only love Mediterranean because of the bursting flavors, but also because it’s fairly light fare so you can eat many different dishes at one sitting and not feel like you just left Thanksgiving dinner.
Surprisingly, while not on the printed menu, Elie’s now offers Impossible meat in some of their dishes. Mind blown. (Yet another wonderful reason to ask your server for recos!) In the name of thoroughness, I ordered Impossible grape leaves and Impossible kafta along with a host of traditional vegan delights – baba ghanoush, hummus, tabbouleh and bulgur with tomatoes.
Now if you’ve read any of my other posts you’ve probably picked up on my affection for Impossible burgers. Remarkably this fondness didn’t translate to use in Mediterranean food. I know, I was as surprised as anybody! Please, let me explain. For those who aren’t familiar, kafta is essentially meat on a stick. And even though it was vegan meat on a stick, it was just a bridge too far for this gal. I wanted nothing more than to wrap it in pita and smother it with hummus. And maybe some pickles. (Some where my meat-eating, farmer father is rolling his eyes!) The Impossible grape leaves were juicy and very well prepared, but not any better than traditional vegetarian grape leaves (stuffed with rice and spices). The balance of my meal (and there was a lot of it!) was flavorful, fresh, and absolutely delightful. The baba ghanoush, hummus and tabbouleh ‘mixed appetizer’ was perfection. My love for Mediterranean fare was renewed once again.
What’s the lesson here? Sometimes it better to leave delicious enough alone or as my aforementioned father always says, “if it aint broke, don’t fix it.”
