One of the first meals I had in London was Lebanese food. It’s that one day I discovered a truly wonderful cuisine and I’ve never looked back ever since! Lebanese food in London has a cult following. Whether you go and have the “street food” on Edgware Road or something more posh and eclectic in the Knightsbridge area- a good ol’ mixed grill never gets old!
This is where well-known takeaway website like hungryhouse comes in.
I love such sites because you can read about a particular takeaway and view independent ratings, without any bias- at least for the most part and order from your phone. 21st century at its best ladies and gentlemen! So as a farewell dinner for my lovely flatmate, I decided to order from The Cedar. It is a Lebanese restaurant based in Maida Vale. I live quite close to Edgware Road but was tempted to try something new and different this time. So using the Hungry House app, I placed an order with The Cedar. The menu is insane! Giving a hungry girl a menu full of enticing dishes is never a great idea. So controlling my hunger pangs, I scanned the menu and ordered the following.
pastry stuffed with minced lamb, onion and pine kernels (deep fried)
pastry stuffed with spinach, onion, herbs & lemon juice (oven baked)
a selection of skewers lahem meshwi kafta and shish taouck
aubergines with tomatoes onions and chick peas served with rice
thin slices of spiced and marinated lamb tenderly roasted
We were all starving and the delicious aromas coming through the takeaway boxes did not help satiate our hunger. The spread looked amazing. A word of caution- the shawarma and mixed grill came with rice and salad so we ended up ordering too much rice! So be careful when you’re placing your order. I liked the fact there was a generous helping of bread and a box full of olives, pickles and they weren’t stingy on the sauces either!
The Batenjan was the first one to be tried- it was exactly how I imagined it. Well seasoned, good texture of the sauce (not too watery), generous portion of aubergine and chickpeas and it married well with the rice.
It was good to see the meat used for the shawarma was not plain ol’ shredded meat. They were good cube sized pieces and each piece of meat was seasoned so well.
The mince kebabs in the mixed grill were moist and not dry at all. Quite a few times I’ve tried the mince kebabs and they turn out really dry but these were perfectly cooked and super juicy! We practically inhaled everything and I ate so much I had to rest on my couch for the next hour or so to recover. Why do I do this to myself?!
Ok so some serious stuff- the total order came to about £47 and between 3 people it was more than enough. We had enough leftover for the next day for 2 people to share! Value for money? Absolutely! Swift service? Definitely! Would I order from these guys again? Is that a rhetorical question? 😉 The food? Already planning my next Lebanese food night!
Oh btw! it wouldn’t hurt to know that The Cedar was selected as the number 1 takeaway in the entire country for 2014 by Hungry House and it was even featured in the Evening Standard. If my words haven’t convinced you already, I bet these photos will! Two words- “Totes amaze!”
You can also read about The Cedar on the hungryhouse blog where it’s one of their top takeaways! Order from these guys, you won’t be disappointed 😉
Till the next food coma xxx
Found your blog. This is a very good blog on middle eastern food. I would like
to thank you for all the information you give. Its really important to choose the best Middle Eastern food. So thanks for sharing all that important information.