Shipman's favorite Albuquerque Middle Eastern restaurants

There are several quite tasty options for Middle Eastern and/or Persian cuisine in Albuquerque.

• Yasmine***, on the south side of Central a few blocks west of Presbyterian Hospital. Hard to find if you're driving west on Central, easy to find if you're driving east from Downtown. Authentic, ample, tasty, nice folks. Downside: Panhandler neighborhood.
• Middle East Bakery*** is located on the north side of Menaul, in a strip mall two blocks west of San Mateo. This place is under new management, and I haven't tried it recently, but word is that it is still quite good. Primarily a deli, bakery, and grocery outlet, they also have a selection of lunch items, such as falafel, baba ganoush, hummus, and foul madammas. Their baba ganoush is my favorite version in town.
• For more of a fine-dining approach, try Pars Cuisine*** on the west frontage road of I-25 just north of Jefferson. They have two dining rooms, one with Western-style seating and a larger room with traditional couch seating, eating with your fingers, and belly dancing on some nights. Cost-effective yet upscale. Not to be missed: Kashk 'o Bademjan, an eggplant and yogurt appetizer, and one of the best versions of lamb shank in town. See their web page.
• Gyros Cafe***, 106A Cornell SE. A student favorite.
• Cafe Istanbul**, on the west side of Wyoming just north of Constitution, is not really a restaurant, more of a deli with tables, but I really don't mind getting my own napkins and forks. The khibbe, a large pastry stuffed with ground meat, is an excellent value. The baba ganoush is unusual (I haven't seen a version this color of green before---what gives it that color?) but quite tasty. Good selection of groceries also. A good budget lunch.

Last updated: 2006/08/07 18:40:44
URL: http://www.nmt.edu/~shipman/food/mideast.html