Classifying the food at Maza Grille was difficult, but savoring every bite came easy.
Dubbed Mediterranean Cuisine on its marquee, it had the makings with gyros, kabobs, stuffed grape leaves and baklava. But it also had dishes I would call Middle Eastern or Arabic, such as falafel, baba ghanoush and kibbeh. Those kinds of dishes had been missing from the Fort Wayne restaurant scene.
Owner Nasser Anabtawi, who is originally from Jordan, calls the food Middle Eastern and makes most of it himself at the restaurant on Coldwater Road north of Dupont Road – he was blending hummus during a recent phone interview. The only exceptions are the kibbeh, which comes from the Greenland Market in Dearborn, Mich., and the baklava and cookies, which come from the Shatila Bakery there.
The Maza combo appetizer allowed me to dive right in and try his handmade offerings. It included hummus, baba ghanoush and tabbouleh beautifully plated on a quartered serving dish with warm pitas. The hummus was smooth and creamy, and it had a nice punch of lemon. The baba ghanoush was exquisite. It was a bit chunky and had a strong roasted flavor that came from the charcoal the eggplant used in it is grilled over.
The tabbouleh had more parsley than I am used to, but the salad, which also contains cracked wheat and tomatoes, was perfectly dressed with lemon and olive oil. When mixed with the hummus, it sang. I decided the combo platter would be a must-have for every trip to Maza Grille as I continued to dip into it throughout my meal, using the dishes as condiments, especially on the sandwiches I tried.
The chicken shawarma was tightly wrapped in one of the Lebanese pitas and was press-grilled. The chunks of herb-coated chicken were moist and tender and joined by pickle spears inside. But what really made this wrap pop was the tangy, garlic-infused mayonnaise coating every bite.
The falafel sandwich was prepared the same way but had lettuce and tomato along with the pickles and was dressed with creamy tahini (a paste of ground sesame seeds). The silver dollar-sized discs of falafel were wonderfully crunchy outside and soft and bread-like on the inside, which was pale green instead of the normal yellow of ground chickpeas thanks to Anabtawi’s use of cilantro and parsley as well as garlic when making it.
The kibbeh was also different, not in color but in texture. The six golf ball-sized, football-shaped pieces had a softer exterior of crushed wheat, and frying them less allowed the ground lamb inside to remain moist and juicy. Mint-spiked Greek yogurt was the perfect condiment for it and the arayes appetizer – toasted pita stuffed with seasoned ground lamb, onion and tomato. The meat in this Greek quesadilla of sorts was robust and worked well with the yogurt, and the only thing missing was some cheese. I must not have been the only one thinking that as, during my next visit, “cheesy arayes” was on the specials board.
The stuffed grape leaves and lentil soup were also fine choices as starters. The leaves were stuffed with lemon-spiked basmati rice and drizzled with olive oil. They were served cold, which made them sort of like a light, refreshing salad. The soup had a loose tomato broth dotted with cracked wheat and herbs, but could have used more lentils.
The heaviest entrée I had was the Maza kabob combo, which featured a chicken and kafta (ground beef seasoned with parsley and onion) kabob and either a lamb or beef kabob. I chose the lamb. The chicken was just as juicy as it was in the shawarma, the kafta was unique and herbaceous, and the lamb was so succulent it practically melted in my mouth.
The gyro at Maza Grille stacked up to any I have had at Greek restaurants in the area. It included meat from the outside of the vertical spit that was caramelized to be a bit crisp and slices from inside that were moist and tender. It came on a Greek-style pita, which was thicker and more like bread than the Lebanese versions.
Anabtawi’s touches didn’t just come on the food. He spent time in the dining room schmoozing customers, doing quality control and even seating a few parties. All of his servers were tip-top, and I never needed for anything. And if that wasn’t all, I spotted him toting a shiny silver pan to a regulars’ table and pouring from it another specialty seldom seen around here, and one that was not on the menu – Turkish coffee.
I quickly asked for one and was obliged by Anabtawi, who served the velvety, sweet-but-super-strong coffee, which he has imported from the Mideast, into my tiny cup with a warning that “it is the only coffee you do not put cream in.”
It was the perfect finish to two perfect visits to his fabulous new eatery.
Restaurant: Maza Grille
Address: 10812 Coldwater Road
Phone: 637-4800
Hours: 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily
Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Handicapped accessible: Yes
Alcohol: None
Credit cards: Yes
Kid-friendly: Yes, but no menu
Menu: Maza combo ($5.99), arayes ($3.99), grape leaves ($4.99), lentil soup ($2.29 cup; $2.79 bowl), shawarma sandwich ($4.29), falafel sandwich ($3.99), kabob combo ($15.99), gyro salad ($4.99)
Rating breakdown:
Food:
*** (3-star maximum);
atmosphere:
* (1 maximum), service:
* (1 maximum)
Note: Restaurants are categorized by price range: $ (less than $20 for three-course meal), $$ ($20-$29); $$$ ($30-$39), $$$$ ($40-$49), $$$$$ ($50 and up).
