Food, family and friends

Photo

Photo by: Katie Rickman

Kufta, which features a lamb and beef mix served over rice at Elham’s in New Castle.

by Mark Smesko and Michael Vallas

A half year back while we met with a business associate, the topic somehow turned from telephone systems and IT networks to food and local restaurants. “You’ve got to go try my friend’s place, he has unbelievable food,” chimed Rocco. “He owns a Middle Eastern restaurant in New Castle.”

So the idea sat on our list of possible spots until this month when we decided to cross the state line and venture to Elham’s to meet up with Rocco and his friend, Abdou Saada.Elham has been in business for nine years in New Castle, and about four months ago moved to its current location. The restaurant is spacious and has a very comfortable feel. Abdou owns and operates the establishment with his father Wajeb, and mother, Elham, for whom the restaurant is named. “We are a team, and I can’t say how much we’ve come to appreciate each other while working together” stated Abdou.

Abdou eagerly provided an overview of Elham’s menu, which reflects a Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisine. Abdou indicated that none of the recipes are written down in a detailed manner that someone else could duplicate, but relied on his parent’s knowledge and taste to get the final product just right. When our discussion turned to key ingredients, he simply smiled and said some things are their family secrets. With that said, the first plates started to arrive.

The initial appetizer was the Hummus Sampler. Traditionally, hummus is a mixture of ground garbanzo beans, a sesame paste called tahini, olive oil, lemon juice and garlic. The sampler contained a classic hummus as well as a red pepper and green olive version. All were delicious but we especially liked the green olive. It had a nice brininess that gave it great flavor. The sampler was served with fresh, house-made Syrian bread, which was the perfect accompaniment to dip into these spreads.

Next up was a plate of stuffed grape leaves. Elham’s uses a mixture of ground beef and lamb, rice, fresh lemon juice and (secret) spices in their grape leaves. These are then braised in water and spices until incredibly tender and fragrant. We are both quite fond of grape leaves and we have to say these little aromatic bundles were simply the best we’ve tasted. As Mark forked the last grape leaf, a generous dish of raw kibbi appeared. Kibbi is made with either freshly ground raw steak or raw lamb, then mixed with bulgur wheat and spices. Elham uses lamb and grinds it to order. It had a subtle spice note and had an incredibly fresh taste. Elham also offers a fried version of kibbi. Fresh ground lamb is mixed with onions and spices then fried. It had nice texture on the outside and was savory and juicy on the inside, with a background of allspice. Each bite was moist and flavorful.

Following the appetizers was a sampling of Elham’s Signature salads. First up was a Fatoush salad consisting of roasted pita bread mixed with tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce and onions in an olive oil and lemon dressing. This had a tart, bright flavor from the dressing and was quite tasty. Next was the Shunkleesh salad. Shunkleesh is an aged cottage curd cheese that is made in house and for us was somewhat of a cross between feta and blue cheese. This cheese was mixed with chopped tomatoes, onions, olive oil, Syrian allspice and parsley. The cheese was not overpowering but added just the right amount of punch.

After an abundance of appetizers and great conversation, we moved on to three of Elham’s Signature entrees. We started with Lamb over Rice. Abdou explained that he trims and prepares more than 300 pounds of lamb each week at the restaurant. For this dish, chunks of lamb from the leg are marinated in a (of course, secret) spice mix for 24 hours. The lamb is char-broiled and comes to the table over a mixture of rice and orzo. The meat was cooked to perfect medium and upon first bite you tasted the char and spice mixture. It was tender and had just enough of a gamey finish to let you know it was lamb. Perfectly balanced and very flavorful — it was superb. We also tried the Chicken over Rice. The chicken is prepped and cooked similar to the lamb. It was also tender and had fantastic flavor.

The last dish we ate was the Kufta Kabob platter. This dish uses fresh ground beef and lamb mixed with parsley, garlic and onion that is then put on a kabob and char-grilled over the flame and lava rocks. This was also very tasty and again, the char on the meat gave it that extra depth of flavor.

Our meal was a sampling of Middle Eastern delights using fresh ingredients, prepared with care and tradition. While Abdou smiled away our questions each time we asked him to reveal some of their secrets, it was no secret how Elham combines food, family and friends into a wonderful dining experience.