Again I am so happy and pleased to visit Lebanese Taverna. This time I went to the location in Tysons Corner. Going from the amazing experience in Woodley Park made me a bit nervous because my expectations were so high. I have gone from one restaurant of the same name to the other and was disappointed. This was not the case with Lebanese Taverna. The Tysons Corner location is inside of the mall and definitely a bit smaller than the first I visited. The walls are a bit open to the mall but the decorations they did have up were reminiscent of the land of which their name was derived.
I went to the Tysons location during lunch to see if they can handle a quick lunch, a business meeting or people just hanging out. We were sat very quickly and the restaurant was pretty much full. Most of the folks in the restaurant seemed to be on a quick lunch and definitely got in and out very quickly. All of the people around us seemed happy and left shortly after finishing their lunch. We also saw a few business meetings happening and the waiters were moving things around on the table to help with the presentation.
Selena my coworker and companion on this journey and I on the other hand had come to savor or are part of the hang out group I mentioned in the last paragraph. Our waiter read that we were in for a bit and changed gears very quickly to accommodate. Selena was excited on the drive over. She explained that she grew up on the original Lebanese Taverna and only orders one item… the mixed kabob. I tried to get her to order something else since I had already tasted the kabob but I did not have a chance of changing her mind. She informed me that everyone has a dish and that they are basically addicted to. I giggled and moved on to later find out I may also have the affliction she suffers with.
Ok guys to the food we go. We started with the hommus special per my companion’s insistence. Addiction number 1 was created upon the first bite. We ate the hommus on their house made pita bread. Selena went on to explain that she has tried pita at many other places and Lebanese Taverna is the only place that get’s it right. She said and I quote ‘the outside is perfectly crisp and the inside is the perfect consistency’. She has also had hummos at other places and will not eat it anywhere but Lebanese Taverna; she said there is no comparison and she doesn’t like being disappointed. I absolutely agreed with her. As I stated in the Woodley Park blog ‘the hummos is luxurious’. Then you add pine nuts, almonds, lamb and beef and boom… yum… um… no words… addicted… obsessed… need more tonight!
We did have couple of drinks with our meals. I had the Lebanese red blend again (I know I should have tried something else but I like it so much—uh oh addiction number 2) and she tried the passion fruit mojito. She looked at me and said ‘I Love This’ so I am guessing she liked it. I asked her to describe a bit more for me and she said it is not too sweet and the mint was refreshing. She wants to drink these while on a yacht on holiday in Greece. 2 please!
As I stated before Selena has an obsession / addiction to the mixed kabob and as I earlier stated she ordered it. I have already described this dish to you in detail so I do not want to bore you with the details of the perfectly cooked veggies, chicken, lamb and khafta. I may have drooled and taken a bite to make sure that the flavors were consistent and they did not disappoint. It was of course accompanied by the whipped garlic, oil and lemon juice sauce that I adore. I had to get a side of that and the mixed herb sauce that comes with the sea bass. I love and need to dip and these two sauces make me very very happy.
I ordered the chicken schwarma sandwich. It was on softer pita and was accompanied by a delicious salad. Crisp cucumber and tomato topped with a house made vinaigrette and fresh feta. I may or may not have dipped some pita in the vinaigrette left at the bottom of the bowl. This cannot be confirmed. The chicken was perfectly cooked and the garlic sauce that it is on it is finger licking good. I ate every bit of my sandwich and salad and may have had to unbutton my pants a bit. Chicks that eat too much are sexy right? As I tally my addictions I now have 5, guess I just like many different things. Mmmmm food! There is the sea bass, mixed grill, hummos special, Lebanese wine blend and chicken schwarma on my list thus far.
So we get to the end of the experience. My companion and I order coffees and try the baklawa. I know I said I was full but dessert doesn’t count geez. I was being daring and tried Lebanese coffee. The coffee is so rich and thick I couldn’t drink the whole thing. I think I did have a serious coffee buzz for the rest of the workday. The sad thing is it is served in a very small cup … major fail on my part…I am aware. The baklawa on the other hand we enjoyed with a few sweet tahinis. I was not aware they could be sweet at all. One was a chocolaty flavor and the other pistachio. Both very delicious and once again I got to dip something.
I had a spectacular experience at Tysons but I wanted to get a feel of the evenings there with the belly dancer Asana on Wednesdays at 8:30 so I forced myself to go in during the night of one of her performances. And woe is me I ordered the hummos special and the Lebanese wine blend. Such a horrible life I lead. The drink and food were amazing as always and to top it off I got to see a belly dancer. Asana walked through out the restaurant and the other guests enjoyed her as much as I did. She made sure to move around a lot so everyone could see her and her smile and personality were wonderful. To find out she is in Woodley Park on Thursdays. Guess it does not matter what side of the city I am on I can have Lebanese deliciousness and a belly dancer.
Life does not get better. So all in all it has been my extreme Pleasure to write about Lebanese Taverna and to attempt to try everything they have to offer and finding myself addicted. They can accommodate large groups in private dining areas, cater to all of the guests that come in to their establishment with a smile and make you feel like you belong there. Thank you again for your service Lebanese Taverna I am sure I will see you soon.