Darna Middle Eastern Kitchen – 1613 Bayview Ave, East York, ON M4G 3B5
Country: Palestine  
Seating: There’s an outdoor patio and indoor seating. 
Must-try dish: Lamb Fukhara
Dinner guests: Nomadic Blonde, Suited Sebastien & OG KC
The high: We were gifted two deserts at the end of the meal. 
The low: There weren’t any Palestinian beers available. 

Following a late arrival from the entire group, we finally sat down and got to the business of eating. Mandrea Bike has had Darna on their minds for awhile now, so the time came to taste Palestinian food. 

There’s significant crossover with the foods from the Middle Eastern countries but they all seem to have their own flair that make one unique from the other. With an initial glance at the menu, you’ll recognize dishes from Syria, Lebannon, Egypt and beyond, but Palestinian cuisine is known to often use a variation of wild thyme and the recipes are heavy handed on the za’atar. 

Although our server hailed from Lebanon, she was well versed in the intricacies of Palestinian cuisine and guided us in making the food decisions for the night. Here’s what we ate:

Baba Ghanouj: This is literally a tower of eggplant, and although it wasn’t the must-try dish of the night, it’s a highlight for eggplant lovers or skeptics alike. The dish is a medley of eggplant chunks with sweet peppers, onion, walnuts, fresh herbs and pomegranate molasses.  

Falafel: With five in the order, the numbers worked perfectly for each diner to enjoy one falafel. They came fresh and were fluffy inside – it’s a must-eat to pick at while you decide on the rest of the meal. 

Darna Sampler: This trio of dips is certainly a meeting of great minds: Hummus, Labneh and Mutabal. Enjoy them individually or mix them up with a piece of warm pita and you can’t go wrong. 

Lavraki: This seabass plate comes with all the bells and whistles – potatoes with garlic, parsley, coriander and tahini. It’s a large dish but feels light because of all the fresh ingredients involved. It’s a very colourful dish and is presented beautifully.

Fattet Batenjan: This medley of flavours is hard to resist anytime you see it on a menu. With a soup-like substance, the base is made of eggplant, tomato, chickpeas, almonds, pomegranate seeds, yogurt, pieces of fried pita, and mint. Every bite holds its own personality. 

Lamb Fukhara: It’s hard to not love this dish, not to mention, the presentation of it as it arrives at the table. The meat is cooked with root vegetables and sauce in a clay pot that resembles a large mug and then it’s poured over bulgur upon arrival to the diners. You can hear the meat still crackling in the pot and see the steam coming off of it as it’s pouring out. On top of that, the dish tastes terrific as the lamb gives the impression of being slow-cooked for hours. 

At the end of the meal, two desserts came out for the gang to share. The first was Knafeh, which is a popular treat in the Middle East with a base of cheese, honey and spun pastry. As always with dishes from that region of the world, there are special things that differentiate one from the next. The second desert was made with dates and clotted cream. Both were delicious, but you really can’t go wrong with dates. 

Fingers crossed that the next time Mandrea Bike eats at Darna, there will be Palestinian beers on the menu. There are a couple of famous breweries in towns surrounding Ramallah, the administrative centre of Palestine, that have gained traction and would have been fun to sample. Perhaps a trip to the West Bank is on the horizon instead!  

Eat with you soon,

Mandrea Bike
(Mat & Andrea)