Shiraz

Follow the Silk Road to culinary heaven

by Margaret LeRoux

Shiraz 259 Park Avenue Worcester (508) 767-1639 Hours Mon.-Tues. 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Wed.-Thurs. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Fri.-Sat. 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Cash only Wine and beer Handicap accessible

Worcester may never be considered sophisticated, yet our un-hip, albeit All-American city has more unique restaurants than all the chic suburbs to the east do. In fact, some of us have gotten almost blasé about the variety. I'd bet there aren't any other Massachusetts towns west of the Charles River where you can choose among authentic Lebanese, Greek, and Armenian cuisine. How many of you stuffed-grape-leaves fans can tell the difference among the three cuisines? If you can't, I suggest a meal at Shiraz for a delicious tutorial in Armenian cooking.

At Shiraz, a simple, little Park Avenue restaurant, the emphasis is on the food and on the congenial service; don't expect much in the way of decor. It's almost non-existent -- a few prints on the wall, institutional tables and chairs. Except for the carpeting, you'd think you were in a company cafeteria. But when the food arrives, you may as well be thousands of miles from Worcester; Shiraz offers dishes that transcend time and geography.

To give you some context, Armenia is an ancient country known thousands of years ago on the Silk Road as the crossroads between the Roman Empire and China. Surrounded by the Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Iran, Syria, and Turkey, Armenia has been occupied and divided by Russia, Greece, Turkey, and Persia. Its cuisine, therefore, has been influenced by neighbors and conquerors. You'll find hummus, stuffed grape leaves, shish kebob, pita bread, and baklava on Armenian dinner tables, but the seasonings and preparation are unique to the country.

Stuffed grape leaves, for example, are offered both as sarma, containing ground lamb as well as rice, or the authentically Armenian-style yalanchi, which have only rice and spices.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. When two friends and I dined at Shiraz recently, we joined a congenial crowd. Next to our table were a mother and daughter who chatted in Armenian. Our waiter was a friendly young man who paused to exchange movie recommendations with a nearby table of regular customers. When we asked about some of the dishes in the 12 samples platter ($16.95), he patiently explained. One of them, basturma, a spiced Armenian dried beef, is no longer offered, he said. "It's too strong for Americans." Instead, Greek-style gyros, thin sliced beef, has been substituted.

I was happy to be in the company of two enthusiastic eaters who made quick work of the dozen samples: creamy, lemony hummus; baba ghanoush, roasted eggplant puréed with sesame paste and garlic; tabbouleh, a tangy mixture of fine bulgur, tomatoes, onions, parsley, and mint; yalanchi, vegetarian stuffed grape leaves; jajek, chopped cucumbers and mint in yogurt; creamy feta cheese; some of the tastiest, most mellow olives I've eaten; shepherd's salad of tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, and onions; falafel, patties of ground chickpeas and fava beans; white bean salad; meat pie, a soft turnover filled with ground beef, onions, and spices; and gyros. With a basket of fresh pita, we were a happy threesome. In the spirit of diversity, Shiraz offers a Mexican beer, Corona ($4.95). On a steamy summer night, it was the perfect accompaniment to the Armenian spices.

The edge was definitely off my appetite, so instead of an entree, I opted for more appetizers: spinach pie ($3.25) and eggplant salad ($4.50). The spinach pie was made with the same light dough used for the meat pie. I liked the filling of chopped, fresh greens and onions. The eggplant salad was the only disappointment because I'd expected from the description slices or cubes. Instead, the eggplant was mashed, similar to baba ghanoush, and mixed with onions, parsley, olive oil, and lots of lemon. I received a huge platter of it, and even with help was able to make only a dent in the dish.

My two companions were undaunted by the large first course. They perused the entrees list, which featured more of the samples available as appetizers. Meat pie ($7.25), for example, is served with rice and salad; so are gyros ($7.50) and meat-stuffed grape leaves ($7.95). A shish kebab combo -- with grilled lamb, chicken, and a mixture of ground lamb and spices -- is $20.95. And American-style sirloin steak with grilled mushrooms is $12.95.

One chose losh kebab with yogurt ($9.50); the other selected Armenian stuffed kefta ($9.45). Losh is a mixture of ground beef, spices (we detected cumin and allspice), onions, and garlic, cooled by the yogurt sauce. It's the Armenian version of Swedish meatballs. Kefta is a giant meatball-shaped mixture of bulgur and ground beef, stuffed with ground lamb, onions, and spices -- definitely for the hearty appetite.

We couldn't resist dessert and sampled baklava ($1.25), ground walnuts, butter, and cinnamon in layers of crisp phyllo dough drenched with honey. We also tried kataif, shredded phyllo filled with custard ($1.50). The bill for our tasty experience was $60 before tip.