Baladna Restaurant - Middle Eastern

LTH,

Opened just under a year Baladna is a spacious double storefront offering Middle Eastern in the form of a $9.99 buffet, counter and table service.







Falafel was straight from the fryer, crisp outside, moist interior, though a shade dense/bland once one crunched through the crispy outer layer. Smooth flavorful hummus, if slightly heavy on the tahini, schwarma moist, points of crisp, good texture but strong flavor of either cinnamon or allspice overpowered.

Flafel, Hummus w/Shawerma




Nicely done Kifta Kabob moist with highlights of grill char, fluffy rice with a noticeable butter component.

Kifta Kabob w/rice



Kifta Kabob comes with rice, Jerusalem Salad and pita. We asked for hot sauce and were given a small bowl of Sambal Olek

Pita, Jerusalem Salad, Sambal Olek



Buffet seemed well stocked, though there did not seem to be much demand at noon, owner/counterman was friendly in a reserved fashion and our table service, in the form of an efficient, friendly, if a little shy, waitress was spot-on.


Habibi has made mention of of similarities between Baladna and Salam, and certainly there are similarities in menu and presentation, though the place they most strongly intersect is the guest check.

Baladna



Salam



For those dining at Balanda I strongly suggest a visit to Sahar Meat Market just a few doors South.

Thanks for the heads up Habibi, always nice to have another arrow in the Middle Eastern quiver.

Enjoy,
Gary

Baladna Restaurant
4835 N Kedzie
Chicago, IL 60625
773-583-6695

Sahar Meat Market
4829 North Kedzie
Chicago, IL 60625
773-583-6098

G Wiv wrote:Falafel was straight from the fryer, crisp outside, moist interior, though a shade dense/bland once one crunched through the crispy outer layer.

Bland is putting it mildly. I actually had to salt the interior of the falafel to get any kind of taste at all, something I can't recall ever needing to do before. On the other end of the spectrum was the extremely overly spiced (not in a good way) shawerma, whose cinnamon/allspice flavor completely overpowered the meat and caused it to border on inedible. I did like the kefta and rice very much, and the hummos and salad were good, too. Baladna was decent, and worth a visit if you've never been, but it's not at the top of my "must return soon" list.

I ate at Baladna when it first opened about 8 months ago. It used to be Iraq Kebab (later just Kebab), one of my favorite Assyrian restaurants. I was sorely disappointed when I stopped there for grilled Pomfret one night, and found that it was under new ownership. I had been there only 10 days earlier, and the previous owners gave no indication they were about to close. I was even more disappointed after trying the food. As mentioned above, it was pretty bland and the shwarema was actually mushy (an indication of re-heating) and the kufta was dry. The menu does have some unusual items on it I have not seen elsewhere (it is no longer Assyrian). I suspect it is owned by the same family that owns the strip mall, since it shares a name with the Jewelry store several doors down. It has been awhile since I have stopped there, but they used to have really cheap falafel (12 for $2.50). They were made in a batch and kept under a heat lamp, but they were really peppery (funny GWiv found them bland now) and still pretty moist inside. They weren't the best in town, but they were the cheapest (and made a good snack while driving).

d4v3 wrote:It has been awhile since I have stopped there, but they used to have really cheap falafel (12 for $2.50). They were made in a batch and kept under a heat lamp, but they were really peppery (funny GWiv found them bland now) and still pretty moist inside. They weren't the best in town, but they were the cheapest (and made a good snack while driving).

Falafel are now .25 each, with 12 going for the bargain price of $2.99, making them the same price as the far superior falafel at Saalam. They were cooked to order on the day we went, but that still didn't help in the (lack of) taste department.

stevez wrote:

d4v3 wrote:It has been awhile since I have stopped there, but they used to have really cheap falafel (12 for $2.50). They were made in a batch and kept under a heat lamp, but they were really peppery (funny GWiv found them bland now) and still pretty moist inside. They weren't the best in town, but they were the cheapest (and made a good snack while driving).

Falafel are now .25 each, with 12 going for the bargain price of $2.99, making them the same price as the far superior falafel at Saalam. They were cooked to order on the day we went, but that still didn't help in the (lack of) taste department.

Too bad, that was the one thing I liked there. Like I said, they would have about 200 of the things pre-cooked (though recently) sitting under a heat lamp in an aluminum tray. The falafel were very spicy (in a peppery way). They must have changed the recipe. I would swing in there and buy 6. What was weird is that if you asked for six they would charge 20 cents each, but if you asked for a half dozen, they would charge a few cents more (1.25). I liked that they had a fair-sized parking lot, and the falafel were premade but still moist. It made for a quick snack stop. I would like to try some of the unusual breakfast items they had on the menu.