Cedarland, Dearborn Middle Eastern [Pictures]

LTHForum,

I love Middle Eastern food in Chicago, stuffed grape leaves at Salam, grilled Cornish Hen at Al-Khaymeih and roast chicken at Semiramis, to name a few, but Cedarland in Dearborn, Michigan kicked some serious halal starting with raw Lamb Kibbe.

Lamb Kibbe, raw


Raw Kibbe is a standard Cedarland menu item, no order in advance, either beef or lamb. We ordered lamb, which is traditional, but the owner sent out a small beef as well. Bit of bulgar, but not overdone, slight hint of hot pepper spice. Lamb had a fuller richer flavor, better mouthfeel, beef came off a bit beef-fat slick in the mouth, though still tasty.

Beef Kibbe, raw


Hashwi, an upcharge of $3 in small print under the Kibbee, is a power packed mix of ground lamb sauteed in a generous amount of olive oil with spices and pine nuts and meant to "moisten" the kibbe. Very similar to the 'meat' that is served with hummus with meat at Salam.

Hashwi


In all deference to Salam's Tuesday special, Cedarlands stuffed grape leaves were the best I've had, infused with rich lamb broth and hint of lemon, but what really separated them from the pack were the grape leaves themselves seemed to have been given a light toast under a broiler which served to amplify flavor.

Stuffed Grape Leaves


Shish Kafta were terrific, not too tightly packed, moist, flavorful, noticeable spice rub on the outside, well balanced flavor with a light char from the grill.

Shish Kafta


Tabbouli, a delicious Lebanese version, heavy on the parsley, bulgar had texture and flavor, diced tomato and accent of scallion. Nice lemony flavor, but not overdone

Tabbouli


Fatoush salad pita was toasted almost to the burnt, but not quite, stage for a very toasty point counterpoint flavor and crunch.

Fatoush Salad


Accompaniments were top notch, fresh thinner style Lebanese pita, crisp torshi including preserved lemon and cruets of quality olive oil and fresh lemon juice at every table.

Torshi



One of our group suggested Ghallaba with chicken, think Middle Eastern stir fry. Not really my cup of tea, but the accompanying rice, fluffy, with slivers of almond, was delicious.

Chicken Ghallaba


Shish Tawook (marinated chunks of chicken kabob) chicken was tender, good quality breast meat, though slightly bland flavor. Served with the same terrific rice as the Ghallaba.

Shish Tawook


Comfortable, casual, extremely reasonable prices, with a spacious, though somewhat overwrought decor, service is top-notch with excellent attention to detail. One nice touch I had not seen before was the staff bringing additional pita and pickle to pack with the leftovers.

In addition to the regular menu items there are daily specials.

Daily Specials


There are two Cedarlands, owned by father and son, we went to the original in Dearborn which is preferred by our Detroit based friends.

Sam Sobh, owner Cedarland Dearborn




Enjoy,
Gary

Cedarland
13007 W Warren
Dearborn, MI 48126
313-582-4849

Gary,

Invoking the names of 3 local places in attempting to draw a comparison to Cedarland is a powerful statement in and of itself. Their food looks and sounds like it's terrific. I hope to someday try it out for myself. Thanks for the post.

=R=

I don't think I have ever eaten true Middle Eastern food like this. It looks interesting and delicious, I'll have to check the Madison area for possible places to check it out.

Cedarland looks good. While in Dearborn recently we thought about visiting but wanted to try someplace different. We settled on Al-Ameer and were very happy with our choice.



The menu is extensive (eg, multiple kibbeh choices) but doesn't stray too far from the usual Lebanese favorites. We pretty much ordered common dishes but were impressed with the quality of the ingredients and careful preparation. One example of the attention to detail is their freshly baked bread. The baker was hard at work even at 10pm.





Not surprisingly, the bread was great, probably only minutes from the oven.



Fattoush was among the best I've had, with the crispiest pieces of bread imaginable dressed with the perfect amount of good oil. I wouldn't be surprised if they toasted the bread to order.





Falafel was another highlight, most certainly cooked to order, with an ultra-crispy shell surrounding almost fluffy interior. Some of the best I've had.



Shawarma was the best in recent memory, nicely crisped, with a spicy tang unlike any I've had before.

The Middle Eastern choices in Dearborn are staggering. Next visit it's likely I'll try somewhere new but I'd return to Al-Ameer without complaint.

Al-Ameer
12710 W Warren Av
Dearborn MI
313-582-8185
http://www.alameerrestaurant.com/

ronnie_suburban wrote:Gary,

Invoking the names of 3 local places in attempting to draw a comparison to Cedarland is a powerful statement in and of itself. Their food looks and sounds like it's terrific. I hope to someday try it out for myself. Thanks for the post.

=R=

There are perhaps 20 great Middle Eastern restaurants in that stretch of Warren Ave which straddles Detroit and Dearborn. When I was in Dearborn last June, I was heading to Cedarland. However, Warren Ave was closed due to a major shooting - seven students at a bus stop.


I ended up down the street at Al Ajami Restaurant. They start you with a platter of pickled vegetables, especially turnips and a loaf of excellent freshly baked breads. The leg of lamb that was perfectly roasted and served on an excellent bed of rice. It was a really good meal.

My disappointment is that the area has so many really great restaurants - few I ever tried during the two years I lived in Dearborn. Fortunately, the locals introduced me to some phenomenal markets like Alcamo's and I ate very well, but at home.


Al Ajami Restaurant
14633 West Warren Avenue
Dearborn, MI 48126-1345
(313) 846-9330

I've been trying out a new policy when I travel, letting my gracious hosts take me to their favorite spots to eat before I hijack the itinerary with my compulsive research. So it was quite the happy medium when my host during a recent stay in the Detroit area highly suggested Cedarland, which just so happened to be on my LTH recommended shortlist.
It did not disappoint.

The space was unlike many Middle Eastern spots in Chicago, it had the feel of a family restaurant, a Greek diner vibe. The patronage was mixed, leaning white folk, as was the wait staff.

I knew this place was the real deal after a first glance of the menu with offerings such as molokhia and lamb's tongues (albeit sharing real estate with burgers, fries, and steaks).

My friend warned about family-feeding portion sizes, but three dinner plates for three of us seemed reasonable. The spread of food that arrived, however, was most overwhelming. The leftovers fed us all again later in the evening and even left scraps for late night snacking.
Onward to the feast!

Torshi

Respectable

Lentil Soup

Gratis. Archetypal, rich with the right lemony tang.

Fattoush

Probably the best I've had. Fresh-for-winter tasting lettuce. Perfectly dressed. PIta deep fried golden.

Tabbouleh

Herb heavy, the way it should be.

Spinach Salad

My host's fave and a real sleeper, seemingly simple but screamin fresh in a garlicky lemon dressing.

Fassoulia

"Lima beans" with tender lamb in a tomato sauce with spices. Not limas, but good. Lamb scant and not super tender, but okay. Sauce was richly spiced with a cinnamon and coriander. A pretty good dish, elevated a notch by this aromatic, fluffy rice:


Shawarma combo

Lamb was certainly as good as any I've had in Chicago with a pronounced seasoning. Chicken was surprisingly fantastic. Not exactly moist, but nicely caramelized and redolent of sumac. Top tier creamy, emulsified hummous- a conversation piece about the superiority of the traditional vs. "hippy" hummous with its roasted red pepper add-ins and ofttimes pasty, coarse, out of balance consistencies.

Baba ghanouj

Best- I've- had levels. Whipped smooth like the hummous. Eggplant obviously cleaned of skin and other fibrous material. Ethereal. And smoky as all get out.

Quails

Buried underneath all that pan roasted veg. are three char grilled quails. Very nice smoky character to the meat. However, these birds were clearly frozen and thawed. The flesh had that tell tale moist-and-dry at the same time consistency that was inferior to the best quail I've eaten lately.

Overall this was incredibly delectable and nicely valued grub. The salads and dips really shined, best of their class. Shawarma was not too shabby either. I hope to get back to the Detroit area soon to try more on their menu and also to explore the deep wealth of cuisine in the Dearborn area. There were many intriguing-looking Middle Eastern and South Asian eateries in the Hamtramck area as well.

Neither Cederland nor Al Ameer or most other places were open on a late night trek down Warren avenue. However each block did have a spot or two catering to the drinking and just off work crowds. Al Basha is a popular late night sub sandwich and pizza place for the college kids. They do a steady delivery business as witnessed by the countless phone calls coming in. I'm guessing their namesake Sandwich is favored with plenty of booze beforehand.


Drunken Eats in Dearborn

A smashed chicken breast is cooked until crispy on the outside and goes into a sesame seed roll with french fries, pickles and TONS of garlic mayo. The excess of the mayo made it almost inedible. The fresh baked bread was fantastic though. A few doors down is The Prince's? Bakery.


Also on Warren avenue

Here they had a steady flow of grab and go customers and those in there knew what was up. I got a meat pie, a cheese filled pastry pocket and a spinach one for $3 total and each was fantastic. Best three bucks I've spent in sometime. I wanted more immediately.


a peak inside

Al Basha
10626 W Warren Ave
Dearborn, MI 48126
(313) 846-9684

Princess Bakery
10622 W Warren Ave
Dearborn, MI 48126
(313) 584-4636