DC: Cafe Nema
I started out the day by meeting with the Taiwanese embassy (or its equivalent) in DC. From there they treated us to lunch at Mandarin Palace, where I engorged myself on pan-fried steamed buns, Peking duck, and fried soft shell crab, among other stuff. I wish I'd taken pictures of everything because it was so GOOD...but I wasn't brave enough to tell the Director or the Senior Immigration Officer to hold off on eating until I've taken shots for my food blog. Probably wouldn't have been too professional.
Anyway, the people at the Taiwanese embassy were very kind. The Senior Immigration Officer kept putting food into my plate and I was loving every moment of it. I haven't had good Chinese food since I've moved to Chicago. All of a sudden getting Peking duck and soft shell crab was like hitting the jackpot.
Needless to say, I wasn't very hungry come dinner time. My friend wanted to use his coupon and try out a new restaurant, but I couldn't do more than nibble off of his plate. This means that I probably won't be doing Cafe Nema justice, but I figure I should post about it anyway.
Cafe Nema is a mix of Somali, Middle Eastern, and Mediterranean cuisine:
There's a really swanky feel to the place. Apparently there's live jazz sometime during the week, but I'm not sure when.
For an appetizer, they started with the kibeh:
Kibeh is basically a fried pastry stuffed with ground beef, onion, pine nuts, and burghul (a wheat product) served with tahini sauce. I was a little iffy about the pine nuts, but I really couldn't even taste them. If I wasn't so full, I probably could've eaten a few plates of this stuff.
To reach his coupon minimum, my friend ordered a falafel wrap:
Nothing too special there. I took one bite of the wrap and spent the majority of the meal eating the fries.
My friend's SECOND entree was the stuffed lamb:
That's lamb loin stuffed with apricots, raisins, spinach, and goat cheese. I expected it to be a bit sweeter with the fruit, but all I could make out were the cheese and the spinach. Tasty, yes, but not enough to justify the cost for me. You had a choice between rice and pasta and obviously, my friend chose pasta. I can't say that I was a big fan of the pasta but he seemed to like it a lot.
I wish I could go more into detail about Cafe Nema. Maybe I'll give it another try the next time I'm in DC.
Cafe Nema
1334 U St NW
Washington DC, 20009
(202) 667-3215
http://www.cafe-nema.com/
Anyway, the people at the Taiwanese embassy were very kind. The Senior Immigration Officer kept putting food into my plate and I was loving every moment of it. I haven't had good Chinese food since I've moved to Chicago. All of a sudden getting Peking duck and soft shell crab was like hitting the jackpot.
Needless to say, I wasn't very hungry come dinner time. My friend wanted to use his coupon and try out a new restaurant, but I couldn't do more than nibble off of his plate. This means that I probably won't be doing Cafe Nema justice, but I figure I should post about it anyway.
Cafe Nema is a mix of Somali, Middle Eastern, and Mediterranean cuisine:
There's a really swanky feel to the place. Apparently there's live jazz sometime during the week, but I'm not sure when.
For an appetizer, they started with the kibeh:
Kibeh is basically a fried pastry stuffed with ground beef, onion, pine nuts, and burghul (a wheat product) served with tahini sauce. I was a little iffy about the pine nuts, but I really couldn't even taste them. If I wasn't so full, I probably could've eaten a few plates of this stuff.
To reach his coupon minimum, my friend ordered a falafel wrap:
Nothing too special there. I took one bite of the wrap and spent the majority of the meal eating the fries.
My friend's SECOND entree was the stuffed lamb:
That's lamb loin stuffed with apricots, raisins, spinach, and goat cheese. I expected it to be a bit sweeter with the fruit, but all I could make out were the cheese and the spinach. Tasty, yes, but not enough to justify the cost for me. You had a choice between rice and pasta and obviously, my friend chose pasta. I can't say that I was a big fan of the pasta but he seemed to like it a lot.
I wish I could go more into detail about Cafe Nema. Maybe I'll give it another try the next time I'm in DC.
Cafe Nema
1334 U St NW
Washington DC, 20009
(202) 667-3215
http://www.cafe-nema.com/
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