My most recent visits have been Sunday mornings for either their Eggs Florentine or Greek Omelet. A word to the wise: Get there early on Sunday. Like before 10 if you can. If you show up much after then, you’ll be waiting in line for a table. I’m not talking a Pancake Pantry line, but still standing nevertheless. The line moves fairly quickly, but you could easily be waiting up to 15-20 minutes. Additionally, they close on Sundays at 2:00pm, so if you come on the later side of brunch, give yourself enough time to make it at least by then.

You only have to see the outside to know this place is not a fancy joint. The inside doesn’t help much either. Tables are tight, the furniture is a bit dingy (like the chair next to me that had no cushion, which, I’m assuming, could only be used to hold a baby carrier), and the kitchen is visible just beyond the cashier counter. You still pay at the counter here, but at least they do accept credit cards (god forbid!).

The quality of breakfast is not what I’d call “amazing” or much to write home about, but it does the trick on an early morning. Service is so-so, they do what they can with as busy as they are, but I wouldn’t go as far to say they are attentive and pro-active. You get coffee refills when they walk around with the coffee carafe and you may have to catch someone’s eye to get an additional napkin or silverware. However, the prices are on par with this level of service, like $7.60 for Eggs Florentine or 3 buttermilk pancakes with sausage for $6.55. They even have a selection of “Healthy Choices”, but, as someone who normally looks for that page in the menu, even I usually go to Athens to help recover from the night before.

I must admit I’ve never been during the times in which one would eat lunch or dinner, so I can’t speak to their Greek cuisine. Although, they have been otherwise praised for the quality, quantity and authenticity of that fare and I imagine it would behoove me to try it out sometime soon. Now, if I only had the desire to go there on a weeknight or at lunchtime….but that make take some convincing. For now, I’m sticking to breakfast.

They apologized for it taking so long, but it was quite understandable on their 3rd night of business. The staff was polite and attentive, although our server had a hard time understanding “Chicken Biryani”, even though that’s one of the most common dishes in Indian cuisine. Apparently my friend was difficult to understand, but I never would’ve thought that. The owner was very gracious for our patience and business.

The restaurant itself is a good step-up from the other venues on that strip, with fabric curtains from floor to ceiling at the front windows, and traditional Indian decor throughout. I seem to remember some subtle music, but obviously it was subtle enough if I can’t remember it clearly.

Considering how new of an establishment it is, I was definitely impressed by the new Bombay Palace. I will be going back again soon, probably for the lunch buffet this time!

The menu is fairly standard for Nashville Indian cuisine, although there were a few items I’d never heard of before. We ordered the fried garlic naan (which has a more appropriate name that I can’t remember) which I expected to be the traditional naan stuffed with garlic. Naan is usually cooked in a clay oven and is served with the meal. This naan, though, seemed to be deep-fried, something I’ve never seen before, and something I wasn’t too thrilled about. It was tasty enough, but I just was not in the mood for something fried.

For our main meal, we ordered Lamb Curry, Chicken Biryani, and Saag Paneer (or spinach and cottage cheese). We asked for them to be medium heat and that had just enough kick. We were definitely feeling the burn by the end of it. I wasn’t too impressed with the Lamb Curry. The meat seemed to be a little tough and I could tell we didn’t get very good cuts of meat. The Chicken Biryani, though, was excellent. It is mostly a rice dish and you have to dig for your chicken, but its worth the work. The spices and aroma make the dish truly delicious.  The Saag Paneer was some of the best I’ve ever had. If you like cooked spinach, you’ll love this dish.

The portions were relatively generous for an Indian restaurant, each dish being served in a larger-than-normal bowl, with plenty of rice on the side. We couldn’t eat everything, although we really wanted to.

The whole meal was just under $40 with taxes, which isn’t bad considering we got an appetizer and a side-dish. For simple, yet delicious, Indian cuisine, Best of India is definitely worth trying.

So, we sat down after ordering, which wasn’t a minute past 8:40, and they were already starting to close the shades. We were offered a to-go box before we even started eating. It felt very much like they were trying to hurry us out of the restaurant. The staff was very busy cleaning up and everyone seemed like they were ready to go home as soon as 9:00pm hit.

The food itself is quite good for fast food, flavorful enough and large portions. However, I ordered the Mongolian chicken that is supposed to come with green onions and white mushrooms. I think there was maybe what amounted to one whole green onion. I was hoping for quite a few more green onions, cause they are just scrumptious when they are grilled. The mushrooms were good, but if they were supposed to be grilled, they were definitely undercooked.

My husband got the Coconut Curry chicken which, he said, was “alright”, but I don’t think he’d be inclined to come back to eat it again. His vegetables were also undercooked, again, if they were supposed to be grilled. Its possible they like the “fresh veggie” preparation, which I actually prefer, but they were definitely mixed in with the other grilled foods, so it makes sense that they were probably supposed to be grilled.

Anyway, the overall experience was quick and pleasant, but nothing to write home about.

From the street, it has a festive storefront for a West Nashville, Charlotte Avenue dive. Sitting right next to a Jiffy Lube and across the street from Krystal, the real estate is not what you’d call prime. I’ve gone there after dark and literally run from the parking lot to the door just to minimize the chances someone will ask me for money or call for me from across the street.

Safety aside, the interior of the restaurant is a bit minimalistic with cafeteria style seating and painted walls. They do have a decorative decor, but its limited to the walls and beaded entrance to the bathrooms. In the far corner is a TV that plays Animal Planet at lunch (at least when I’ve been there at lunch).

Heat and AC are definitely lacking, but the negatives end there. The moment you step in line, you feel taken care of. The server behind the counter is always working on someone’s dish and the chicken and steak rotate behind him to gradually cook on all sides. I have yet to try the meat, but I’ve heard it is tasty. I tend to stick to the grape leaves, baba ganoush, greek salad and falafel. The portions are generous and the food is always fresh.

I don’t really know what else to say except that it is soooo yummy. I suggest it for dinner at least once a week now, but crave it much more often than that!

For the first time in all the years I’ve been coming to Med Cuisine, there were three, that’s right three people working the restaurant. On a Wednesday night! Usually we’re lucky if there are 2 servers, but most often there is just one person working the whole dining room and balcony. Their menu has changed a little, so by the time we were ready to order, we’d been asked by all three servers if we were ready to order. I have to say, I’d rather have too much attention, than not enough.

The dining room is nothing too impressive, its main accent being a large mural on the far wall as you enter and then a few middle eastern trinkets on the walls. In a restaurant like this, less is more, as was evident with my trip to Horn of Africa mentioned below. I’d rather see a distinct theme, even if its somewhat subtle.

If you have a thing against middle eastern music that consists mostly of one woman performing similar sounding songs all night, then the music might really annoy you. I’ve learned to tune it out, but sometimes it’s just loud enough that you can’t block it out and it can really get on my nerves.

We’ve always been pleased with the value of the food at Med Cuisine. The portions are generous and everything is always fresh. There are plenty of selections for vegetarians and meat lovers alike and you can get a large platter for about $10. Pita bread is served with every meal, so you don’t have to worry about ordering it, which is nice. Sometimes it can be a little stale, but they usually try to keep it warm.

If you’re up for this sort of thing, you can stick around for a Hookah, a smoking water-pipe that comes in a variety of dessert flavors. If you’re ever in the restaurant when someone is enjoying one, it fills the room with a nice, non-offensive scent, much different from traditional smoking devices. Not to mention it just looks cool and you become the center of attention if you order one. I have still yet to try it.

Alright, here are the scores:
Atmosphere: B-
Service: B+
Food Quality: A
Food Value for the money: A
Food Presentation: A- (nothing fancy)
Drink Selection: B (at least the fountain drinks come with free refills)

Overall Score: B+

Tonight I went to an Ethiopian restaurant called “Horn of Africa” on Murfreesboro Rd halfway between 440 and Briley Parkway. If first impressions are important to you, this location is enough to scare you away. I wanted to park my car so that I could watch it from my seat, but was told by my companions that that wasn’t necessary. The exterior facade has little flavor and only a small sign to mark its location. The liquor store next door is a nice touch.

But once I got inside, I felt a little better. Its not the most cohesive decor; I wasn’t exactly sure which country I was supposed to be in, with the mixture of burning incense and chili pepper string lights hung all around. To experienced diners, I’m sure it feels like home, but to me, I didn’t know what to think of the TV trays and straw tables thingys (I still don’t know what they are called) called Mesobs. I’ve been to one Ethiopian restaurant in Nashville before and this brought back bad memories.

Unfortunately, like many small businesses, there was only one person working the whole restaurant and in walks a party of 12 (of which I was part). It took about 45 minutes before we ordered, but we were given water and menus right away. No chips or bread though. And I was hungry. Anyway, when we finally ordered, the waiter gave his recommendation and persuaded us not to order 3 huge platters we (one half of the group) were certain we could eat. Thank god he didn’t just take our order and prepare all that food, because there’s no way we could have eaten it all.

This is where it gets good. The food was…well, amazing. It came out on a giant platter that was an explosion of color and scents that really overwhelmed the senses (I hate to be so cliche, but its true). Then, we used spongy, pancake-like “bread” to scoop up a mixture of vegetables, meat and cheese, making mini “tacos” that had to be carefully consumed without dripping or dropping any of the filling. There had to be 6 or 7 different types of vegetables, all stewed, sauteed, and seasoned just right. I never knew collard greens could taste so good. Then the beef and lamb was piled high in the center for all those who wanted it.

Between the 12 of us, we couldn’t even finish off three combination platters. There was enough to take home, but the Injera, as it is called (see, we’re all learning here) would’ve been a soggy mess by the time we were ready to eat again so we regrettably left it behind. I’ll definitely go back to “Horn of Africa”; they came through when I had really already given them little chance.

I guess I better start some type of rating system. Let’s start with this:
Atmosphere: C
Service: B+
Food Quality: A
Food Value for the money: A-
Food Presentation: A
Drink Selection: B- (coffee, soft drinks, and a few beers)

Overall Score: B+