African and Middle Eastern Food and Cooking

Aussie's Kebabs: From Kickstarter to city corner

A new trailer parked near Nicollet and Ninth Street in downtown Minneapolis is bringing a taste of the world to our Midwestern streets. Owner Chris Millner has traveled the world and found a great idea in the doner kebabs of eastern Australia.We stopped by to give them a try. Lesson number one learn ... More >>

Foxy Falafel adds a food truck

After a long road (quite literally) to obtaining a functioning vehicle that would meet her needs, Kingfield Farmers Market staple and purveyor of Middle Eastern treats, Foxy Falafel owner Erica Strait, will add a food truck to her fleet. Until now, Strait delivered her famous falafels, za'atar ... More >>

Cooks of Crocus Hill hosts South African wine pairing dinner and class on Friday

​If the recent cold spell has put you in the mood for autumn food with an international flair, you're in luck. Cooks of Crocus Hill will be hosting a South African wine pairing dinner and demonstration class this Friday from 6 to 9 p.m. Here are the details:

Food truck fix: Kitchen in the Market brings street eats inside for winter

Food trucks are pulling in and serving up at Midtown Global Market​The air is turning chilly, which means street diner numbers are dwindling and the herd of food trucks is thinning.   Luckily, the ladies at Kitchen in the Market understand the attachment people have to their favorite str ... More >>

New Cowles Center to debut Cravings lobby bar

Cowles CenterEating opportunities at downtown's new dance and performance center. ​Years in the making, the long anticipated Cowles Center for Dance & the Performing Arts will have its grand opening this Saturday. The Hot Dish might not know anything about pirouettes or Baby Freezes, but we ... More >>

Foxy Falafel's Pedal-Powered Smoothie: An eco-delicious drink of the week

Strawberry-orange​Pedal-Powered Smoothie$5Foxy FalafelMill City Farmers Market - Saturdays, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.Fulton Farmers Market - Saturdays, 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.Kingfield Farmers Market Sundays, 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.Its weekly flavors may change, but the popularity of this summer fave cannot be den ... More >>

A Grand Old Day guide to the best eats

Forget the hot dogs. How about a mac and cheese fritter or lamb kabob?​If you're planning to join a few thousand of your closest friends for Grand Old Day in St. Paul on Sunday, food will no doubt be a big part of the experience. You'll find the ubiquitous corn dogs and cheese curds, of course ... More >>

Spicy Eggplant at Black Sea Turkish Restaurant: 100 Favorite Dishes, No. 7

Lu Lippold​People who worship eggplant can't understand people who despise eggplant, and vice versa. It's like theists and atheists: each side inevitably asks of the other, "Why are you such a moron?" It's probably hopeless to persuade your opponents of their wrongheadedness, but if ever there ... More >>

Holy Land's hummus tahini: 100 Favorite Dishes, No. 57

Danielle Lenz​Hummus has been gaining rapid popularity across the country as a healthy and delicious spread, perfect for parties, snacking, and even dieting. Around these parts, however, it's been popular for decades, thanks in no small part to a northeast Minneapolis institution, the Holy Lan ... More >>

Flamingo Restaurant's vegetarian combo: 100 Favorite Dishes, No. 60

Sara RiceUnlike Skittles, this rainbow has more than one flavor​The Midway area of St. Paul is a veritable melting pot, bringing together cultures from around the world. One point where two of them -- Somali and Ethiopian -- meet, is Flamingo Restaurant.

Are Nigerian email scammers foodies?

Nigerian emaill scammers now placing massive food orders.​Okay, are we the only ones who have been getting these nonsensical, grammar-defying emails in which the sender is supposedly desperately trying to order massive quantities of food? Have the Nigerian scammers suddenly become foodies, dig ... More >>

Blue Nile vs. Fasika: Sampler platter showdown

Danielle LenzForks = totally overrated.​There's something about eating with your hands that's incredibly satisfying. Sure, it can be messy, but that's all part of the fun, especially when it comes to Ethiopian food. We rolled up our sleeves and dug into the sampler platters at Minneapolis's B ... More >>

Subway serving falafel, fast-food restaurants fail to "stay in their place"

A falafel foot-long? Is Subway too far out of its wheelhouse?​The Hot Dish recently reported on fast food eateries' plans to add more gluttonous dishes to their menus in 2011. But some of the additions--Taco Bell's partnerships with Cinnabon and Jimmy Dean to add new breakfast items, Dunkin' Don ... More >>

Falafel King to replace Porky's NE location

photo courtesy Falafel KingFouad Masroujeh will replace pork cutlets with gyros.​The logistical debacle that was Porky's NE at 1851 Central Ave. NE has finally come to a close and perhaps now the blog www.neighborsagainstporkys.blogspot.com can finally go dark. The Downtown Journal reports th ... More >>

Top 5 tasty things to do with pumpkin seeds

Public Domain Photos via flickrDon't throw them away!​We know you usually just throw them on the compost heap, but wait... we've got some ideas about how to use all those pumpkin seeds that your October decorating scheme has left you with. And not to worry, we know that a "wild honey-hazelnut-pump ... More >>

Marrakech Moroccan Cafe: North African comfort-food

restaurant spices up Central Avenue

Red Stag and the Grass Fed Cattle Company say "Beef: it's what's for dinner" this Week in Food

Infrogmation Keep your shirt on (and your mask) during Linden Hills Coop's New Orleans-style parade. ​Beef gets a lot of play this week with Red Stag playing host to the Peterson Limousin Farms family (producers of prized Limousin cattle) and Farmer Dan of the Grass Fed Cattle Company inviting the ... More >>

Bukhara Indian Bistro coming soon to Minnetonka

Out: Turkey. In: India.​Joginder Cheema, former owner of the Taste of India and India Palace restaurant empires and current owner of three India House restaurants in St. Paul, Fridley, and downtown Minneapolis (India Express), is bringing Bukhara Indian Bistro to the former home of Istanbul Bi ... More >>

Istanbul Bistro: RIP

​ After a long run, this Turkish bistro on Wayzata Boulevard--one of Minnetonka's few ethnic eateries--has called it quits. We'll miss the kebabs and the spinach pie, the eggplant salad, and the pita dips. Fortunately, Istanbul's replacement will be a tasty-sounding Indian joint--watch for mor ... More >>

Foxy Falafel's Erica Strait: Five Questions

Photo by Nikki MillerFoxy Falafel's bike-powered smoothies at the Uptown Market​If you've been to the Kingfield, Uptown, and Northeast farmers markets this summer, you've probably seen Foxy Falafel owner Erica Strait peddling (and pedaling) her bike-powered smoothies and amazing falafel, along wit ... More >>

Holy Land gets New York Times shout-out for flavored hummus craze

​Check your fridge. Perhaps you have a delicious little tub of roasted red pepper or jalapeno hummus. Busted! Apparently Holy Land figured us out. They were able to take a traditional staple of their home country Kuwait and add flavors so Americans would actually eat it. It worked! The New Yor ... More >>

Sven Sundgaard has mastered the microwave

​Local weatherdude Sven Sundgaard is off your television screen and on vacation this week, enjoying the heat and hummus in Israel and Jordan. When he's not globetrotting, the active Sundgaard can most often be found at the nearest Thai food establishment.

Rob Barrett Bakes: No Need For Knead, Apple Cider Flat Bread

​Remember Wonder Bread, that white tasteless loaf of sugar and gluten? There was a time when we probably thought it was good. Luckily, time has moved on. Baking no knead bread is an easy way to get fresh, healthy bread in to your system and takes very little time and effort. While there are ... More >>

Food Fight: Falafel King vs. Wally's falafel

All falafels are not created equal. See how two restaurants style up some fried legumes.

100 Favorite Dishes: Kafé 421 "signature dips"

We're loving on Kafe 421's superfecta of hummus, tapenade, roasted eggplant, and tzatziki.

Chef spotlight: Bader Jaber from Wally's Falafel & Hummus

The chef's favorite dishes, such as the chicken shawarma, come straight from his childhood in Palestine.

Top 5: Food on Snelling now that the fair is over

Bummed the fair's over? You can still hang out and eat on Snelling Ave.

Afrifest

Bummed the fair's over? You can still hang out and eat on Snelling Ave.

Garlic scapes: just like garlic but bad breath x1,000

Garlic scapes a suitable, more colorful substitute for garlic. Just remember mouthwash.

Great news from Chef Shack!

They'll be open on Sundays, too. More grass-fed beef hot dogs for all!

Epic Sandwich: Shish Cafe's Gyros Wrap

Shish Cafe in St. Paul makes good on a classic.

Pak Zam Zam brings a bit of Pakistan to Nordeast

Country's unique flavors offered in inexpensive, generous portions

Christos lunch buffet -- mystery and might

Black Sea Offers Affordable Turkish Delights

The Cylon Tea Was Created By Man

The Best of Both Worlds

What do you get when you cross the cuisines of Ethiopia and Singapore? Good things. Very good things.

Spice Shack

Kabobs is the greatest thing to happen in Minnesota-Hyderabad cuisine, ever

Fast, Cheap, Great

Is there anyplace to get a great, cheap meal in this town anymore? Boy howdy, is there—here are six

Eat Locally, Eat Globally

In which a widely anticipated boondoggle turns out to be a boon for Minneapolis's urban fabric

Keeping It Real

Two restaurants cater to Minnesota's kosher community

Everybody Comes to Kwaku's

Two restaurants cater to Minnesota's kosher community

Party Favors

A quartet of places offer creative solutions to potluck-season woes

Taste of Ethiopia

An accomplished East Lake Street restaurant sets the standard

Continental Drift

An accomplished East Lake Street restaurant sets the standard

Pita Accord

An accomplished East Lake Street restaurant sets the standard

Barbarians at the Plate

An accomplished East Lake Street restaurant sets the standard

A Cure for the Twentieth Century

An accomplished East Lake Street restaurant sets the standard

Where the Gyrokone Stops

An accomplished East Lake Street restaurant sets the standard

Downtown Blues

An accomplished East Lake Street restaurant sets the standard

Sindbad's Treasure Chest

An accomplished East Lake Street restaurant sets the standard