{"id":929,"date":"2025-03-23T11:51:00","date_gmt":"2025-03-23T11:51:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ask-the-razz.com\/?p=929"},"modified":"2025-03-23T12:00:45","modified_gmt":"2025-03-23T12:00:45","slug":"a-generous-iftar-at-al-mandaloun-cafe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ask-the-razz.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/23\/a-generous-iftar-at-al-mandaloun-cafe\/","title":{"rendered":"A Generous Iftar at Al Mandaloun Caf\u00e9"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Lately, I haven\u2019t been dining out much, but yesterday was an exception. I went with my cousin, his wife, and her cousin\u2014who is half-French and has lived in France all her life. Given the company, we had to pick a place that wouldn\u2019t disappoint, and the final choice was Al Mandaloun Caf\u00e9. It turned out to be a great experience overall, though the finale\u2014the part I look forward to the most\u2014was a bit underwhelming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s a breakdown of the set menu for Iftar:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Soup & Drinks<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

We started with a choice of soup: Lentil, Vegetable, or Adass bel Hamod<\/strong>. We opted for Adass bel Hamod. While it was decent, I\u2019ve had much better versions at home or my grandma\u2019s place. Alongside the soup, we had a selection of traditional Ramadan drinks\u2014I chose Jellab<\/strong>, which was refreshing and flavorful. And of course, we had dates<\/strong> to break our fast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cold Appetizers<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The spread included Hommus, Fattoush, Warak Enab, Hindbeh bel Zeit, Fatteh bi Laban with Eggplants, and Foul Medamas<\/strong>. The Fatteh with eggplants<\/strong> was the standout dish\u2014it was delicious. The hommus<\/strong> could have been better, but the fattoush<\/strong> was very good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hot Appetizers<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

We were served an assortment of Fatayer and Spring Rolls<\/strong>\u2014both the cheese and spinach<\/strong> ones were excellent, and the Makanek (sausages)<\/strong> were also well done. Additionally, there was Sawdet Djeij (chicken liver), Batata Harra (spicy potatoes), French fries, and Kibbeh Sajieh<\/strong>. Everything was tasty and well-prepared.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Main Course<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

For the main dish, we had three options: Ouzi, Shawarma, or Taouk<\/strong>. Three of us went for Ouzi<\/strong>, while the fourth chose Shawarma<\/strong>. The Ouzi with rice<\/strong> wasn\u2019t just great\u2014it was extremely generous<\/strong> in portion size, making it one of the highlights of the meal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dessert<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s where things took a slight dip. We initially hoped for Katayef and other traditional Ramadan sweets<\/strong>, but since the place was fully booked<\/strong>, we had to settle for vanilla and chocolate ice cream<\/strong> instead. We did manage to get three plates of Ramadan Kalaj<\/strong> and one plate of Kunafa<\/strong>, but overall, the dessert selection left us a bit disappointed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Final Verdict<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Despite the dessert letdown, the overall experience at Al Mandaloun Caf\u00e9<\/strong> was excellent. The service was attentive, the ambience was superb, and the value for what we got at $38 per person<\/strong> was more than fair. If you\u2019re looking for a generous and well-executed Iftar<\/strong>, this spot is worth considering.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
Ouzi Dish<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lately, I haven\u2019t been dining out much, but yesterday was an exception. I went with my cousin, his wife, and her cousin\u2014who is half-French and has lived in France all her life. Given the company, we had to pick a place that wouldn\u2019t disappoint, and the final choice was Al Mandaloun Caf\u00e9. It turned out<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t Read More <\/span> <\/i><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":934,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[300,299,114],"class_list":["post-929","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-eateries","tag-iftar","tag-ramadan","tag-restaurant-review"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/ask-the-razz.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/al-mandaloun-cafe.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ask-the-razz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/929","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ask-the-razz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ask-the-razz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ask-the-razz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ask-the-razz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=929"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ask-the-razz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/929\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":933,"href":"https:\/\/ask-the-razz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/929\/revisions\/933"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ask-the-razz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/934"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ask-the-razz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=929"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ask-the-razz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=929"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ask-the-razz.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=929"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}