Lapis
The recipes go back several generations at this Afghan bistro, and they are made with love by “Mum,” aka Chef Shamim Popal. After arriving as a refugee from Afghanistan in 1987, she took what she called “secret cooking lessons from her uncle” and made many long-distance calls back home to her mother to learn how to cook. Today, she and her staff craft everything on the menu from scratch daily, always from fresh and halal ingredients. Their efforts pay off in the restaurant’s toothsome dumplings, bolani (flatbreads stuffed with pumpkin, onions and potatoes, or leeks and cilantro), and the Afghan-style vanilla ice cream, made with rosewater and pistachio. Meat dishes are also a highlight here, especially the braised lamb shanks, the morgh kabobs (grilled chicken breast), and the kofta (beef meatballs). If you can’t decide what to order, go for a mixed platter of dishes. Craft cocktails are available from the bar, as is beer and wine. All of this is served in an evocative, Afghan-rug bedecked room, with historic and family photos on the walls. Tip: The $35 three-course prix fixe menu, is worth every penny, and includes scrumptious rosewater-cardamom pancakes.
The recipes go back several generations at this Afghan bistro, and they are made with love by “Mum,” aka Chef Shamim Popal. After arriving as a refugee from Afghanistan in 1987, she took what she called “secret cooking lessons from her uncle” and made many long-distance calls back home to her mother to learn how to cook. Today, she and her staff craft everything on the menu from scratch daily, always from fresh and halal ingredients. Their efforts pay off in the restaurant’s toothsome dumplings, bolani (flatbreads stuffed with pumpkin, onions and potatoes, or leeks and cilantro), and the Afghan-style vanilla ice cream, made with rosewater and pistachio. Meat dishes are also a highlight here, especially the braised lamb shanks, the morgh kabobs (grilled chicken breast), and the kofta (beef meatballs). If you can’t decide what to order, go for a mixed platter of dishes. Craft cocktails are available from the bar, as is beer and wine. All of this is served in an evocative, Afghan-rug bedecked room, with historic and family photos on the walls. Tip: The $35 three-course prix fixe menu, is worth every penny, and includes scrumptious rosewater-cardamom pancakes.
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