Editorial
Front Page - Monday, February 08, 2010
Layla’s Restaurant is nice on the wallet and good in the belly
Rebecca Brockman
When looking at the monthly budget, going out to eat might be the first thing to go. On the other hand, it’s so nice when someone else does the cooking and the mess is in their kitchen. Fast food is a popular option, it’s easy and speedy, but usually not so good in the healthy department.
I think I’ve found a solution to appease both budget and nutrition standards. Last week I had the opportunity to visit Layla’s Restaurant, Grocery and Halal Meat on Rodney Parham.
For some reason, I didn’t pay attention to the last part of the name until I started writing the review. What is Halal meat?
Of course I consulted my trusty friend Google and found that Halal meat is in accordance with Islamic dietary laws. Meaning, the animal from which the meat comes from has to be killed, slaughtered and prepared in an acceptable way.
From my brief research, this strict form of dietary law sounds similar to the Jewish term “kosher.” Although I didn’t know it at the time, my dinner entrée featured an ample serving of fantastic, Halal gyro meat. The photo of my dinner is featured in this story, I wish it were a scratch and sniff sticker, because it smelled amazing.
Before I start drooling on my keyboard, I need to emphasize how reasonable my meal was. Clearly, the owners invest money in the food, not the décor of the dining area. It is a very basic restaurant; don’t expect bells and whistles at Layla’s. Furnishings aside, the service is great and the place only got busier the longer we sat.
For starters, I ordered the hummus ($2.65), which is a chickpea puree with tahini (a sesame seed paste), garlic, lemon juice and olive oil.
The ridiculously inexpensive hummus is also served with four wedges of soft pita bread. I say ridiculous, because I have paid four times that amount at other restaurants, for half the amount Layla’s offered. I had enough hummus during dinner, snacked on it when I got home and had enough the following day. My gyro plate ($8.50) was served with gyro meat, pita bread, taziki (cucumber, dill and garlic) sauce, marinated onion and small salad. This item was one of the most expensive things on the menu. Sometimes that amount is the cheapest! I contemplated ordering the Mediterranean salad ($2.25), served with tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley and lettuce. The salad is tossed with lemon juice and olive oil dressing. There is also a Greek salad ($6.75) featuring Feta cheese, black olives, tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley and lettuce. This salad features the same dressing as above.
My dining partner ordered the gyro salad, which is a large portion of the Mediterranean salad with a side of taziki sauce ($6.50). Keeping with the gyro theme, my other dining partner ordered the 9” gyro pizza. Once the pizza arrived, we all agreed that it was bigger than 9”. She looked at her entrée and exclaimed, “This is enough to share!” And it was and she did. She barely made a dent in the large pie and had enough to take home for lunch the following day.
Now that I know how delicious the food at Layla’s is, during my next visit, I might try the spinakopita plate ($7.99), which is a spinach stuffed fillo dough served with taziki sauce and hummus.
The two-sided paper menu also features additional salads, sandwiches, a variety of calzones, pizza and about eight entrees. There is also a white board at the entrance of the restaurant that has the daily specials written on it. The night we ate there, the specials included a Mediterranean burger. The owners of Layla’s have every type of foodie covered!
As I mentioned earlier, the dining area is sparse and it’s also small. When we arrived at 6:15 p.m., there were a few open tables. But when we left around 8 p.m., the place was full and people kept streaming through the door. It was fun to see the variety of patrons; it was somewhat of a multicultural experience.
While I was paying for my bill ($13.65) I noticed some yummy looking baklava in a glass case. I couldn’t refuse – so I asked for a piece to go. When I got home, I made a cup of tea and took out my little piece of baklava. Yum! The baklava was excellent; it was flaky, buttery and left me wanting more.
Layla’s is a good place for families, friends or a really casual date. Visit the restaurant at 9501 Rodney Parham Rd and peruse the small grocery store near the back. For more information, call 501-227-7272.
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