Crave Middle Eastern? Go No Farther Than Old Town
By Domenica  Marchetti
Special to The Washington Post
July 12, 2001

When you live in Detroit, as I did for several years, you quickly become picky about Middle Eastern food. That's because suburban Detroit is home to the largest population of Arabs outside the Middle East. Which means, of course, an abundance of good Middle Eastern restaurants.

So I was relieved to discover, upon moving to Northern Virginia a few years ago, that fine Middle Eastern fare can also be had here. One of my favorite places is a lesser-known restaurant in Old Town with the unassuming name of Pita House.

It's a cozy place, just one block off tourist-clogged King Street on the much quieter, tree-lined Cameron Street. Although tourists occasionally wander in, most of the customers at Pita House are locals who appreciate authentic Lebanese cuisine, owner and manager Tarek Moukalled said.

Moukalled's parents opened the restaurant in 1992, creating the menu from a collection of their own recipes. Although his father passed away last summer, Moukalled's mother still spends most of her mornings there, keeping a watchful eye over the kitchen.

Moukalled, who served as chef during the first few years, says it took about three years for Pita House to turn a profit. The small space previously housed several takeout eateries and had been through a handful of owners. Eventually word of mouth prevailed, and now Moukalled spends his time managing Pita House and Lebanese Village, a second, larger restaurant that the family opened in Crystal City in August.

"But this is still my baby because my father was the one who started it," he said.

As its name implies, Pita House offers an enticing selection of sandwiches made with freshly baked pita bread delivered daily from a local Middle Eastern bakery. Among the choices are sujok, spicy homemade beef sausage in a spicy tomato sauce; grilled steak topped with cheese, lettuce, tomato and onion; chicken shawarma, garlicky roasted marinated chicken breast with lettuce and tomato; and labneh, thick strained yogurt scented with mint and olive oil and served with tomatoes.

My favorite is the Veggie Delight – fried cauliflower florets and eggplant slices with tomatoes and lettuce, swaddled in soft pita bread and drizzled with a lemony tahini (sesame sauce).

But Pita House is much more than just a sandwich shop. It offers a full lunch and dinner menu, from starters to desserts. Among the appetizers, don't miss the hummus or baba ghanouj, two spreads served with pita bread for dipping. The hummus – mashed chickpeas, tahini, freshly squeezed lemon juice, garlic and olive oil – is thick and silky and assertive.

The baba ghanouj, made with roasted eggplant pulp, has an alluring smokiness to it, which Moukalled said comes from roasting over charcoal rather than in an oven. Also good are the falafel, chubby deep-fried patties made from mashed chickpeas, fava beans, spices, garlic and parsley, and the fool, simmered chickpeas and fava beans marinated with garlic, lemon juice and olive oil.

For entrees, Pita House serves a selection of tender marinated meats – beef, chicken and lamb – roasted, stewed or charcoal-grilled. If you can't make up your mind, try the mixed grill – charcoal-grilled chicken, lamb and ground beef. It's served with grilled onions and tomatoes; a refreshing Lebanese salad of diced green peppers, lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers; and a buttery rice pilaf of fragrant jasmine rice and toasted noodles.

The riz bel djaj, stewed boneless chicken breast served on brown rice infused with cinnamon and allspice, with garlic yogurt sauce on the side, is another winning dish. There are also a handful of vegetarian dishes, such as moujadra bel riz, a mellow-flavored dish of lentils cooked with rice and onions and topped with fried onions.

On Friday and Saturday evenings, Pita House offers dinner specials such as lamb shanks baked with tomato sauce, marinated shrimp kabobs and stuffed zucchini. There's a small selection of domestic and imported beer and wine, including Lebanese brands.

The dessert selection is small but rich. It includes honeyed baklava topped with crushed pistachios; rice pudding; and kostha, a thick, sweet white custard made from cream and half-and-half, topped with sliced bananas, honey and pistachios. Moukalled says he expects to introduce an expanded menu by the end of the year.

Pita House is a friendly and casual place. The restaurant's walls are adorned with photographs and paintings of Lebanon's scenic countryside and prewar Beirut. At lunch, tables are covered in vinyl cloths, and sandwiches are served in plastic baskets.

A touch of elegance is added at dinner, when linen tablecloths replace the vinyl and candles on the tables give the room a warm glow.

2001 The Washington Post Company