Diversity. It is one of the main characteristics of West Lafayette, Indiana that I truly enjoy. It is said that variety is the spice of life. True enough. The assortment of individuals and cultures within this area has been a source of great happiness for me during my five years here. Between West Lafayette and Lafayette there are a multitude of restaurants. Specifically the “Village” area of campus offers the most wide-range of cuisines to choose from. The really great thing about most of the restaurants in and around Chauncey Hill is that they are all reasonably priced for students. This is not to say however that you should waste your money on food simply because it is cheap, it should always taste good as well. So I tried a couple, some for the first time, others I had visited before and here is how they all faired throughout the week.

Parthenon

Monday I went to Parthenon, 135 Chauncey Ave, and had what I would call one of the worst meals I have eaten in quite some time. I ordered the Souvlaki dinner ($11.50), which included soup or salad, and pita bread. Everything here is cafeteria-style; you have a tray and slide it down as you pick from the items you prefer. The Souvlaki, a marinated pork skewer with green peppers and onions was served with overly cooked rice and topped with a sweet tomato sauce and yogurt. The marinated pork lacked flavor and was more than well-done, making it extremely tough. I chose the Lemon egg soup over the salad. It was full of rice which made the lemon-flavored broth smooth and creamy. Parsley and carrot finished off the soups flavor nicely. It was a huge bowl, and it ended up being plenty for my lunch, which was a good thing, as the Souvlaki was terrible. For desert I had Baklava ($2) and it, like my dinner was less than appetizing. It was dense, hard and lacked the flakiness and superior honey flavor that I prefer. On the flip side, the service was friendly and helpful. The restaurant itself is very clean, bright and cheery with lots of natural light from the many windows surrounding the front of the room. I feel that the dishes, even with their large portions are overpriced in comparison to the foods’ quality.

Bombay

Tuesday I went to Bombay at their new location, 111 S. River Rd. in the State Street Towers. It is a roomy place with lots of windows, but without a view except for that of Hwy 231 and the two televisions airing Indian videos which are mildly entertaining and extremely distracting while dining. We got the lunch buffet priced at $7.95. The buffet items vary from day to day and this day many of the items were based on chicken. The dishes presented were delectably redolent with exotic spices. I tried Aloo Dumm, a dish of potatoes in a spicy tomato sauce with a remarkable depth of flavor. I really enjoyed the Chicken Curry. The boneless chicken breast was cut into cubes and smothered in a tomato based traditional Indian curry sauce. I had it with saffron rice and a spicy yogurt sauce. The Chicken Palak lacked the spiciness that I was expecting. I had anticipated it to be similar to Palak Paneer, only with chicken instead of the Paneer (an Indian cheese). Unfortunately it was not. The service was great. My glass of water was continuously being filled and our plates were immediately removed from the table once we were finished with them. I am not a person who eats at buffets often, but I was quite impressed by the variety of items and the high quality flavors, the cleanliness of the buffet itself and the refilling of entrees once they were running low.

Blue Nile

Wednesday I was in the mood for hummos and pita so I went to Blue Nile. They offer Eastern Mediterranean cuisine in a comfy little setting, tucked around the corner from Subway, 117 Northwestern Ave. This place is casual and a little bit loud, but not annoyingly so. I seated myself and was greeted by my server who at the same time brought a cup of water. I’m not generally a picky person when it comes to my drinking vessel, but this was a metal cup and I don’t know what it is, but to drink anything out of a metal cup, other than a mint julip, just doesn’t work for me. Not to mention that the water was tepid. I know this is an extremely American attribute, but it was a HOT day and I wanted ice cold water. After ordering a yogurt salad and the hummos with pita, I asked for new water with ice and different cup (which never came). The salad arrived at the same time as the hummos. It was a very refreshing and large portion. Crisp chunks of cucumber were mixed in a creamy yogurt sauce with chopped mint. I recommend getting the hummos and pita either as a lunch for one or an appetizer to share between a couple of people. It is served with pita on a large plate drizzled with olive oil and lemon and highlighted with whole chickpeas, spices and chilies. It is extremely delicious. Both entrée and lunch prices are extremely reasonable. My lunch added up to $6.50. Entrees range between $6 and $11. Vegetarians have many items in which to choose from. One thing to remember, if you drive parking is extremely limited.

La Fiesta Burrito

The end of the week I was looking for something spicy and the most logical choice in the area was Mexican food. Located at 136 S. River Rd. La Fiesta Burrito is a clean, simple restaurant with friendly, efficient staff and fantastic food. I had 2 Tacos El Pastor, Mexican style (with cilantro and onions) and rice and refried beans. The tacos, spicy and full of well marinated pork, topped with avocado and sprinkled with a little lime juice were exactly like those I have had in Mexico. The rice was traditional Mexican style and the refried beans were rich, creamy and absolutely delicious. This quaint little place is the most authentic Mexican cuisine that I have encountered in Lafayette or West Lafayette. I would be remiss if I did not emphatically emphasize that you try it for lunch or dinner, you will not be disappointed.

These are just brief overviews of the culturally diverse gastronomy available. Take a trip over the river into Lafayette or maybe over to the northwest side of West Lafayette. There is a whole world of tastes just waiting to be encountered. Take advantage.

Mediterranean cooking has become tremendously popular throughout the United States. However, to pinpoint a distinct country from which it is derived is impossible. More accurately, it is a cuisine that intermingles the cuisines from the different cultures surrounding the Mediterranean Sea. Specifically speaking, Eastern Mediterranean cuisine gathers the cooking styles from countries such as Greece, Turkey, Syria, Israel and Lebanon.
Despite the fact that there is a great deal of variety between these cuisines, there is also an abundance of commonality. Ingredients such as chickpeas, couscous, figs and dates, flatbreads, lamb, olives and olive oils, spices, yogurt and lemons are quite conventional throughout the foods in these countries. The cuisine served at Sofra is no exception. Offering authentic Turkish cuisine, Sofra utilizes several of these ingredients throughout many of their entrees.
My dinner companion and I were greeted as we entered the doors with wafts of spices being roasted and succulent meats being grilled. The dining room with its sage green walls covered with earthy colored weavings, copper cooking pots and beautiful hardwood floors immediately presented us with a feeling of warm comfort.
As I was famished upon arriving for dinner, it was difficult to decide upon what to order. You know the feeling, you are so hungry at any point you could suddenly begin gnawing on your own arm. Even so, everything on the menu looks appetizing and you don’t know which one to choose. So I find myself at this point of hunger and am looking through the menu items, (many of which are in Turkish, and some with ingredients were unknown to my friend and myself). “This shouldn’t be a problem; we can just ask our server about these items.” I think to myself. I was wrong. Our server, who in her defense relayed to us that she had only been working there a short while, didn’t know a whole lot about the menu items or what the unknown ingredients were. We quickly learned that the other server didn’t know either. After asking the chef we were informed and ready to place our orders. Finally, we decided upon sharing two appetizers just to start. – Did I mention I was starving?
What seemed like an eternity (in actuality only about 6 minutes) our server brought out the Babaganus ($5.99) and the Kalamar ($6.95). The Babaganus was served with a large bowl of crusty bread for dipping. Never before had I experienced this eggplant and tahini based dip, and it was absolutely delicious. I am generally turned off by eggplant; however I was completely impressed with this appetizer. The eggplant, tomatoes and peppers had been grilled prior to being incorporated into the tahini and garlic. This imbued a delightfully smoky flavor. The whole dip was creamy and complex with flavor. The Kalamar was equally extraordinary. Garlic lovers, this is an appetizer for you. The calamari steak was grilled to perfection, without any of the chewy toughness that is sometimes associated with calamari (simply because it has been overcooked). It was bathed in a roasted garlic and herbed olive oil. The calamari steak was smothered in sliced roasted garlic and flawlessly seasoned. The whole dish was nothing short of perfection. The calamari was tender and the herbed olive oil doubled as a dipping sauce for our remaining bread once we had devoured the Babaganus.
Shortly after our appetizers were finished, we were presented with our dinner entrees. My friend and dinner companion, Andy, had ordered the Fistikli Kebab ($14.95). This is like a long tube of grilled ground lamb and beef, seasoned and mixed with pistachio and red pepper. After the grilling it is wrapped with lavash bread (a thin crispy cracker like bread sprinkled with sesame seeds). He shared a few coveted bites with me and it was utterly delightful. The savory meat was moist and perfectly offset by the sesame seeds and the crispy, crunchy lavash. It was also served with peeled, seasoned potato wedges. Of the potatoes, Andy exclaimed “I don’t know what they did to these, but they are really good!”
My entrée arrived piping hot in a copper tureen. I had ordered the Coban Kavurma ($11.95). Petite tender lamb tips had been marinated and cooked with onions, mushrooms, green peppers, tomatoes and served over and around a ball of rice. The vegetables still had ‘bite’. The lamb that is often served in the states is generally around 6-8 months, whereas in the Mediterranean the preferable age for serving lamb is from 2-4 months (allowing a much more tender and mild flavored meat). The lamb in this entree yielded this younger style of meat and it was delectable. I shared a portion with Andy and asked what he thought. To this he replied, “When it comes to cooking animals, the Mediterranean’s have it down to a science.”
Trying to finish the large portion on my plate, I thought I might have to loosen my belt. “If I eat any more I think I will explode, but it is sooo good I don’t want to stop.” I said. After deciding I could really eat no more, I had the remaining portion boxed up as Andy was receiving his dessert. I had no more room for a dessert of my own, and shared a couple bites of Andy’s Baklava.
On the menu, the description of this particular dessert reads, “Best in Town!” Here’s the problem with making such a statement, if you put that something is the best in town, it darn well better be, because if its not, it might as well be the worst. And this was the case. Our expectations were that the best baklava in town was coming to our table. Even better, we were told it had just been made fresh that morning. Needless to say, it was not. The phylo was thick and dense, as if the layers hadn’t been separated and buttered to ensure its crispness. It was a bit dry and lacking the dripping, honey syrupiness anticipated. The nuts in the layers were ground into an undesirable paste. This was not the best way to end the meal, however did not detract much from our overall dining experience.
There are many diverse items from which to choose at Sofra. There are several items for seafood, meat and veggie lovers alike. Sofra is an excellent place to vie for, for healthy dining. As with much of Mediterranean cuisine, the use of olive oils, fresh vegetables, beans and legumes, and grilling as opposed to sautéing or frying, adds many healthful benefits and choices for dining out.
I and Andy were both equally pleased with our evening at Sofra. I recommend trying the Humus or Yaprak Sarma (stuffed grape leaves) for appetizers. Sofra also has a small, yet great list of beer and wine. The Efes Dark comes highly recommended.

Sofra is located at 213 E. State Street, West Lafayette, IN and is open Monday 5 p.m. – 9 p.m., Tuesday through Friday 11 a.m. – 9 p.m., and Saturdays 12 p.m. – 10 p.m. For take-out please call 765.743.2111 or fax your order to 765.743.2115.

Lunch & Dinner $$

On a scale of 5 forks I give it a 4
Service - Good
Cuisine - Excellent
Atmosphere - Excellent