Cafe Rumi has recently (in 2015) become a new Afghan/Persian restaurant called Jaami. This review concerns Jaami. The decor is simple, clean and neat. It is an appetising environment. I had wanted to go for a while, so I'm glad I got to try it now; it didn't disappoint!
The menu is an amalgam of Afghan and Persian dishes - there's a bit of a Persian concentration in Ealing, with lots of competition, so an Afghan restaurant needs to also cater to Persians. However, I was particularly after some Afghan food to offer my friends.
The Afghan food was very impressive: the Qabuli Palao (staple of Afghan cuisine) was particularly notable for the chef putting in orange peels into the palao, making it feel like it was a "Qabuli Narenj Palao." (*FYI: "Narenj Palao" is "Orange Palao," another quintessential Afghan palao, made with orange peels.) The Qabuli was sweet, very tasty and the meat was tender and succulent, with the added orange peels proving a delightful new experience.
The "Manto" (Afghan meat dumplings) we ordered were also very tasty, and so were the "Kofta" (Afghan meatballs with lentils in tomato sauce). The supposedly "Afghan" lamb kebabs were much more of a Persian style than Afghan, but they were tasty as well. (I have only found one restaurant in all of greater London that do 80% authentic Afghan kebabs - at Masa's in Harrow), and one other restaurant that does 70% authentic Afghan kebabs at Namak Mandi in Tooting Bec; so I'm used to Persian kebabs being substituted for the Afghan kind.)
I was glad they had excellent green tea, loose leaf with cardamom as the Afghan alternative to the Persian black tea with cardamom (also popular with Afghans). As something to put on kebabs, they had the Iranian "sumac" but not the Afghan "ghoor-e-angoor" (dried crushed grape seeds) - something I've only come across at Masa's in Harrow. Otherwise, the naan was fine; nothing exceptional, but totally acceptable.
The service was very good; a lovely Iranian lady, bringing the cultures together and happy to chat with us.
All in all, yes, definitely I'd go again - a sort of creative approach to authentic Afghan food, especially with the Qabuli palao really made an impression.
Well managed, pleasant cafe with tasty Turkish flavour coffee, lovely cakes and biscuits and Italian style pasta dishes. Prices are moderate for these days.
Clean. Food and service is great. What more could you ask for. Halal breakfast is a favourite
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