Midtown Lunch

I am always on the hunt for new Russian and Eastern European restaurants in Northeast Philly. Though you might not guess it from the name, Suzani Art Cafe serves Uzbeki food. Inside,  it is quite cozy with ample pillows provided in the booths. You can chew meat off the bone while snuggling and drinking whatever booze pairing you decided to bring. What is better than that?

The bread was amazing, fluffier than what they serve at Uzbekistan, which is my gold standard.  Kutabi, a savory pancake appetizer with beef and herbs was unremarkable.

I love some Russian/ Eastern European soups. Especially in the winter; that part of the world knows a thing or two about warming folks up. About half the soups on the soup menu I have tried and enjoyed. I decided to order a less familiar soup- the Solyanka. This included olives, lemons, onion, and a medley of questionable meat, it looked like there was tripe and salami in there. I enjoyed the broth, but would have liked a heads up on the tripe. I gotta gripe with tripe.

Lamb rib shish kebab is a go to order for me at Uzbeki restaurants.  Here, they were charred at the edges, plump, and gleaming in coat of lamb fat.

I didn’t go with a big group for my Suzani trip, and wasn’t able to order as many of the dishes as piqued my curiosity.  A return visit for more skewers and plov is in the cards.

THE + (What somebody who likes this place would say)

• Super Uzbek bread and grilled skeweres
• Lots of pillows

THE – (What somebody who doesn’t like this place would say)

• Surprise tripe

Suzani Art Cafe, 1916 Welsh Rd, 215 676-2121