Yummy Arabian cuisine at Bedouin

We have been to Bedouin Arabian Cuisine four times since it opened six months ago in Taman Tun Dr Ismail.  Yes, we enjoy the food in this restaurant that serves Arabian cuisine. The first two times were about Lamb Mandy and the Bedouin Mixed Appetisers which I shared with a friend. The portions were generous and that was all we could muster.

Lamb Mandy

In the Lamb Mandy the meat is roasted in an underground oven, in a method perfected by the people of Hadhramaut Yemen, so says the menu. The spiced, moist lamb falls off the bone and is served with flavoured basmati rice.  A vegetable stew comes with it, with ladies fingers, tomatoes and eggplant in it. Altogether it is a satisfying meal.

The Bedouin Mixed Appetisers are not only a colourful platter, but it has everything in it that I like – from the hummous to the baba ganoush (smoky grilled eggplant mashed and mixed with tahini), tabouleh (chopped coriander salad) and stuffed vine leaves with flavoured rice. Some bread to eat with these is in order, whether it is the flat Arabian bread or the Mulawwah, the crispy Yemeni bread topped with sesame seeds.

The Yemeni bread is so addictive. It stays crispy throughout and you can’t stop nibbling pieces of it. Even a child — 20-month-old baby we brought along – loved it. (He did, however, upset the container with rice and pieces of the bread on the floor, but the smiling waiter brushed off my apology).

Fahsa Lamb which is shredded lamb cooked with spices, pepper and tomato puree came in a cast iron dish that let it stay hot throughout our lunch. This was so good eaten with the Yemeni bread. I also enjoyed this stew with the Kabsa Rice, a fragrant basmati rice cooked with tomato puree and spices.

So yummy — Grilled Beef Cubes

The Beef Cubes on the menu, grilled over charcoal, leapt up at me. They were served on thin bread, with grilled tomato, onion, green chilli and potato chips. The meat looked dull and unattractive but one bite of the beef and I was sold. It was juicy, mildly spiced and so delicious. I was reluctant to share the beef with anyone after this. I did give the child the chips!

Mint tea steeped in this Aladdin lamp teapot

We shared a pot of mint tea that was poured out of a teapot resembling Aladdin’s lamp.

On this Bedouin painting it reads, When a guest comes he’s a prince, when he sits he’s a prisoner, when he leaves he’s a poet.

Bedouin deserves return visits as we have not tried a lot of dishes it offers. Besides we thought the prices are reasonable. For the five of us who had the Lamb Mandy, Fahsa Lamb, Beef Cubes, Mixed Appetisers, Kabsa Rice, Mulawwah (large), mint tea for 3 people and mango lassi, the bill came to RM198.

Bedouin Arabian Cuisine is at 6 Jalan Wan Kadir, Taman Tun Dr Ismail, 60000 Kuala Lumpur. Tel: 03 7731 4712.