Fadi's Mediterranean Grill Houston

My great-grandfather brought the family here from Beirut in 1902. After his wife died in the 1920’s my grandmother quit school to handle the household. All the time I was growing up in the ‘50s and ‘60’s and into my college years in the ‘70s, she cooked wonderful Lebanese food for me and the family. Nothing I have ever had In a restaurant compared with food from her kitchen. Yes, I’m a very tough sell when it comes to a Meditteranean/Lebanese restaurant. Only Fadi’s has ever come close to Nana’s home cooking. This food must be very fresh with many dominant flavors. The Kibbe needs to be rather soft yet firm and give an immediate flavor with or without the Labyn. Tabboulih needs to be especially tart. Baba Ganoush needs to have that special eggplant texture and flavor. Jasmine rice needs a delicate flavor. Stuffed grape leaves should have a lemon-tartness to them and be thickly rolled. The baklava should be layered in the flaky dough and have that special nutty texture and flavor with every bite. The cooks cannot make shortcuts or fake it.. I’ll spot them. Fadi’s cooks know exactly how to prepare and serve this very specific food. Everything I’ve mentioned is prepared perfectly at Fadi’s. Kibbe is fried or baked as it is ordered, making it the freshest it could be. They bring it to your table. The several kinds of hummus tempts you first, along with their home-baked pita bread. There are almost too many salads to choose from easily. Their meat (lamb especially) are covered in sumptuous gravies. Rice is in mounds. This is the best I have ever tasted outside of my gramdmother’s kitchen. It is not unusual for me and my wife (who has expertly learned all of the recipes) to make the almost 200 mile round trip to eat lunch at Fadi’s. The portions are so big that we always bring a lot of food home with us. This surprising restaurant was recommended years ago by a Lebanese doctor of mine in the med center. Fadi’s has never let me down.

I have been going to Fadi's for many years; and I do all my catering through them. If i lived across the street, i would be eating there daily. The food is just amazing; but even more, the great people who run the place are practically family.