Persian delight

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 08/10/2020 (2110 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

You could order regular café fare like burgers and fries at this pleasant new Pembina Highway spot, but why not try some of the really good Persian dishes?

Breakfast choices at Next Stop Café include a proper fry-up of eggs, bacon, cocktail sausages, mushrooms, tomatoes, baked beans and toast. But there’s also a lovely, loosely constructed Iranian omelette with feta, dill and turmeric, or a version made with mashed, spiced tomatoes and garnished with black olives.

Options for sides include hash browns, either cubed or shredded. Absolutely try the shredded — they’re like short, crisp little shoestring fries. Coffee is full-bodied.

For later in the day, there are burgers, sandwiches and wraps, but also a thick and comforting lamb and lentil soup or a Port-style sausage baguette, an Iranian street-food favourite in which slices of sausage are layered with tomatoes, onions, pickles and a tomatoey, chili-spiced sauce. Sides include Persian cup corn, another tasty street food staple, in which corn niblets are blended with a creamy sauce and melty cheese.

Drinks and ice cream treats are a whole thing here. There are fresh fruit and vegetable juices — the refreshing watermelon is especially nice if you’re eating something spicy — and show-stopping specialties such as majoon, a milky drink made with dates and bananas, flavoured with honey and cinnamon and garnished with strips of chopped pistachios and flaked coconut. Fabulous.

A super-thick pistachio shake is also good, and a non-dairy smoothie whipped up with sour cherries and pomegranate is just gorgeously intense and tart.

The décor is homey, and service is friendly and efficient. And here’s a nifty feature: There’s a little doodad on your table where you can press a button to call your server.

COVID-19 protocols for in-house dining are tight — including your very own bottle of hand sanitizer at the table — and you can also get delivery through DoorDash.

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In some ways, Little Nana’s Italian Kitchen feels like an updated red-sauce joint. This Notre Dame area newcomer has a more ambitious menu — and certainly more truffle oil — than the red-sauce restos of years back, but it similarly relies on big, robust flavours and generous servings, with an emphasis on family-style dishes from the region of Calabria.

Thin-crust pizzas include a pie topped with spicy red sauce, creamy mozza and ‘nduja, a spicy, spreadable salami. Some of the simple, modest dishes are the best. Firm house-made sausage with hints of fennel and fat, fresh-ground pork meatballs in thick marinara do well in delivery (available through DoorDash).

The welcome is warm, and the small interior features enclosed booths. I’ve always been a booth fan, but in our current situation that sheltered feeling is particularly comforting.

alison.gillmor@freepress.mb.ca