Toledo City paper

Falling in love at Ferdo's

Tuesday, 02 January 2007
Joy Brown – Toledo City Paper

The second you begin to fall in love you know it, and from that point on it's hard not to think about what has happened, even if you're just waking up.
Falling in love can be inconvenient, but it can never be helped. I was glad for this recently after digging into a hearty lunch. My newfound passion goes by the name of ... hummus. That's right, a paste made of chickpeas won my heart. I never thought it would happen, but obviously I'm a lucky woman.
I have Ferdo's Mediterranean Restaurant to thank for my newfound passion. Located at 3065 W. Bancroft St., right next door to the University of Toledo campus, this handsome eatery has been courting customers for over nine years.
I sympathize with those who fell in love with Ferdo's hummus before me, because they were forced to go without it for more than a year.
"February 6, 2005. 2:10 a.m. Arson," explained owner Maher Barazi prior to a dinner rush. "I had to reconsider things, whether I wanted to rebuild in Toledo or not. All of my (three) children were born in Toledo, and it's a great city. The neighborhood support has been wonderful," said Barazi, a Syrian native who moved to the U.S. 30 years ago. So the new restaurant went up in the same place where the old one burned down, reopening June 1 of 2006.
Hummus lovers no doubt cheered.
"Ah, just you?" Barazi's wife, Iman, asked me as I arrived for lunch. "Sometimes it's nice to be alone," she said with a smile. Sometimes, but it wasn't long before I began to be wooed.
The appetizer alone, grape leaves stuffed with lamb and rice for $5.95, eased that self-conscious nervousness sometimes felt when dining solo. This was the Mediterranean version of a familiar home-cooked dish I've had a crush on since I could eat solid food - halupkies.
Then came the main course, a $10.99 half order of Shish Kabob fearuring one skewer of thick, medium-well tenderloin hunks with peppers and onions. Grilling meat to order doesn't always hit the mark, but chef Tom Jozf hit a bull’s-eye, nestling the kabob on a bed of rice. A small, fresh side salad perched close by.
I eyed the paprika-laced hummus warily because I'd had it before and been disappointed. I was hardened, like a person who's gone on one too many bad dates with people they've met in bars. Looking around the mustard-colored room with glossy red wall flourishes, I noticed everyone else's tables had baskets of pita. I watched enviously as Maher Barazi shoveled rounded dough into a brick oven, baking them into hand-sized cushions.
My server informed me that bread must be requested during lunch and then promptly brought some over. I tore off a piece, set aside my prejudices and dipped. And just like that, I became as whipped as the dish itself.
"People have told me we have the best hummus in town," Barazi bragged, claiming he's converted many a hummus hater. "We use the same ingredients as anyone else, but it's what you do with those, how much you use and how you mix it."
Dessert isn't something to pass up either. One dollar will get you a dense slice of baklava, topped with a tiny green pile of ground pistachios and drizzled with honey. Other treats, including seasonal creations such as pumpkin cheesecake with ginger crust, are available.
Word has it that Ferdo's also bakes a mean Mediterranean-style pizza (upon request since it's not on the menu). So I plan to return for a pie - and, of course, a large helping of hummus; one can only go without for so long.