Simone’s!

Remember how I ranted that I was pining for a Mediterranean-style Build-Your-Own restaurant close to me, and then The Universe said Make It So? Well, we have been anxiously awaiting the opening of Simone’s Kitchen but I was not on-the-ball enough to realize that it opened. Officially, yesterday. So I did not know what the plan was when my friend called me up and said that she was picking me up in just a few minutes for a short Mystery Errand that she promised would be a treat. And then, because she is lovely, she bought me lunch at Simone’s!

As soon as I understood my destination, I gloated via text to my immediately family, who were super-jealous. Spoiler: everything I ate was delicious. The place is cute, the staff were lovely (and patient!), and everything was yummy. But I know that it can be intimidating to have to make oh-so-many decisions at a restaurant like this, and I have seen their website and it is not yet terribly illuminating.

So I’m going to talk you through the process. First, if making a bunch of choices is just too hard, just go for whichever one of their Mezza Bowls is most appealing to you.

We have now tried the Chicken Shawarma, Falafel, and Greek Meatball bowls, and everyone’s been happy with their choices.

If you’d rather strike out and create your own, here’s what I can remember. First, start with some lettuce. You don’t have to, of course. But it is good for you. Then you’ve got some tough choices:

Okay, at somewhere along about the fourth picture, here, I started hitting the limit when I found out that I was permitted to choose up to 3 different items — I went with the garlic, guac, and tzatziki, and I am very glad that I did. I would really like to buy a gallon jug of the garlic stuff. Another must-have, for me, are the pickled onions.

They also have vaguely exotic beverages (J particularly liked the cardomom iced tea) and baked goods (whenever it’s available, Cute W tried the baklava, and he liked this one, which I was told is Lebanese).

Altogether, we liked everything we tried. Here are some pictures of what we ate:

It is a little expensive — the items on the right (two large bowls and baklava) cost about $28 altogether. But the ingredients are fresh and the employees get health care, so we are fortunate to have the flexibility to choose this option. It’s a little more expensive than Chipotle, which tends to be so filling that most of the time a bowl and some chips will supply two meals. But it also feels like a much more healthful choice. There are options for a small or a big bowl, but the small bowl feels pretty darn small for a meal to me, unless you’re buying for a kiddo, and it’s only a couple of dollars less, so go big!

Altogether, we are very excited to have another fast-and-easy meal option to add into the rotation. And I am already thinking about what to get next time!