Sufi Mediterranean Cuisine, 5915 Balboa Ave. San Diego, California 92111
By Sandi Masori
SAN DIEGO — I was in the Convoy area for an appointment and met my dad for lunch. Since we’re still trying to “eat around the world” we picked a Persian restaurant for our outing. Sufi bills itself as a Mediterranean restaurant, but it’s really Persian. I’m not sure why they go under the Mediterranean label – perhaps politics or marketing.
I arrived a little early and sat out in the parking lot returning emails while I waited. I must have come just as they were finishing cooking for the lunch buffet, because the aromas were heavenly. So much so that I couldn’t just sit out in the parking lot and wait, but had to go in and investigate. It was almost like a scene from the old Popeye cartoons where Wimpy floats across town on the aroma trail of his favorite hamburgers. I was compelled to go into the restaurant.
It’s a very large restaurant that has two rooms separated by a movable wall that they open for events and Sunday brunch. The decor is a mix of old world and modern textures. The seats were mostly tables with some half booth/ half chairs along the window.
As you might imagine, being mere blocks away from the mosque, the restaurant is halal, which is the Islamic equivalent of kosher. It’s always nice to go to a halal restaurant because I don’t have to worry that there is hidden pork in anything. I did find it odd that they had a full bar though, as I know that alcohol is forbidden under Islam. I asked about that and was told that they do cover it with sheets for events on request.
I was happy to hear a lot of Farsi being spoken around the room because if you have read any of my previous reviews, you know that I prefer ethnic restaurants that are frequented by people from that ethnicity.When we decided upon the location of our meeting, we didn’t know that they would have a buffet.
You can either get the buffet or order off the menu, but the food on the buffet looked so good there was no point in looking at the menu.
I must admit that I was so hungry I took a plate of some of the salads while waiting. My dad came shortly after so I soon got to try the main courses. On the buffet there was a good selection of salads, with humus and what we Jews might call “Israeli salad”- chopped cucumbers and tomatoes. The Israeli salad could have used a little lemon, but since there were lemons on the salad bar, maybe it was meant to be self-seasoned.
On the main part of the buffet they have a daily soup, which was pomegranate that day. They also have regular rice and a daily flavored rice, which was cherry. Then there’s an assortment of grilled meats and stews. I have to tell you, I don’t know what everything was, but I can tell you this…. it was delicious! The aromas did not lie. The chicken was moist and tender and flavorful. The stews were delectable, the kubedeh (Persian chopped meat skewer) was delightful.
Really the only thing I didn’t like was the pan-fried tilapia. It was rather bland, especially compared to the robust flavors of the other foods.
I sampled a bit of everything and then had to go back for more of the stews and cherry rice. I couldn’t help myself and kept nibbling long after I was full because it was just so so good.
For dessert they have some fresh fruit and some puddings. One was rice pudding which tasted of rose water and cardamom I think. The other pudding was sweet, but I couldn’t really tell what it was or what the flavoring was. I only had a small bite of each though because I was so stuffed from the stews.
All in all, I give it a 9.25 out of 10. I think that I will definitely be back. It was a great find, and since they’ve been there for 10 years, I’m surprised I’d never heard of it before. But now that I know, I think it’s definitely earned a place on my regular list of favorite restaurants.
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Yum. Nice review. I want to try it.