Casual Mid-East Eats

This Lebanese Taverna Café is situated in the newly-built Rockville town center, which is a great attraction for people not interested in traveling all the way into DC. The wide brick sidewalks are perfect for meandering, and the numerous lit fountains just beg to be waded into. The café is more casual than the Lebanese Taverna restaurants, with one big cream-colored room where large windows look out onto the walkways.

At Lebanese Taverna Café, the pitas will surprise you. Squarish and log shaped, the thin bread is puffed and hollow on the inside. Dip it in the hummus, which has a little well of olive oil and minced parsley, and you'll never want circular pita again. The salad is crunchy chopped cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, and radishes in a lemon garlic dressing, and the M'Saka is cold eggplant tomato compote. Any restaurant that has an entire category of food labeled "For Your Fingers" (falafel, grape leaves) is bound to be as fun as it sounds.