Petra Cafe front porch
We continued an awesome Saturday with lunch at the Petra Cafe in Clinton–a restaurant that serves Mediterranean and Lebanese cuisine. This was our first time at Petra Cafe, and as people who have enjoyed Mediterranean food in the past we were looking forward to it. The E-P1 was once again pressed into duty and did admirably, but I’ll leave more E-P1 analysis for another post.
The building looks like an old-style Southern house because it is. According to their website, they are “located in the historic Potter House in Olde Towne Clinton”. [Denise and I like to pronounce that "Oldee Townee" in mockery of the trend of old-icizing stuff that's not that old by adding an "e" onto the end of words to mimick Ye Olde English. Ridiculous.] You walk in the front door into a big, wide hallway with dining rooms connected to it to the left and right, with beautiful tall ceilings and huge windows all around. I love these old houses and would love to own one if they didn’t a) cost a fortune and b) cost a fortune to maintain. They also have a bar area with a TV showing the latest Arabic music videos, the audio for which is piped into every room. Ambience indeed!
Lebanese tea
Denise had some Lebanese tea. I don’t know if it would normally be iced tea, but this is the South so obviously it had to be iced tea here. Other than it having pine nuts in it, we’re not sure what exactly makes it Lebanese tea, but it was a good, refreshing beverage.
Salad
Feta cheese in the salad, natch. The dressing was some kind of vinaigrette with various herbs thrown in (Denise spotted some dill in there). A bit too sour for me.
The spread
Here’s a quick shot of our full spread. They give you pita bread to go with your meal, as you can see in the basket in the middle. Toward the back is the bar area with the flat panel TV showing fabulous music videos from the Middle East.
Lamb Kabob Plate
I ordered the Lamb Kabob Plate. Pretty obvious what that entails. It came with hummus, rice, grilled onions and tomato, and what I assume is the Lebanese equivalent to Greek tzatziki. I usually go light on the tzatziki when I eat Greek so I didn’t try it. Maybe next time.
The lamb was incredibly tasty. It was cooked well done (not sure if they would cook to a requested doneness) so it required some chewing, but it was totally worth it for the flavor.
Beef Shawarma Plate
Denise had the Beef Shawarma Plate, described on their menu as “slices of beef marinated in Arabian spices and grilled to perfection”. And indeed it was. I had a taste of it, and the spices were very nice. We couldn’t decide if the lamb kabob seemed better because of the lamb or the seasoning or what, so next time we’ll probably mix it up by getting Beef Kabob and Lamb Shawarma to settle it once and for all.
Both of our main courses were great. Denise is the hummus expert in the family, and she remarked that the hummus was really good and fresh. The only strike against the meal was the rice was undercooked and a bit crunchy here and there. Hopefully that was a one-time snafu and won’t happen the next time we come. I’m not ashamed to admit that as a heavy rice-eating Asian I’m picky about my rice.
Baklava
And what would a Mediterranean meal be without some Baklava to cap it off? Good flavor and texture (wet with honey sauce but not soaking), and not overwhelmingly sweet like Baklava can be. The 3 of us made short work of this small piece. Our very friendly waitress came and checked on us while we were eating it to see if we liked it. She said she didn’t like Baklava herself–too sweet, she claimed. Girl, you’re really missing out!
Assuming that we can call Clinton part of the Jackson metropolitan area, here’s yet another restaurant that serves good ethnic cuisine in this sleepy little town in the Deep South. The best culinary action might be on the east and west coasts, but we’re getting more and more options in the South as well. Petra Cafe has only been open a few months, so here’s hoping word spreads and they can keep doing good business for years to come.
One last note. On their website is this blurb:
“Come by to see our new, beautiful Arabian tent, the first in Mississippi. It is available for parties or to enjoy for dinner. We will soon have a camel.”
I don’t think they’re kidding about the camel.
Petra Cafe
104 W. Leake St.
Clinton, MS
(601) 925-0016
Sunday, 11:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.
Monday – Thursday, 11:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.
Friday – Saturday, 11:00 a.m. – midnight
What nice commentary and beautiful pictures of Petra Cafe! It was a pleasure to have you and your family in to dine with us. We hope to see you again soon.
By the way, Lebanese Iced Tea is indeed a Southern thing. It got it’s start at a Lebanese restaurant in New Orleans. In the Middle East, we only drink hot tea.
We’ll definitely do better on the rice next time!
My best to you and your family.
Ayman,
I’m honored that you took the time to read my post. Now the mystery of the Lebanese Tea is solved, and yet again I’ve learned something new. Thanks for a great meal, and we’ll definitely be repeat customers. Can’t wait to see that camel!