If I told you I went to a Middle Eastern restaurant on Lygon Street Brunswick, my guess is that your first question would be ‘which one?’ There are quite a few of Middle Eastern restaurants along Lygon Street Brunswick, but in my opinion, what makes Rumi a stand out was the sophisticated, clean and modern set up, attentive service and wonderfully rich yet homely meals, (also there were no belly dancers or sequinned draped fabrics in sight).
From the eye-catching signage highlighting the restaurant’s name “Rumi’ to the sleek, modern interior of this restaurant, Rumi was impressive, and I am happy to say this feeling remained for the rest of my visit on a Wednesday night. I could not fault the attentive service from our waiter Rose, she was very knowledgeable about the dishes, asked if we had any dietary requirements or intolerences and made very helpful recommendations on how the chefs would alter the dishes to work around this. She was friendly and accommodating, she provided good recommendations on which dishes and wines to order and frequently came over to ensure we were looked after and our water cups were kept full! She was fantastic.
We ordered Sigara, cigar shaped pastries filled with three cheeses (haloumi, feta and kasseri), these were very creamy, rich and salty encased in a crisp and light pastry.
Sigara at Rumi
The meatballs were a little more fatty than ideal but were covered in a delicious, rich tomato based sauce. The chicken kebab was a little dry and bland, however once again helped by the spices and nuts added.
Chicken Kebabs and Meatballs at Rumi
The fried cauliflower was sweet and tastefully seasoned with spices and nuts. The spiced lamb shoulder was the standout, don’t let the dark, charred appearance fool you, one stroke of a fork reveals incredibly soft and tender, fall-of-the-bone deliciousness!
Fried Cauliflower and Spiced Lamb Shoulder at Rumi
The pricing was reasonable but I found the larger meals (like the lamb shoulder) of much greater value and good pricing in comparison to the prices charged for the smaller dishes (like the sigara) which were a little pricey for the small servings. We ended the night with a serving of Turkish Delight which was very nice also, the rosewater flavour was not too overpowering and they were not overly sweet to the point of being sickening.
A wonderful dining experience overall, where an outstanding variety of dishes on offer, impeccable service and a lovely atmosphere make Rumi the Middle Eastern restaurant in Lygon Street, Brunswick with the most flair.
