Bistro La Zeez

said on September 3rd, 2010 filed under: Bethesda, Just For Fun

Bistro La Zeez

In these trying times when so many restaurants are closing, it’s almost a relief to discover a new place in downtown Bethesda. Bistro La Zeez, a Mediterranean grill opened about a month ago at 8009 Norfolk Avenue, and it’s a great find! Granted, I’ve only eaten one meal in the place, but the restaurant itself was lovely- with about 10 tables (I’m guessing at this) inside, and another 6 outside.

My friend and I met the very gregarious owner, Reda Asaad, who explained how he used his special sauce to coat some pita-like discs, and then grilled them. They were delicious. We were impressed.

The menu includes a lot of your typical Mediterranean dishes, including falafel, baba ghanouj, tabbouli (really tasty), chicken, lamb and beef dishes, salads and sandwiches. According to a sign in the restaurant, no trans fats are used in the preparation of the food, which is a good thing. They are open for lunch and dinner 7-days a week. The offerings are very reasonably priced. I had the BLZ (Bistro La Zeez) chicken medley, which included a skinless thigh, drumstick and a wing, served with Mediterranean potatoes (or fries), some grilled vegetables and a house salad. All for $9.99. Their signature sauce is something special. And they have a kids menu with chicken tenders, mini kafta (sort of a Mediterranean version of a hamburger), or a falafel plate.

If you go to their web site (click on the link above) , you can see pictures of the inside, along with photos of the food. I felt a little sheepish snapping pictures of people trying to enjoy their meal, so I limited my photos to the outside. As a disclaimer, it was a hot August day when I took this shot, approaching the high 90′s, so no one was really taking advantage of the outdoor seating. I’m looking forward to having dinner outside some night when things cool down.

Nice place. Parking is pretty easy on this side of town. Give Bistro La Zeez a try!

posted by Marcie Sandalow

This entry was posted on Friday, September 3rd, 2010 at 11:11 am and is filed under Bethesda, Just For Fun. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Robin said at September 8th, 2010 at 9:27 pm
Love this place! I’ve already eaten there three times. The chicken Medley is outstanding, as are baba gnoush, lentil/rice pilaf and any of the other mezzas. Be sure to ask for the yogurt sauce on the side of every dish…it does not come standard, but is free of charge. Also, learned the other day, that the owners have kids at North Chevy Chase and Westland! Tom Sietza wrote a great review in the Post Food section just today….here’s the link

http://www.washingtonpost.com/gog/restaurants/bistro-lazeez,1172639/critic-review.html

Thanks, Marcie, for sharing…..