Mazah Mediterranean Eatery

If anything is obvious at Mazah, located at 1439 Grandview Avenue, it is the home-cooked, authentic feeling of the restaurant itself. It is owned, with pride, by Maggie Ailabouni and from her place behind the bar and in the kitchen she oversees the experience of each of her guests. I do not use the term 'guests' loosely- as Ms. Ailabouni and her staff treat each diner as if they were invited to a special dinner party; our particular waiter seemed so excited to bring us our food and beverages I thought his head might explode from the corners of his (absolutely genuine) smile. 

My friend and I ordered libations from the hand-written cocktail list. Martinis: double mango and double guava, respectively, and they were relatively stiff and laced with syrupy sweet nectar (After inquiring as to what, exactly, made the martinis "double" mango or guava and speculating with our server who clearly did not know, he returned to the table with our cocktails and, triumphantly, with an answer-- a double shot of vodka, obviously.)

We ordered the "couple's" combination-- which was a healthy portion of warm pita served with falafel, hummus, baba ghanoush, fava beans, three bean salad, cabbage salad, tzatziki, tabbouleh, mediterranean potato salad, rice, olives, and a choice of meat or veggie entree--we chose the meat filled dough pocket (Sfiha, or Sfeeha.) We also had our choice of soup or greek salad--so we chose one each of the salad and the lentil soup. The salad was your typical greek salad, with a good amount of feta, tasty olives and a light, bright vinaigrette. The lentil soup, highly recommended by the server, came with fried pita crisps but was otherwise your typical, diner-style lentil soup--not mind-blowing, but not bad. The combination plate proved to be more than enough food for two diners, the portion sizes at Mazah are quite generous. 

 Our dining companion ordered the Fattoush--a tomato, onion and cucumber salad, served with crumbled toasted pita, feta and olives and the Za'atar bread--flatbread spread with a minced herb and sesame seed mixture.
My impression of Mazah was favorable: the food ample and tasty, the atmosphere homey, and the service prompt and sincere. This is not your sleek hipster restaurant, decked out in dark wood and low lighting, and with a cocktail list as long as the menu. And this isn't fine dining--the food is piled high, without a hint of negative space on the plate. This is home-cooked-from-scratch, just like Grandma would have made if your Grandma was Isreali or Turkish or Greek or Lebanese.
I will definitely be choosing Mazah over it's nearly neighbor, the Grandview Heights franchise of Aladdin's Eatery Systems, Inc. (better known as simply, Aladdin's) the next time I get the craving for Mediterranean. My conscience can rest easy knowing that I am supporting a local, family-owned business, even if my main, selfish objective is to try one of the delicious looking sandwiches I missed last time. 

*Happy Hour* Vino Vino

At 1371 Grandview Avenue, adjoining it's parent restaurant, Figlio is Vino Vino Restaurant and Winebar. Opening at 5 pm Monday through Saturday, they offer a happy hour from 5 to 6 pm Monday through Friday. You'll want to be prompt, as the place fills up quickly with locals in the know of this little-advertized deal.

The Happy Hour includes food specials as well as $3 short pours of the house red or white wine and $4 Sophia Coppola Blanc de Blanc sparkling wine, which arrives in an adorable little pink can designed to make you smile (and if the can doesn't--the bubbly will.) There are also 'baby' martinis offered for $3 --be sure to ask for yours stirred and not shaken, or the seemingly oblivious bartender will shake it into a coma, leaving it half water and crushed ice. 

The food, simply put, is fantastic. The $3 happy hour food choices include your choice of a cup of the soup of the day, a 6" personal pizza, or your choice of several small salads. 

I ordered the Baby Wedge Salad which came topped with hard boiled egg, tasty little tomatoes and bacon. The dressing took this generally mundane hunk of iceberg to a new level. Not your typical mayonnaise-y blue cheese dressing which is often found suffocating salads of this type, Vino Vino topped it with a tangy, mustardy vinaigrette--the perfect compliment to the heavy egg and bacon and crisp lettuce.

The personal Pizza Margherita was good but nothing exceptional, with plenty of cheese, fresh basil and thinly sliced tomato. The Crab Cake (from the $4 menu, i think,) was very, very small, but was served with a delicious creamy tomato condiment that cooled my anger over the portion size slightly. It also came with a scoop of unsettlingly dry rice--I couldn't figure out why exactly, except to maybe bulk up the dish.

For $4, you could also order a mini Sirloin Burger with cole slaw and chips, Fish Tacos, or Fish Lettuce Wraps which consist of the Fish Tacos, in lettuce.

We strayed from the happy hour menu to sample the Baked Goat Cheese appetizer, a crisply coated round of goat cheese atop a mound of slightly sweet and herbaceous chunky tomato sauce. It was served with dressed greens and toasted bread points, drizzled with balsamic reduction. 

We were glad we strayed, and happier still when the asparagus bruschetta arrived--piled high with fontina, prosciutto, asparagus, and pickled red onion. It was $7 on the small plates menu, and worth every bite. 

Even with several regularly priced menu items, and two glasses of regularly priced (and full-sized) wine-- our bill came to just over $50 for 2. One could easily order a few of the tastier happy hour items, say, a pizza, a salad and a couple glasses of wine and walk out satisfied for under $20. If you miss happy hour, never fear: prices here are reasonable, the ambiance is classy, but inviting, and the food is delicious (the non-happy hour variety being exceptional.) Just remember to keep an eye on the bartender.