December 13, 2001
KARTABAR
Kartabar goes beyond kabobs with quirky creativity


By MERIDITH FORD
Journal Restaurant Reviewer

See the menu
PROVIDENCE -- Even with all the enticing items described on Kartabar's menu, my favorite part is a statement at the bottom that management is not responsible for food ordered well done.

It's interesting, in an era overwrought about food safety, to see a restaurant still choose flavor over fanaticism. And it's a good point, too, because the menu has several burgers and a couple of steaks.

It's an easy menu to peruse, blending a healthy dose of American tastes with mostly Mediterranean offerings: Hummus with tahini, calamari, pizza topped with prosciutto and mozzarella.

Philippe Maatouk, the owner, opened the restaurant in May. He was the owner of the former Hot Pockets, also on Thayer Street. The name is derived from his hometown of Kartaba, Lebanon.

I couldn't decide -- and I spent considerable time thinking about it as I looked around -- what the overall feel to the decor was.

Some elements, such as the deep-green banquette at the front of the room and the exposed brick on one wall, lend a brooding Mediterranean touch to the atmosphere. Ditto the hanging lamps that look like large orange-and-brown-striped fez hats turned upside down.

But a giant screen with panes of red and green bubbled glass between the kitchen and the bathrooms lends a Japanese flavor.

An appetite for invention

As for the menu, the most creative selections fall into the appetizers -- a kabob of grilled chicken with a pomegranate-and-honey glaze, tuna carpaccio with olive oil, lemon, asiago cheese and baby greens and a coconut shrimp platter with tempura vegetables and teriyaki sauce.

My eye was on a dish of Barcelona shrimp -- small, but plump, shrimp laid out with chorizo and lots of garlic, in a bold tomato-based sauce laced with sherry. Served with panache on a long oval platter, it was simple, yet exotic, and proved my favorite dish of the evening.

The brothy sauce screamed for a piece of bread for sopping, and I was surprised that none had been brought to the table. We asked for it, though, and a small basket was brought by our waitress, a Jennifer Aniston lookalike.

I'm not sure if it was her ineptitude at serving the bottle of wine (``Does anybody want to taste this before I pour it?'') or the fact that she didn't know any of the nightly specials listed on a sidewalk chalkboard outside that made me wonder about Kartabar's hiring practices. I have to admit, though, she did things promptly enough, even if she lacked finesse.

Another appetizer, fried calamari tossed with garlic, tomatoes and black olives, had a powerful flavor, but the squid and the batter were both too mushy.

On to an entree-size pizza -- one of five on the menu -- a soft grilled crust topped with lots of oozing mozzarella and dotted with gorgonzola, figs and pears poached in red wine. The mellow mozzarella was an able balance for the yummy figs and the sweet butteriness of the pears, topped with tartness from the gorgonzola. Tablemates were abandoning what they had ordered to jump onto my pizza ship.

A grilled chicken breast was tender and incredibly juicy, simmered in a sweet balsamic vinegar. Butternut squash and mashed potatoes were both tasty enough, but hardly offered any contrast in texture -- after two or three bites I began to not need my teeth.

Credit for the torte

Kartabar makes its own desserts, all but the sorbets. All the selections were fairly innocuous -- a fruit tart, tiramisu -- save one: a Dobos torte.

I've never seen this classic Hungarian torte on a menu anywhere. It's a luscious combination of eight thin layers of delicate sponge cake, filled with a rich chocolate buttercream frosting and topped with a final layer of sponge that is covered with caramelized sugar.

Kartabar's caramel had begun to dissolve a little, so my urge to crunch into the top layer was never satisfied. But I have to give credit for it being on the menu at all. As for a creme brulee, it was too eggy and lacked the silky texture that makes it -- when made well -- one of the best things to eat in the world.

Appetizers and sandwiches such as a grilled turkey wrap with bacon, Swiss cheese and raspberry vinaigrette are $3.50 to $9; interesting salads like the Mediterranean mix of portobellos, roasted peppers, olives, capers, artichokes, cucumbers and pita chips tossed with baby greens are $6 to $7. Pizzas and entrees are $8 to $18.

There is a small but varied wine list with bottles from $17 to $75.

The unseasonably warm weather had allowed the restaurant to open its large, sliding glass doors, spilling tables onto Thayer Street. It was quirky to see people eating outside in December.

The whole restaurant has an amusing, likable quirkiness: Pretty digs, pretty good food.

Kartabar, 284 Thayer St., Providence, 331-8111. Casually upscale. Reservations accepted. Smoking in bar only. Wheelchair accessible. Open for lunch and dinner Sun-Thu from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m., Fri-Sat for lunch and dinner from 11:30 a.m. to midnight. V, MC, AM, DIS. ID. On-street parking. Booster seats available. $$.