Sadaf - San Diego, CA

Sadaf
828 5th Ave.
San Diego, CA 92101
Website - Dish descriptions here

A few people eating at Sadaf said that this place was really good. I don't remember whether they had said that before or after we had eaten our food. Either way, we took a chance with this place (i.e., Corrie didn't do extensive research and find this through Yelp and other resources). It was good, but I'd order a lamb dish or another chicken dish if I were to return.

Mom & Dad's appetizer: "DOLMEH (STUFFED GRAPE LEAVES)" = "Cooked grape leaves, stuffed with ground beef, rice, split peas, green onions, basil, parsley and other herb"
- Notes: Good but not the best I've had. I really love these from Marat's in Fresno. These were a little on the dry side for me, although that might be intentional because I've had a few in the past that were too dry for my taste. And others that were too sour or too tough.
 

My dinner: "ALBALU POLO" = "Marinated juice chunks of charbroiled chicken tenderloin, served with rice and black cherry"
- Notes: I asked the waiter for help because I rarely eat Persian food, and he said to go with this one (as opposed to a sweet-and-sour pomegranate chicken dish not listed on the online menu). I had had a delicious Persian chicken dish at Alborz in Berkeley, but I wanted to try something different. I tried to like the black cherries, but there were just so many. The chicken looked great but tasted kind of bland. I loved the rice, but it's pretty sad if that was my favorite part of this dish.

"BONELESS LAMB KABOB – House Specialty" = "Boneless lamb tenderloin marinated, charbroiled to your taste and served with grilled vegetables (tomatoes, bell pepper, onions)"
- Yum!

 Brother's stew, which is not on the online menu. It had lentils and eggplant in it and was tasty.

Mom's dish: "BARG KABOB" = "A signature thin cut of filet mignon marinated in special sauce and charbroiled"
- Yum!
 

Bulgar Pilaf

Hot, delicious bulgar with mushrooms!

RECIPE

2 tablespoons butter (I used margarine...but as of 2011 I am anti-margarine for cooking & baking purposes)
1/2 lb. sliced mushrooms
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup chopped green onion (I used white onions instead)
1 cup bulgar (uncooked)
2 cups water

1. Saute onions and mushrooms in butter until brown.
2. Stir in bulgar and salt, and stir for about one minute.
3. Add water and bring it to a boil, stirring constantly.
4. Cover and place in a 350-degree oven for 20-25 minutes.

Made this a few nights before 1/12/08 (I've been editing my old posts and wanted to republish this one), and it was yummmyy. Normally, I can taste the difference between margarine and butter, but I couldn't this time. I put it all in an uncovered pie dish and looked at it after 15 minutes. The bulgar was still a tiny bit hard at that point, so I left it in for about two more minutes, and then it was perfect!