Quirky and delicious feast for the senses
SINCE 2011, North East food fans have been enjoying Papa Ganoush’s street food at events and markets across the region.
Father and son founders, Tim and Tom, have received rave reviews for their food and, earlier this year, opened their very first restaurant in Whitley Bay.
We decided to stop by and see whether local diners should flock to the seaside town for their meze fix...
WHAT’S THE PLACE LIKE?
As a Newcastle resident, rather than a Whitley Bay local, I wasn’t sure what to expect once I headed over to the coast. The restaurant is located on Park View, a street lined with shops, cafes and bars, and it seems to fit in well with the ambience of the area.
Upon arrival, I was surprised to find merely a door leading to an upstairs eatery, but it turns out Papa Ganoush is located above The Ahar, an Indian restaurant.
The stairwell leads into a spacious bar area, which has a couple of tables, as well as a basic bar.
That then takes you through into the main room, which is lit in a nice fashion, and features half a dozen wooden tables – and lots of candlesticks for decoration.
The table sizes vary, with a couple of square ones, some rectangular options, as well as some longer tables for groups.
Given that we visited on a Tuesday evening, I was pleasantly surprised to find the restaurant two-thirds full – suggesting they have tapped into an opening in the market.
HOW WAS THE FOOD?
Given that Papa Ganoush is all about street food and meze, you should not expect your traditional two-or-threecourse meal.
There are no ‘starters’ or ‘mains’ so to speak; instead we were presented with a menu containing 11 different ‘small plates,’ as well as three sides.
Given that there were four of us dining – and the restaurant’s own recommendation was for three small plates per person – we ordered everything on the menu and shared them.
It was an excellent decision, even if the volume of potatoes proved to be a challenge to consume.
Just as you would expect from a Middle Eastern restaurant, falafel (£2.95) was on offer – and they were light, airy and boasted a delicious chickpea flavour. Being a devout carnivore, however, my primary interest was in the meat dishes. The chicken shawarma (£4.95) was succulent and as far removed from a chicken kebab as you could ever imagine, while the lamb merguez cutlets (£7.95) were packed full of peppery spice and were just the