At my recent trip to Syria I discovered that not two kind of mezze is the same, the quality differs a lot. In Damascus we had the best mezze at Al Khawali in the old city.
Mezze is a selection of appetizers, but maybe it is more true to call it small dishes, because everywhere I have been, mezze comes at same time as the grilled meat or fish I have ordered. It is a very common meal in the Middle East and I believe it will enter the European food scene in the same way as tapas has done the recent years. It is an obvoius choice when you want to spent a hole evening enjoing your freinds company, but you can also just order a few dishes and make it a quick meal.
You might know them, but I thought it was interesting to know what they actually consist of, so I did a little research of the most common...
Hummus: a dip of cooked, mashed chikpeas with garlic and tahini.
Babaghanoush: eggplant mashed and mixed with various seasoning.
Labneh: strained youghurt.
Muhammara: a hot pebber dip with gound walnuts, breadcrumbs, garlic, salt, lemon juice, olive oil and various seasoning.
Tabbouleh: bulgur, finely chopped parsley, mint, tomato, scallion, lemon juice, olive oil, various seasoning.
Fattoush: Salad made from several garden vegetables and toasted pieces of pita bread.
