Nestled on Union Street, between Arroyo Parkway and Raymond Street, lies Azeen’s Afghan restaurant, a small, charming place with a different and exciting cuisine.

Goal: To expand our food repertoire with exotic fare from Afghanistan, a type of food neither of us has tried before.

Stockroom Options: Azeen’s has a large variety of items on the menu. From appetizers that are great to share to kabobs and entrees to enjoy, anyone can be satisfied. Don’t worry, vegetarians, there’s a section of the menu for you, too!

Materials and Cost: To start, we had Aushak ($6.50), and for our main dishes, we ate Gulpi Challaw ($15.90) and Kabob-e-Gousfand ($19.90). Lunch entrees are usually about $5 cheaper than these dinner prices.

Observations:

The appetizer (aushak) consisted of leek and scallion dumplings. On top was a meat and yogurt sauce, which was creamy and sweet. These almost tasted like vegetable ravioli, giving a bit of Italian flair. It was a great dish to start off with and get us accustomed to this genre of food.

Gulpi challaw is beef stewed with tomatoes, cauliflower, onions, and ginger. It was served with long-grained white rice. The beef chunks were moist and tender (not dried out), and the stew tasted almost like the consistency of a tomato sauce. Like the aushak, this was a bit reminiscent of Italian food (reminding Andrew of his grandma’s pasta with cauliflower!). Though this dish was familiar, the spices used made it unique

The kabob-e-gousfand (lamb kabobs) was served in a very large portion (making the price worth it). There were two kabobs, each full of dense, tender meat. They went well with the jalapeno-cilantro-garlic sauce served on the side. The rice (pallaw), was a bit bland (though seasoned), and there was a lot of other food on the plate to enjoy instead.

Both entrees came with salad, bread, and a spicy, tangy jalapeno-cilantro-garlic sauce. This sauce went well with everything, adding an extra pizzazz to the meal!

Atmosphere: Thought Azeen’s doesn’t look like much from the outside, there are murals of the Afghan countryside on most of the interior walls. The service is prompt and very helpful (definitely ready with recommendations for first-timers!).

Conclusion: Though we were a bit unsure about trying a new cuisine, it definitely was a pleasant surprise! All the food was full of flavor, yet there was a certain familiarity to it. Not to mention the décor is outstanding and the service extremely helpful. Definitely make Azeen’s a priority the next time you are heading down to Old Pas!