Didar Kitchen brings Persian home cooking to Sherman Oaks
Saghar Fanisalek, chef of Taste of Tehran in Westwood, opens a cramped dining room on Ventura Boulevard with grilled kebabs, saffron rice and comforting stews.
Didar Kitchen is a home-style Persian restaurant located on Ventura Boulevard in Sherman Oaks. It is run by Saghar Fanisalek, chef and owner of Taste of Tehran in Westwood, who has brought her talents here.
The aroma of the semi-open kitchen permeates the entire space, with hints of dried lime and sumac. The dining room is austere, save for the hanging lamps and the photos of pre-revolutionary Iran on the wall, but the warm attention of the waiters makes even the gray cement floor seem welcoming.
The $55 Meat Me Special is the most complete option: juicy chicken, spiced beef koobideh, and tender filet mignon kebabs, with a full side of rice, house salad, and roasted tomatoes. It's enough to share between two people: six pieces of chicken, four pieces of filet mignon, and a koobideh that's almost too long for the rectangular plate.
Ghormeh sabzi combines slow-cooked beef, parsley, kidney beans, and the tangy flavor of dried lime; a vegan version is also available. It's served with two yogurt sauces: mast-o musir, made with shallots, and mast-o khiar, with cucumber and mint.
For drinks, hot saffron tea, sweetened with a sugar cube, is the most natural option, even on hot days. There's also homemade doogh, slightly acidic, made with sparkling water and yogurt.
The salad in the Meat Me special can be swapped for a small supplement: the shirazi with diced cucumber and tomato, or the Didar salad, with feta cheese, cherry tomatoes and Persian cucumbers.
