Word: baraka
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...Baraka Caf?...
...problem with Baraka Café is that by the time I get to the entrees I’m never hungry. There’s such an overabundance of kemiette and meze (little, tapas-like dishes), constituting nearly three-quarters of the menu, that, when the main course arrives, all I can do is attempt a few cursory bites just for show. And in a tiny, 20-seat restaurant like this one, where the kitchen overflows into the dining room and there’s only one cook and one waiter, this can be an ordeal...
...entire dinner. There’s no talk of food to “whet the appetite,” and a meal is simply a progression of tastes, instead of a progression of courses. But when you transplant an Arab chef to the Western world, at least at Baraka, the diner gets caught by the pull of two cultures, and orders two complete repasts: an array of small dishes that in themselves would constitute a full dinner, as well as the more traditional entrees. In short, overkill...
There are, however, actions and words that clearly are anti-Semitic, some in intent, others in effect. For example, the malicious claim by New Jersey poet laureate Amiri Baraka that Israelis were warned in advance to stay away from the World Trade Center on Sept. 11 is plainly anti-Semitic in intent, despite the fact that it mentions only Israelis and not Jews. The divestment petition, which singles out Israel for criticism in the face of the reality that its human rights record is far better than that of any other nation in the region, is anti-Semitic in effect...
Cardamom n. Iranian. A spice that is traditionally used in Middle Eastern countries, most notably Iran. Iranian spice connoisseurs grind cardamom seeds and use the resulting powder to season coffee. At Baraka, this seasoning garnishes the tops of tea drinks recommended as compliments to dessert. i.e.: Mahmoud refuses to drink dining hall coffee, lamenting the fact that coffee sans cardamom simply isn’t the same...