Tabouli’s Restaurant recently opened at 181 River St. Click to enlarge.
photo by Janet Wilson
Tabouli’s Restaurant recently opened at 181 River St. in the old Yellow Submarine location. They specialize in Greek and Italian foods. Depending on which one you ask, this visit could be considered good or it could be bad.
We went for lunch on a Saturday afternoon. At the time of our arrival there was only one other table occupied, but prior to our departure there were quite a few tables filled. We had plenty of time to peruse the menu since it took our server a while to appear.
She took our drink orders and we asked her to go ahead and take our appetizer order so that could get started. We ordered the Italian Mushrooms, sautéed in white wine with fresh garlic and olive oil ($5.95). While we were waiting, we were served Pita Bread with a saucer of Olive Oil, grated Parmesan Cheese and several Black Olives. The Pita Bread does not hold the Olive Oil as other breads might do. The oil just rolls off the bread.
The entrees are served with a house salad that is $3.95 if purchased separately. We wanted to try the Tabouli Salad and asked if we could pay the $1 difference in price for this substitution. Of course, the salads arrived WITH the appetizer. Wayne didn’t care much for the Tabouli, but I really enjoyed it. It was fresh with plenty of tomatoes and parsley with cracked wheat and Middle Eastern spices. Wayne said he felt he would have enjoyed the house salad more – too heavy on the parsley for him.
I decided to order the Shrimp Fra Diavlo (Shrimp sautéed in Olive Oil and a red wine sauce with fresh garlic, mushrooms, onions, red pepper, black olives and fresh tomatoes, served over linguine - $13.95). Wayne ordered Chicken a la Tabouli’s (tender slices of Chicken sautéed in Olive Oil and white wine with fresh garlic, mushrooms, onions, prosciutto ham and a touch [ha] of heavy cream, served over linguine - $12.95).
A good thing about the meal was that it was served very hot. It also took quite a while to be delivered to us.
My Shrimp Fra Diavlo was quite enjoyable, other than being a tad greasy. The taste was a bit spicy and I would order it again. It was definitely a huge serving and I ended up taking half of it home for another day. We were not offered Parmesan Cheese and had to flag down our server to bring it to us. I can’t say she was the most attentive server we have ever been assigned.
Wayne’s Chicken a la Tabouli’s was another story. The menu said “a touch of heavy cream” and I found that to be funny since when they sat his plate in front of him, the linguini seemed to be swimming. Usually the sauces with linguini are fairly thick, but this was very thin and watery and trying to eat it was a mess! When you lift long noodles from a watery sauce it is dripping everywhere and you’re in trouble if any of the noodles fall back into the bowl – splash – onto the front of the shirt! Wayne says he wouldn’t go back.
Tabouli’s offers a variety of Italian entrees such as Chicken Marsala ($12.95), Chicken Florentine ($12.95), Ziti Pavarotti with Prosciutto ($12.95) and Stuffed Mushroom Florentine ($12.95). Of course they offer the standard Italian dishes of Spaghetti and Lasagna.
For the Greek and Middle Eastern entrees, there are Gyro Plates ($9.95), Shish Kebab ($9.95; $10.95), and Kefta Kebabs ($9.95). Also offered are Vegetarian Greek and Middle Eastern Entrees.
In addition the menu lists Pizza, Calzones, Strombolis, and Sandwiches, along with a Kid’s Menu ($4.95).
Hours for Tabloui’s are Monday through Sunday from 11:00 AM until 10:00 PM. Smoking is allowed outside on the patio area. The restaurant is easily wheelchair accessible. Appetizers are priced from $2.95 to $7.95; Salads $3.95 to $8.95; Entrees from $5.95 (Falafel Sandwich, Chicken Sandwich, Gyro Sandwich) to $15.95 (large Supreme Pizza.
I did think it was a bit high for lunch (no lunch specials). I also think we were charged incorrectly. Italian Mushrooms $5.95; Shrimp Fra Diavlo $13.95; Chicken a la Tabouli’s $12.95; $1 each for the salad upgrade; two soft drinks $2.98 = $37.83+tax of $3.50 = $41.33. Our bill was $47.77 before tip. Somewhere there is $6.44 floating around.....
Check it out and form your own opinion (423/826-1225).
cdojanet@ChattanoogaDineOut.com
http://www.Janet-Wilson.com
Inside Tabouli’s Restaurant
photo by Janet Wilson