Zahav
David, 2015-04-27
15:47
 I
didn’t believe them when they told me, but when I was in Washington, D.C.
a few months back, when having dinner with my friends Carol
and Joe,
they swore that if I stopped at Zahav
in Philadelphia on the way back, that I’d have a life-changing
experience. While I wish that at least several times a day I’d have a
life-changing experience (sometimes I wish for them several times an
hour…), I was a little skeptical. Both of them are pretty knowledgable
about good food, but I’ve been steered wrong on many occasion. And
getting off of a train, taking a taxi, and having dinner before hoofing
back to the train station later on in the evening, then dealing with
getting back safe and sound while navigating late-night Manhattan, wasn’t
exactly an enticing idea. Especially for a bowl of hummus.
 While
on that trip to Washington, D.C., my friend Judy
and I went to a Middle Eastern restaurant that everyone had said great
things about. Even people I trust. Note: I later found out the place was
known for wild dips in quality, so the ones who recommended it are off
the hook. (However if any of them are reading this, I’m setting up a
PayPal site where you can pitch in to reimburse me for dinner.)
 That
place was mobbed, which is usually a good sign. But nothing we’d had
during our dinner knocked our socks off, or excited us. Even the hummus
was ho-hum, and hummus
isn’t all that hard to get right. You just need to taste it and add some
lemon, salt, perhaps more tahini, and maybe some garlic, until you get
the taste where it belongs. For heaven’s sake, it’s not like a cake where
you have to start all over again. Get it right, or don’t serve it. And we
left disappointed.
 So
when I was heading to Charlottesville
to give a talk recently, Joe, Carol and I made plans to meet in
Philadelphia, because I had been thinking about that hummus they had said
would change my life. And while there are a number of things I’d like to
change, but can’t, eating good hummus is one of them that I can. So let’s
do it, I said.
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