- Mike Sula
- Makdous at Al Bawadi Grill
Bridgeview’s Jordanian-Palestinian Al Bawadi Grill is widely, and rightly, praised for its hardwood lump charcoal-grilled meats, sometimes at the expense of other worthy things on its big menu, namely the makdous, stuffed oil-cured baby eggplants. Traditionally these are put up in the fall pickling season, known as mouneh in Lebanon, and eaten months later. At Al Bawadi they’re stuffed with crushed walnuts, red pepper, and garlic and served sectioned on the plate, tangy, spicy, and quite meaty themselves, and an ideal pickly counterpoint to the kebabs.