Dena's Lebanese Cuisine

Dena's Lebanese Cuisine
2615 E. 11th St.
Tulsa, OK 74104
Tel. 918-599-9623
Cell 918-292-9326

Platters: $7-8
Sandwiches: $5-6

My best friend growing up was Lebanese and my parents got hooked on falafel while living in NYC, so I've always had a soft spot for Mediterranean cuisine. I've been eating falafel/pita & hummus/tabbouleh since I was 2, so this is core food concept in terms of my daily living (tahini runs in my arteries on occasion). One of my first days in Tulsa found me cruising along 11th St. (a street full of amazing signage and randomness) and I spotted Dena's. Needless to say I was pretty excited at the possibility of a clutch Mediterranean restaurant.

Dena's seems to be family owned, and 3 daughters under the age of 11 were helping take orders. A very cute 8 year old gave me a cup full of ice (it was adorable). The ice, by the way, is some of the best crushed ice I've ever had. You can't hardly ever find crushed ice so enjoyable to munch on. Back to the restaurant: it was full of Lebanese kitsch, including bronze platters on the walls, small Lebanese flags, and miniature Arabic drums and Lebanese cedars. All the tables had travel postcards under the glass (they looked like photos of Greece), and there was a funny picture which said "US: Paradise On Earth" (no comment). It's a small and cozy restaurant crowded with small tables and chairs, and it has an endearing background whirring of ceiling fans and large appliances. This place isn't trying too hard, and yet you don't get the feeling that it isn't trying hard enough. It just sort of is what it is, and that's all you want it to be. So an A for atmosphere in my book. Anyhow the space may have been a gun and knife emporium beforehand, b/c the previous decor consisted of tacky wood paneling with wallpaper depicting hunting scenes of deer and ducks. Luckily the owners haven't taken any of that down, so you can enjoy your mujadra in a pseudo-log cabin atmosphere.

I ordered the falafel platter because it seemed like the most standard pick (I instantly regretted it once I spotted a falafel sandwich on the menu), and Zafar went with the Tawook sandwich and an iced tea (his review will be added on eventually). I'm sorry to say that I wasn't all that jazzed by the food. The meal started out full of hope, but with each bite I was more and more turned off. The falafel platter came with 3 falafel balls, pita and hummus, and some rice pilaf (and a pickle). The falafel balls were cold and sort of chewy (clearly not very fresh), and the hummus just didn't taste all that good (bland and coarse). The pilaf had great texture and was warm/moist, but the flavor was hard to stomach by the end. This was such an odd meal because the first bite seemed good, but then reality slowly came into view and I ended up having a hard time finishing the plate. As I recall, the pickle was decent and the crushed ice for the water was solid. Would I go back? Of course, b/c I'll give any place a second shot (unless it's truly horrendous), but I wouldn't actively recruit a friend to come try it out (I have a reputation to uphold...). I plan to try their baklava next time to be more thorough, but we'll just see when that next time is.

Overall: 2/5 falafel balls. Sorry Dena's, better luck next time?


Zafar:

First, let me comment on the environment. Tables were crammed into the dining area and it created a maze for us to go through to get to our table. It also had a Mid-East meets Country Cowboy feel to it. Needless to say it was a unique experience and I was looking forward to the food.

Food: Tawook Sandwich
Drink: Iced Tea
Total Price: $7.98

The Iced Tea was excellent. It used crushed ice which made it “taste” better. I don’t know how else to describe it, the crushed ice just worked. After having some to drink I got my food. It basically looked like a sub sandwich with a pickle on the side. It consisted of a baguette roll sliced in half with sliced chicken breast and garlic sauce. The sandwich looked good, but when I started to eat it I was under whelmed. It didn’t seem like it was specifically Lebanese food, just a chicken sub with garlic sauce (Imagine a Subway Chicken Sub with garlic sauce and less vegetables). Another problem with the sandwich was that the sauce wasn’t evenly spread throughout the sandwich and my last bite was extremely garlicky and I tasted it for the rest of the day. Needless to say that is not a taste I want to linger around with me for the whole day.

Overall Rating: 2/5