Courtney L.
Yelp
A strong five stars without a doubt! After hearing that Los Angeles County is home to a large Armenian population, I knew we had to try their cuisine. By chance, I happened to see this restaurant was just a few minutes from our hotel. With the promising ratings, and seeing that it's a humble independent restaurant, I selected Adana with enthusiasm.
The restaurant's space is fairly small with just a few tables, and at 4:00PM, a couple of customers were finishing up their meals when we entered. We asked our waitress about the size of the entrées and she mentioned they are pretty large since they include salad, hummus and pita. That said, we decided to order three entrees for the four of us to share, specifically two of the Combination and one Soltani Combo. Our waitress had a wonderful idea of serving everything family style. All the meat and rice literally came on a platter, with bowls of salad, hummus and seasoned onions on the side. Alongside all of this, she brought out a basket with two types of pita - one soft, and the other toasted. It was a TON of food!
+ COMBINATION DINNER ($25.99): Including chicken, beef and looleh (ground lamb kabob), this plate provides you with a perfect variety. The chicken was absolutely flawless! I normally don't describe chicken as being succulent, but this one was so juicy, and marinated with a perfect grill. It may be one of my top chicken dishes... ever! I also loved the looleh, which was flavored with onion, parsley and some warm spices. I can be hesitant to order lamb due to the gaminess, but I didn't find it too wild at all. Somehow, I missed trying a bite of the beef, but my dining companions apparently enjoyed it since they gobbled it all up before I could snatch some.
+ SOLTANI COMBO DINNER ($37.99): In terms of meats, this plate had cuts of filet mignon and a koobideh (ground beef) kabab. The filet mignon was pretty tender and tasted quite natural, which is how it should be enjoyed. The koobideh was also delicious, hefty with a rich beefy flavor.
These dishes came with a fluffy side of rice, which tasted a little buttery. I couldn't stop eating the refreshing Persian Salad of chopped cucumber and tomato, in addition to the side of sliced marinated onions. Both of these brought a nice crunch and their acidity paired perfectly in between bites of meat. Their hummus was impeccable as well... so nutty and light, almost having a whipped consistency. The hummus of my dreams, seriously!
If that wasn't enough food, I couldn't resist trying their EGGPLANT DISH ($10.99) appetizer. Also known as Kashk-e-Bademjan, fried eggplant came topped with condensed yogurt, fried onions and mint. The eggplant was sliced thin and tasted like it had a slight char. The yogurt sauce was nice and creamy with the onions adding so much flavor and the mint gave it a cool finish. Needless to say, I loved this!
Our waitress was the sweetest, being so genuine and providing us with the best hospitality. She shared that the restaurant's owner uses ingredients of the utmost quality, including real saffron from abroad. I had no doubts, as I could taste the care and love that the chef poured into the dishes. Adana truly sets the bar high!