Rich H.
Yelp
We left Johnson City, TN and headed southwest to Chattanooga; a city I definitely want to come back and visit when I have more time.
For dinner, we stopped by Calliope, a modern Levantine restaurant and bar. Levantine cuisine has its roots in Jordan, Cyprus, Lebanon, Israel, and other countries in the region.
Calliope's chefs are from that region, so you know the food is legit.
I started with a mocktail, the Lemonana. It's like a fancy lemonade made with mint, lemon, and salt. A fantastic drink between bites.
The menu is set up tapas style; small plates meant to be shared. We started with some Spanish Octopus. Chargrilled octopus tentacles with diced plums, honey labneh, and black lime. I've had my fair share of a variety of cephalopods, but this rendition was fabulous. It hit all the right notes of sweet, sour, tangy, savory, and texture. A perfect dish.
Since it was happy hour when we arrived, we tried a couple of manaqish varietals, only available between 4p-5:30p.
Manaqish is a flatbread, usually spiced with zatar. Calliope makes it their own with how they top it.
We got the roasted squash made with a miso-goat cheese, torshi (pickled veg), and peanut dukkah.
We also got the lamb lardon made with buffalo ricotta, fig jam, chili, and herbs.
Both manaqish were fantastic, but the consensus favorite at the table was the lamb lardon. Crispy lamb paired with the ricotta and fig jam was simply irresistible. Give me a bowl of that and I'd die happy.
If you're ever in Chattanooga, definitely check out Calliope.