Chris V.
Yelp
WOW. Feast World Kitchen is truly something special.
The concept of this non-profit restaurant that enables 60+ immigrant and refugee chefs/families representing 30+ countries to share the food of their homelands with the local community via contract work in a commercial kitchen is innovative, authentic, and heartwarming.
I can't believe I only heard of this place until yesterday. As I did my due diligence, I found myself wanting to try this place the very next day, and well... here I am with no regrets except for one. The regret of not discovering this place sooner!
I've lived in Spokane for a year now, and coming from Seattle I've struggled to find diversity and authenticity in the Spokane food scene... it's just so dominated by bars and grills, pubs, and fast food chains that offer the same mediocre items. There's no excitement or sense of adventure. While writing reviews, I've found myself consistently having to lower my standards for the quality and value of the food here in Spokane vs Seattle. As I write this review, I'm putting back on my Seattleite hat and say with CONVICTION that Feast World Kitchen is 6/5 stars!
The menu for the week is published every Monday on their website and each day features a special menu created by a chef they've arranged to bring in. Today's menu: Jordanian cuisine by chef Maisa. One of the concepts I love about Feast is that you can essentially travel the world and sample diverse and authentic dishes all in one spot! It's a melting pot of culture and people brought together through amazing food.
Lamb Kebab Wrap ($15) - 5/5
This lamb kebab wrap wasn't playin', the chefs brought their A-game and delivered! Look at the cross section in my pic and you can see just how much lamb they stuffed into this wrap. And the lamb wasn't just all packed in the middle cross section of this wrap, which tends to be a small pet peeve of mine at other places. There was an even distribution of lamb throughout the wrap all the way to the very ends! It's all the other little things that count and add up to earn this 5/5 review. The lamb was perfectly seasoned and didn't leave me quenching for water. I didn't have a large puddle of grease left on my plate, yet the lamb was still so moist and flavorful with all the spices. The wrap was beautifully toasted all around on the outside but still soft on the inside. The roasted jojo potatoes were nicely done with a light drizzle of olive oil and pesto(?) on top, these left me feeling a lot healthier vs a plate of greasy fries that will usually go with something like this. The crunchy side of cabbage salad was also a pleasant experience with its slightly tangy and salty sauce drizzled on top, if I had to guess it was an anchovy based sauce. It's something I do at home sometimes, but not often done at a lot of restaurants. I love how they made this entire dish unique and authentic. Plus, can we just take a moment to appreciate the presentation? Hats off to the chef, clearly lots of love went into this dish.
Rice Pudding ($5) - 5/5
I've had rice pudding a handful of times and it's become one of my favorite desserts for something that is creamy and mildly sweet. I loved this one as well. I'm honestly a little uncertain of what authentic rice pudding would really taste like as I'm sure there's no one right answer with a million variations of rice pudding and toppings based on family recipes and region, so I'll do my best to just describe Maisa's rice pudding. The rice grain doesn't appear to be a glutinous or sticky rice as the the consistency of this rice pudding isn't as thick, the grains don't stick to each other quite as much, and it's a medium sized grain. If I had to guess, this might've been Jasmine Rice? This version had a much stronger kick of vanilla than I've had in the past, which I'm not complaining about since I know it's expensive! The thickly shaved coconut pieces on top were a lovely touch as well.
Can't wait to come back to try all their other foods!