There are plates of hummus that make you shrug and carry on and then there are those that make you want to dance a jig in honor of the nutritious, versatile chick pea (below). Unfortunately, everybody’s dream hummus seems to take a slightly different form. This was glaringly apparent when we recently had our World Eats taste crew try five different versions of the chick-pea, lemon, garlic and tahini puree only to come out with five different faves. So instead of giving each version pea points, we’ll describe them and let you decide. Here’s the scoop on the hummus we sampled at various restaurants:
Andie’s Restaurant, (Lebanese and Greek food; 5253 N. Clark St.) This generous plate of rich onion-and-cucumber-studded hummus was served with super-fresh bread, had a nice tahini flavor and garnered the most fave votes. $6.45.
Noon-O-Kebab (Persian; 4661 N. Kedzie Ave.) Lemony and tangy hummus, served with warm, thinnish pieces of Indian bread. $2.50.
Tut Oasis II (Egyptian; 1147 Madison Ave., Oak Park) A thick blend with well-balanced flavors, topped with a pool of quality olive oil. $3.60
Cousins (Turkish; 5203 N. Clark St.) A smallish portion of garlicky, lemony hummus with real chick-pea flavor; served with delicious toasted herbed pita. $3.75.
Old Jerusalem (Lebanese; 1411 N. Wells St.) Large portion of mild hummus, served with pickled turnips, onions, olives and tomatoes. $5.25.
Terms for “yummy!” in:
Turkish: cok lezzetli.
Arabic: Laziza.
Persian: Khosh mazeh.
Greek: Nostimo.
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meng@(greater than)tribune.com
