Vital Information wrote:Now, going back through this thread, and the Al Bawadi pics, I wonder if there is some kinda connection between the two places, like maybe someone at Almawal (note, they spell it that way, not Al Mawal) worked at Al Bawadi. Not the least, the eggplant salad with the pickles is very similar looking. It's been a few years, at least, since I've been to Al Bawadi, so I cannot fully compare eggplant to eggplant, but this gratis salad, quite spicey and like I make, was about my favorite thing eaten.

Tremendous detective work and speculation there, Mr. Vital Info!

According to my waitress (the daughter of the owner) her father was the original owner of Al Bawadi as well as being somehow affiliated with The Nile Restaurant on 63rd St. some years back. She also said that Almawal has been open for about a year now. The split sounded somewhat nasty as she felt compelled to mention that "Mexicans are running the kitchen at Al Bawadi now..."

My lunch at Almawal yesterday was quite good, with the chicken shawarma sandwich being the clear standout item. I also had the musabaha (Whole Chickpea Hummus), Arab salad, and falafel...I like to test the basics out whenever I first try a restaurant but I can assure you that I'll definitely be digging into this menu soon.