Batchig: I Still Love this Place...

The last time I tried Batchig was just a few weeks ago, and since then I have been counting the minutes to come back to this place again. I have been reliving the flavors and tastes of their various dishes – as you can tell, I seriously love this restaurant. I was so excited to introduce Batchig to my friends...  Choose to sit on the ground floor facing the oven and Armenian salad bar, the upper smoking floor or the terrace. We were warmly welcomed and guided to our table, the square one under the mandaloun, surrounded by glass facades and lit by a middle chandelier pending from above. Since my wife and I arrived before the others, we were offered a selection from the salad bar to prepare our taste buds. Quail eggs and basterma, Fish taken, Mouhammara, Artichoke hearts, Hindbe and sele2 salad. Dip in some toasted bread and enjoy. We took a moment to look into the little details constituting this space, a place I enjoy each and every visit. The Details of Architecture:

• A long corridor leads you to a very high open space perfectly lit by daylight accessing from the glass rooftop
• Facing the entrance, stainless steel covered wood oven handles a large portion of the menu
• The floor, poured with polished concrete. This new age material adds a hint of modernism
• A general white ambiance relaxes your senses
• White walls and gypsum white ceiling highlight the colorful furniture underneath
• Dozens of design porcelain plates decorate the walls
• The claustra add an oriental feel to the place and connects the architecture to its surrounding
• Two floors to choose from, depending on your mood are open one on the other
• One of the walls on the upper floor is covered with a beautiful wallpaper filled with little flowers
• Two individual spaces inside, host large tables for intimate groups
• The three arcades, signature design of Mayrig, are reproduced in a modernized way
• Uncountable design ideas and materials all blend in perfectly together without making the space look like an art gallery
• On the upper floor, a single glass chandelier is the main art piece decorating the space

My favorite design item: Playing on the art of light and shadows, the metallic sieve like wall scones reflect beautiful art work on the walls while adding warmth to the ambiance. Discovering the little details that make this space will just mesmerize you:

• All the colors of the rainbow are represented inside this space (violet, yellow, green, brown, grey, black, pink, red, orange…) have their moment to shine in different parts of the setup… whether the couches, the pillows, the chairs…
• Each and every area has unique designed chairs and tables without making the space look crowded Inside, yellow wooden carved tables accompany a couple of marble ones
• On the upper floor, chairs are fabricated with four different kinds of wood and covered with violet fabrics
• Colorful, passionate and funky, the terrace transports you way far from the city’s chaos
• Sofas or chairs, the choices are plenty depending on your mood
• The lace like round pieces placed under the table plants are amazingly unique giving an authentic feel of the past

The "Pre-Opening" Menu: Come on! Still in the pre-opening phase since June?

• The salads (5 items)
• The delights (wide selection of traditional dishes in olive oil and fresh “greens” salad bar Batchig’s starters to share (28 items)
• The pots (5 items)
• The mains (12 items)
• The oven corner (9 items)
• The desserts (14 items)

Let’s indulge in this fine sophisticated food: Armenian, Levantine it is, indeed…

• Batchig Sticks: Fried, long and twisted rolls, simply awesome. Enjoy fried rolls without feeling the oil. Filled with premium ingredients, every roll is generously filled. There are five types: chanklish, labneh and olives, zaatar, cheese, and cheese and basterma. Resist the temptation to eat them when they’re hot, as the core oozes with intensity and will likely sear tongue and palate.

• Itch is Armenian tabbouleh, and this is one salad you don’t want to skip! It’s heavy on tomato and bulgur, and parsley is merely an afterthought, contrary to the Lebanese version. On its own, itch can constitute a meal, especially if you scoop it with the cabbage

• The fishna:—which means cherry in Armenian—was hands down one of the best dishes. Call it the pièce de resistance, or the Armenian form of fatteh, this combination of kebab balls, crispy pita squares, plain yogurt, and sour cherry couli was absolutely divine. Even those who are not usually fans of savory and sweet will melt at the delicious intermingling of these tastes. The meat, the laban, the sweetness, the cherries, the baked bread. Simply wow! The ingredients are perfectly mixed, yet every ingredient is richly felt. Light and soft meat without a borghol taste, fresh laban and a hint of sweetness only, added by the cherries.

• Mante:—little pockets of dough stuffed with minced meat—were also impeccably crafted. My favorite Armenian plate now enjoyable at a very reasonable price. The stainless steel tray comes carrying small meat dumplings in a round stainless pan, a small jug of laban, and a small jug of tomato sauce and a small plate of sumac. The waiter will ask your permission to prepare it.  Warm tomato juice is poured over the mante and then plain yogurt is slathered on top, followed by a drizzle of sumac. Eat this fast before the meat becomes soaked in the mixture. This dish is enjoyed with that crunchiness. Plunge in and enjoy the different flavors and consistencies

• Kebab Laban: Juicy kebab bowls topped with laban, grilled almonds, fried bread and tomato sauce. Sweetness, crunchiness and richness combined. I could eat one of my favorite dishes for dinner alone.

• Mouhammara: The principal ingredients are fresh or dried peppers, ground walnuts, breadcrumbs, and olive oil. Every ingredient is richly felt and enjoyed. Tasty indeed

• Hommos Batchig: Hummus with a special mix of lentils. The perfect hummus with an exquisite mix in the middle. A must try

No meal is complete without dessert:

• Mount Ararat: features four scoops of ice cream—marzipan, almond, pistachio, and rose water—stacked high with Lebanese cotton candy, or ghazel el banet. I couldn’t imagine a more perfect end to the feast.

• Tahinov Hats: Freshly baked cinnamon & tahini roll with vanilla ice cream. Not one of my favorites. Too much bread for a dessert

• Pain Perdu-’ian’: Home made Madeleine cakes with rose flavored lokums fitted inside served with hot sahlab and cinnamon. The lokums melt in contact of the warm sahlab that gets absorbed by the round cakes making them spongy and wet. A pain perdu that has nothing to do with the ones you’ve tried before, trust me.

• Lokoum Pie: A crunchy dough holding a thin layer of fresh achta covered with pink lokum gelée giving this cake its required sweetness. So heavenly, this cake deserves an award.

• Cheese Maamoul: Mmmm... Now you can order these unique creations at the Batchig shop. Frozen and ready for home use. Just add some sugar syrup and enjoy. A fresh crunchy dough generously filled with cheese. A neutral taste that can be sweetened personally according to everyone's taste

Everything was good: The welcoming the service, the generosity and food quality which was consistent all over. Drinks ordered were delivered within minutes and the dishes were fresh, tasty and hot. The pluses:

• Waiters are very professional, always smiling and enjoying their job
• Choose between Pepsi or Coca-Cola
• All ingredients used in the different dishes were perfectly cooked
• The plates presentation is appetizing and mouthwatering

The little details I fell in love with:

• Batchig’s logo, the pink pomegranate is just so classy
• The Churchill printed plates imported from England are so beautiful, pieces of art in front of every customer
• Dishes are generous and filled to top
• The prices are affordable without any surprises on the bill
• Food is served in old style aluminum oven trays
• The place mats showing the Ararat mountains are decorated with pink dots which remind you of the logo
• The waiters each have nice name tags, while wearing white shirts and beige pants. The classy logo is stitched on their collars and pants
• Waiters are attentive and changes plates often
• Soft drinks glasses are the normal long ones, as for water, it is served in thick designed glasses; the old fashioned way

Another visit to Batchig, same taste and flavor as experienced each time I go there. I would definitely recommend Batchig to all my friends who want to enjoy a tasty and affordable dinner with a twist... Review written in collaboration with Danielle (Beirutista Blog) Batchig: A Truly First-Rate Family-Style Restaurant that Boasts Excellent Food