Rose Restaurant: A garden of Persian delights

Persian rug runners, cloth napkins and table coverings, and chandeliers dress up the interior of Rose Persian Restaurant in Teaneck. A new owner opened the restaurant about a month ago in the space formerly occupied by Honey, another Persian restaurant, which was little more than a grocery store with tables and chairs.

A closeup of the Shrimp Kabab with grilled vegetables and yogurt, the one disappointing dish we tried on Saturday evening.

Basmati rice with sweet and sour cherries and grilled chicken is served on a long, rectangular platter.

Lamb shank with basmati rice and fava beans.

After visiting Newark's Branch Brook Park on Saturday to see the glorious cherry blossom trees and a profusion of tulips, it seemed natural to stop for dinner at a new restaurant named Rose.

Food businesses on this block of Teaneck Road in Teaneck, between Forest Avenue and Route 4, have come and gone in recent years.

Honey, a Persian restaurant, and a small Korean cafe opened, served a lot of good food, then closed.  The Korean place was replaced by a deli.

Not long ago, Coffeecol, a Colombian arepa bar and grill, took over the storefront of Jamaica Grill, which moved into a smaller space.

There are a few free parking spaces in front of Coffeecol, so you can stop and get a takeout espresso in a small cardboard cup ($1.50), if you're feeling a little drowsy in mid-afternoon, as I did the other day before driving into the city.

Rose Persian Restaurant was opened by a chef who owned restaurants in Iran, the waiter told us.

Olives and yogurt with cucumbers, above, and warm pocket bread, below, are complimentary.

 

The Shirazi Salad of diced cucumber, tomato and onion is familiar to anyone who has eaten in a Middle Eastern or Turkish restaurant.

We started our meal with terrific soups, a thick Lentil Soup with chopped carrot, potato, onion and celery, and an unsual Chicken Soup with milk and lemon juice ($4 each).

Three of us then shared a diced cucumber and tomato salad with dried mint ($5).

Chicken Soup contained pieces of chicken.

The restaurant offers three vegetarian dishes and two seafood dishes for non-meat eaters, so I chose the Shrimp Kabab ($17), and asked for vegetables in place of rice or potatoes.

The half-dozen shrimp were small, and salt was added with a heavy hand.  

The shrimp and the crunchy vegetables also showed black specks, and had a strong, unpleasant taste from the gas grill.

The thick Lentil Soup is delightful.

My wife and mother-in-law did a lot better with Albaloo Polo with Chicken and Baghali Polo with Lamb Shank from the Gourmet Rice section of the menu ($15 each).

They loved the juicy chicken and tender lamb, and the basmati rice with fresh fava beans or sweet and sour cherries, and they took home leftovers.

I ended my meal with strong, brewed Persian tea and a free refill ($2).

Rose Persian Restaurant is not to be confused with two Rose's Lebanese Restaurants in Englewood and Fair Lawn.


Rose Persian Restaurant, Kabab House & Catering, 1150 Teaneck Road, Teaneck; 201-569-3600.

BYO, small parking lot in rear, no American Express cards. Web site:

A garden of Persian delights