Fairmont is home to a number of Italian restaurants, but it's less common to see a Mediterranean restaurant right in the downtown area. 



The Grape Leaf is a new-to-me restaurant I was excited to check out with my friend Lisa. 



We were the only ones here, which was great for us. There was enough space for us to feel safe and still enjoy a delicious meal and support a local business.



After looking over the menu, I went with a strawberry banana smoothie to start. I'm really into smoothies lately, and this one was a good version. It's not large and a bit thin, but fresh flavor. 



Then, I tried the sambusas with cheese. These triangular fried filo dough savory pastries. I'm less familiar with this version, but I enjoyed them. I would've loved a sauce with a bit of spice to complement them.



At some point, we got an order of fries, but I was trying to save room for the remainder of the meal. They were thick-cut steak fries, though, and had a nice little crisp.



Hummus. What meal is complete without a side of hummus. This was a good, straightforward version. I like mine to taste like two bulbs of garlic, but that's not for everyone.



My main entree was the chicken shawarma, which was a bit heftier than others I've had. But the sauce with it was more of a savory, meaty sauce, rather than that smooth garlic sauce I crave. Good, but not my favorite. 



Finally, let's end with some baklava, of course. Simple with pistachios. Drizzle that syrup on it for some more decadence!

Grade: B