Where In The World Is Sum1?

Still In Charlottesville

         So here I am, thinking I'm doing fine here in this beautiful city, just to find out tonight that Thomas Jefferson's Monticello is here!  Guess where I'm going tomorrow? 

         But I'm not here to write about where I'm going.  I'm here to write about where I went tonight.  Specifically, dinner.  I was looking on Google maps for restaurants to visit, and found one called 'Shebeen Pub & Braai', pronounced 'Sh-bean'.  What drew me to it is the type of food served there.  The food was inspired by the owners childhood spent in South Africa, and memories of the food his mother prepared for him.  I've never been to a restaurant like that, so it was a draw to me.  But going there, I couldn't possibly order anything American, so I looked over the menu well before ordering.

         So, for starters, I had glass of Smithwick's Irish Ale.  My appetizer was Samosa's.  These triangular delights bring back memories of an African childhood.  Spiced ground beef and lamb in a fried pastry jacket served with mango chutney.

         My entree was Sosatie:  Cubed local Retreat Farm lamb top round, skewered on sugar cane with dried apricots, marinated for at least twenty-four hours in mango chutney, tamarind & turmeric, grilled and served with samp and beans, yellow rice, mango chutney and a cucumber mint yogurt.

         I had something like the Samosa's while in Kuwait teaching classes back in 2004, so I was drawn to those.  The dinner was very different, but excellent nonetheless.  I wanted a dessert, but I went to dinner late tonight, and the kitchen had already closed.  Maybe next time.