On this Sunday, we were headed for the (supposedly awesome) cheeseburgers at Evergreen Butcher and Baker, which are only available on Sundays. So we headed downtown, parked down the street and walked toward the restaurant.  There wasn’t the expected line – just a sign on the door that they were “pausing” the Sunday cheeseburgers. Dangit!  So I called an audible, looked at the list and found a place I could make a reservation.  Ela it would be.

The newest spot from Fifth Group, Ela is an absolutely gorgeous, non-specific Mediterranean restaurant (with dishes from Greece, Turkey and Morocco) and an emphasis on mezze.  We started with the hummus trio,

crisp chickpeas (these were roasted on top of the hummus) & sumac, chermoula & mushroom, and grape tapenade & spiced nuts, with absolutely fabulous pita.  This was a great starter and we kept it, plate-side, throughout our meal.  I chose the shaksuka, a dish of baked eggs, tomato, peppers, red chermoula and cumin labneh, served with rustic bread.

I’ve seen this dish dozens of times, on cooking shows and today was my day to try it.  This was hot and spicy and comforting in a way that completely surprised me.  My lovely wife chose the smoked salmon flatbread, with pickled shallot, caper, tzatziki and everything spice – served on a pita crust.

This was a terrific flatbread – like a nova and lox pizza.  We finished the meal with a cinnamon roll, of sorts.  I imagine it as a cross between a Cinnabon, bought from a food stall on the streets of Merrakesh, crossed with baklava.  A delicious meal.  We’ll go back for dinner.