Karam Lebanese Cuisine

316 S.W. Stark St.

503-223-0830; karamresteraunt.com

$$

Yearning for a Lebanese mamma to make your lunch? Head downtown to Karam, where artichoke stew and kafta casserole are simmering in the kitchen and sometimes delivered to your table by the chef herself. Though homey, this is Portland's most ambitious Middle Eastern cooking. Whether you order the unusual or stick to faves like chicken shawarma or lamb kebabs, Emelin Karam's home cooking is all about honest values: great flavors, big portions and incredible prices.

Recommended: The real heat comes with steaming fresh pita bread, which arrives still warm and puffy from the oven, perfect for dipping into terrific hummus or sopping up broths from complex stews. The massive menu has lots of dishes you don't see elsewhere: three ways with goat, fresh pumpkin kibbeh, even molokhie, a traditional dish layered with bread, rice, cilantro, mallow leaves and lamb.