Jamjar - Commercial Drive

Marie and I are dedicated transit users. Not during the week so much because we live out in the Valley where I am close to work and Marie works late evenings when there is no service. On the weekends though, when we treck into town (which we often do), we generally park at Scott Road Station and use skytrain and buses. Adding another vehicle to the congestion and parking mayhem of Vancouver doesn't help the planet or my stress level, so we put up with the occasional inconvenience and let someone else drive. It also helps my walking game. The biggest single component of my fitness program these days is walking 10km a day, which I do religiously (I used to run and even ran a few marathons but I have a few joints which will no longer tolerate the pounding). My point in all of this is that sometimes, proximity to transit is a large contributing factor when it comes to lunch! Such was the case with Jamjar (loving Lebanese food is, of course, the second big factor), which is very conveniently located just a few steps from Broadway/Commercial Station.

Arriving just before 1:00 on Saturday, we did not have to wait for a table but were seated right away. The menu is not as confusing as it first appears. All you need to do is follow directions. When we did, we ordered Falafel as a mezze to start.

These were brilliant. Crispy on the outside and light but substantial on the inside. One of my favourite healthy, with a tiny touch of non-healthy, treats. Chickpeas, parsley, garlic, etc., made into balls and deep-fried and served with a sort of tahini yogurt sauce (don't quote me on the sauce)!

Falafel is one of those things that I could live on in good conscience and reasonable health. We wouldn't have complained about a little more sauce.

Again, carefully following the menu instructions, we ordered a Makali Bowl. The makali is the deep-fried cauliflower with pomegranate molasses. Also as crispy as you can expect cauliflower to be, the molasses was an amazing addition being sweet and tart with a citrusy finish. Loved this and again our consciences did not trouble us! As a bowl, (you can order anything as a mezze, a wrap or a bowl), your main can be served over brown rice or cabbage (more of a slaw) or a combination. You also get to choose one cold mezze and for this plate, we chose a smokey eggplant dip called muttabel. Everyone needs to try this! it was creamy and smokey and wonderful!

For a second bowl, we ordered their Shish Tawouk, chicken thighs marinated in yogurt, oregano, garlic, and lemon and then grilled. This was tasty enough also but a bit less of a thrill than the previous items. I am sorry that we chose to wander off the vegetarian trail when there were other interesting items to be tried. Certainly, the labneh, which we chose as a cold mezze, was a highlight here and came with a generous splash of very good olive oil.

We have come to love places that cook with conscience. Jamjar uses local ingredients as much as possible and offers several vegan options. Even the name Jamjar is an indicator of community and hospitality.  This is a very nice space and comfortable with friendly folks.

For what it's worth, we give Jamjar 4 1/2 out of 5.