Kasbah Lounge

My husband Phil and I had dinner at Kasbah Lounge on J Street over the weekend. Kasbah is next door to Tapa the World, and both restaurants have the same owners. They also share the same vegan menu. When I went to Tapa the World a couple of weeks ago, I ordered a Spanish entrée. This time, I ordered a Middle Eastern entrée.


First, though, Phil and I ordered the Aceitunas (olives) to share. They appeared to be the same type of olives that were served at Tapa the World, but the olives at Kasbah were seasoned with chilies and other spices. The plate in the picture below looks a little messy, but that's because we had already dug into the olives before remembering to take a picture.

Next, I had the Mixta Salad, mixed greens served with an oil and vinegar dressing. Adding pear slices to the salad was a nice touch.

My entrée was the Vegetable Tagine, which is vegan if ordered without the rice or lebne (yogurt). I asked the server what non-vegan ingredient was in the rice, but she didn't know. At any rate, the tagine itself consisted of beets, peas, garbanzo beans, zucchini, and onions in a tomato-based sauce. I don't think I've ever had beets in a Middle Eastern dish before, but I really liked them in the tagine.

The only vegan dessert was sorbet, so I ended the meal with a tasty dish of banana sorbet. The other flavor option that night was guava.

I really enjoyed my evening at Kasbah, and hope to revisit the restaurant many times. I'm so glad the brother and sister team that owns Kasbah and Tapa the World has created a menu especially for their vegan diners.


Kasbah is located at 2115 J Street, and their phone number is 916-442-4388. Their website address is http://kasbahlounge.com/. The restaurant is open daily from 5:00 p.m.