The Sultan's Kite has finally answered my Mediterranean dreams

I commonly get into the Lincoln vs. Omaha battle with my sisters who all attended school in Omaha, while I chose to stay here in our great state’s capital city. Food and entertainment is always a topic of interest and I have never been a contender in the falafel dispute– until now.

If you are unfamiliar with what a falafel is, let me fill you in. Generally, a falafel is a croquette or patty made from mashed chickpeas and/or fava beans, mixed with spices and served in pita bread. It can be dressed to anyone’s liking, but is traditionally topped with salads, pickled vegetables, tahini-based sauces and even hot sauce. Put it this way, it is so popular in some Middle Eastern countries that McDonald’s has added the "McFalafel" to its menu in some countries.

A falafel can better be described as one of my favorite (and my sisters’ favorite) dishes! My sisters discovered a wonderful restaurant located in Omaha’s Dundee neighborhood, called Amsterdam Falafel, that serves a brilliant falafel sandwich. They cover their falafel patties in a cous cous topping along with a variety of vegetables and sauces. We have been known to stop in for their falafel sandwich multiple times in one week.

Just recently however, without any argument on my part, my sister Ally has found a restaurant in Lincoln that in her opinion, “is better.” I never thought I would hear those words come out of her mouth. In fact, I had to see it to believe it. I couldn’t wait to try out the Sultan’s Kite, a fairly new eatery in downtown Lincoln. My sister Anne and I headed there the very next day.

The Sultan’s Kite Mediterranean Grill is located on 1311 O St. It features a casual atmosphere that allows you to sit-down or take-out your meal to go. The friendly and charming employees prepare each dish in an assembly-line fashion, displaying the fresh ingredients for you to see and choose from. A seemingly simple, yet sophisticated menu gives you four different options for a dish, prepared four different ways, and finally dressed with three different sauces and vegetable toppings of your choice. That gives you plenty of room for creativity.

The Middle Eastern inspired dishes to choose from include gyros, falafels, chicken shwarma and chicken tikka korma. Once you choose your meat or falafel, you then choose a style (in a pita, a wrap, rice bowl or a salad) and finally a sauce (tzatziki, red tzatziki or green chutney). Finally, you can choose from a variety of toppings such as onions, tomatoes, feta cheese and black olives.

I must admit that Anne and I were so incredibly excited during our first visit that we forgot to try the falafel. She ordered the gyro and I ordered the chicken tikka korma- and both were outstanding. So we headed right back to the Sultan’s Kite only two days later to try this hyped-up falafel sandwich that we had originally intended to get.

I absolutely loved it! The outer, crunchy layer of the chickpea patty had just the right thickness and crunch without being too crispy or dry.

The spiciness and texture of the falafel was perfect, wrapped in the steam-pressed pita and dressed with onions, tomatoes, feta cheese and tzatziki sauce. It had a very different flavor than the chicken tikka korma and gyro dishes we had already tried, but it was just as delectable and fresh. As a longtime fan of the Mediterranean cuisine, I am thrilled to eat like a Sultan at the Sultan’s Kite. I highly recommend it to anyone who has also been feeling the void of falafels in Lincoln, Ne.