It has arrived - Palestine's own Olive Garden Restaurant in the basement of the Best Eastern Hotel. Or at least almost. Until Ramadan is over, the Gar- den will be testing the waters with a special iftar feast. Only once the holiday season has passed will a full menu be available and will diners get to sample prospectively delicious Italian sweets. Until then, the Garden is giving things a try.
First impressions are favorable.
The staff is friendly and invested in getting the food served quickly and with a smile. The menu is simple but substantial, offering an array of soups, salads, pasta favorites, chicken Parmesan and pizza. You may need to take an Arabic-speaking interpreter to decipher the misspelled English half of the menu, but you will find all of the fine ingredients it promises in your meal. The mushroom soup is clearly from the can, al- though effort has been made to spice it up with parsley. A real Romaine Caesar salad is well- dressed with anchovies and a reasonable sharp cheese.