Ron Bechtol
The cafe’s dumplings are tender and delicately spiced.
For my German-heritage grandmother and my German-by-way-of-Ukraine grandfather, borscht was a staple of on a regular basis life, particularly in winter. Deeply pink, beety and studded with chunks of potato and — if I bear in mind appropriately — sliced strips of bacon. It normally got here lashed with bitter cream, and in my mom’s retelling of the story, a couple of drizzles of vinegar. Dill could have been concerned.
In Ukraine, the dish’s remaining “t” is dropped. At European Dumplings Cafe, a newish Citadel Hills restaurant run by younger couple Olga and Simon — she’s Ukranian-born — the beets are dropped as properly, regardless of a lot literature stating that they are important. Missing different proof, I believe an iconoclastic grandmother.
In any case, by no matter title and spelling, the steaming pottery bowl that arrives, dolloped with bitter cream and brimming with cabbage, shredded carrot, sliced cabbage and even a couple of, token chunks of rooster, might be totally different however deeply satisfying, its cultural and culinary significance all of the extra poignant in gentle of the persevering with battle.
Sauerkraut was one other specialty of my borscht-making grandmother. She grew the cabbage, shredded it on a fearsome, bladed board, and she or he salted it down in a big porcelain crock on her again porch. The fermenting contents had been held at bay by a rock-ballasted plate. I could not assist however peek and pattern now and again. She additionally made imply pancakes. However I do not bear in mind a single dumpling.
The restaurant title alone tells you ways important they’re at European Dumplings.
The best dish is named that and nothing extra: dumplings. No modifiers or additional adjectives. The selection of fillings is even easy. It has been decreased from 4 to 2: lamb or rooster. (“Veal did not promote properly,” Simon defined. Apparently neither did the meat.) Finely floor and delicately seasoned, the lamb made a low-key stuffing for the tender wrappers dusted with dried dill. A buttery broth was all that remained within the backside of the bowl at meal’s finish. However for all its subtlety, it was a satisfying dish.
Add slightly complexity within the type of a mantle of sautéed mushrooms to the silken dumplings, this time full of potato and sautéed onions, and you’ve got vareniki, one other Ukrainian basic. Cabbage, lamb, pork and cheese are different conventional fillings. Take that very same, roughly mashed potato and onion filling, enfold it in a yeasty dough and fry it and you’ve got pierogi. At the very least on this context. The phrases vareniki and pierogi imply the identical factor, in accordance with one supply, maybe depending on whether or not we’re speaking Ukraine, Russia or Poland, the place the plate is standard. Confusion is seemingly each excused and anticipated.
At European Dumplings, pierogi arrive as two flattened oval truffles adorned with a splash of bitter cream punctuated with a dot of inscrutable “pink sauce.” South Texans may be excused for considering flour-wrapped tacos de papa, when it comes to taste profile, although Ukrainians are more likely to disagree. Like their South Texas cousins, these pierogi might use a jolt of sizzling (not simply “pink”) sauce and extra onions.
As well-executed because the pierogi in any other case look like, I can not assist considering, as somebody with solely probably the most tenuous connections to the tradition, that they’d be much more at residence alongside a serving of slow-braised pork with mushroom gravy — one thing not on the menu however a culinary touchstone for a lot of. A skewer of marinated and grilled rooster thigh is obtainable, nevertheless, and it would make for an additional joyful couple.
Pancakes additionally seem on European Dumplings’ menu. My grandmother considered them as keep-’em-coming breakfast fare solely, however right here, dusted with powdered sugar and drizzled with maple syrup, they’re supplied as dessert. Works for me too.
The menu describes kompot, a fruity drink, served both sizzling or chilly, as boiled blackberries, blueberries, raspberries and apples, which did not instantly sound interesting. Fallacious. It is amazingly refreshing when served chilly, and as winter lastly approaches, it will be simply the factor to companion with the pancakes and ship a physique out bolstered in opposition to the season.
Earlier than leaving, make sure that to take a fast have a look at the decor behind the order counter. Along with sheaves of iconic wheat, folkloric animals and elaborately patterned eggs, you will additionally discover army helmets. The distinction between conventional signifiers and the trimmings of present battle could not be higher. There is a jar for war-effort contributions ought to one really feel inclined to remark with money.
European Dumplings Cafe
2211 NW Navy Freeway, Suite 131b | (736) 219-2483 | europeandumplings.com
Hours: 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Sunday
Worth vary: $7-$14
Greatest Bets: Borsh, lamb dumplings, kompot
Backside Line: This diminutive Citadel Hills cafe is run by a younger couple and displays her Ukranian roots. Beetless borsh is entrance and middle, and it is good even with out the ruby root. The dumplings are tender and delicately spiced, and pierogi, whereas extra sturdy than supple, are nonetheless value a shot. Take into account pancakes or marinated rooster skewers, however make sure that to attempt the aromatic, boiled fruit kompot beverage, both chilly or sizzling.
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