Saghar Fanisalek, chef and owner of Westwood’s Taste of Tehran, has taken her talents to Sherman Oaks with Didar Kitchen. Set on Ventura Boulevard, the homestyle Persian restaurant serves overflowing plates of flame-kissed kebabs, saffron-tinged rice, and soul-warming stews in a narrow dining room. The scent of Fanisalek’s cooking from the semi-open kitchen envelops the entire room, casting hits of tart limoo amani (dried limes) and fragrant sumac into the air. The dining room feels sparse — save for bulbous pendant lights and photos of pre-Revolution Iran on the wall — but servers’ warm affect does the near-impossible task of making even the gray cement floors seem welcoming.
Even on warm days, a hot cup of saffron tea, gently sweetened with a sugar cube, is the way to go. Or go for the homemade, tangy doogh with sparkling water and yogurt.
The salad for the Meat Me special can be swapped for a small fee. Switch things up with a diced cucumber-and-tomato shirazi salad or the Didar salad crowned with feta cheese, grape tomatoes, and Persian cucumbers.