Cafe Lily

I sat down at a table near the window in Cafe Lily, a cozy cafe with amethyst walls and a sophisticated Moroccan feel, a little past the Friday dinner rush. Perusing the menu, I noted the many wonderful sounding tapas and main course dishes. The more I read, the more dishes sounded appealing. Instead of playing a silent game of eeny-meeny-miney-mo to choose my dish for the evening, I asked the waiter if the chef could recommend one of my top four choices as a G-F dish.

Chef Anthony (and owner) came over to personally discuss the menu with me. Chef Anthony assured me he understood G-F, and discussed how he would prepare each piece of the dish G-F, whether it was sauteing a vegetable in canola oil, or keeping my food on a clean part of the grill.

I decided on Souvlakia Apo Hirino Fassolakia. I loved the dish. The sugarcane skewer and raisins brought out a softer side to tomatoes. My pork was perfectly tender. When the waiter came to inquire about dessert, I was fully satisfied. He came back not with the check, but with a plate of Torta Ciocolatta. He explained Chef Anthony prefers his guests to enjoy dessert, and the torta was gluten-free. Chef Anthony came back to see us as I was on my third or fourth bite of chocolate enjoyment. Chef Anthony left tiny chocolate chunks in his cake, bolding the flavor of the velvety dessert.

I will be going back to Café Lily to try more of Chef Anthony’s creations, and look forward to trying out their brunch on a Saturday morning.

Visit www.cafelily.com