Bill and I had to go see Dr. Blair for dental cleanings this afternoon. As is our habit, we both neglected to eat before we visited. Consequently, we were both hungry when we were finished with the dentist. It was about 4:00pm, though, which means that a lot of restaurants are enjoying a “pause” between lunch and dinner. Fortunately, Dr. Blair’s office is in downtown Stuttgart and there are a number of restaurants near him that serve food all day. Today, we decided to stop at one that has always intrigued us, Yaz Eine Prise Orient.
I know Bill was excited when I suggested Yaz. He’s been interested in trying that place since we first arrived in 2014. He’s always been overruled by my desire to eat somewhere else. I have to admit, every time we’ve passed this restaurant, which also has a flagship location in Düsseldorf, it has smelled good. It also looks like a relatively popular place, although it was pretty empty when we stopped in this afternoon. I see on their Web site that they plan to expand the chain.
When you first walk into Yaz, you may be a little bit confused about what to do. There’s a big menu on the wall, like what you’d see in a fast food place. However, the servers told us to sit down wherever we wanted. We selected a table by the window. I liked the comfortable banquette seating against the wall.
Bill enjoys the menu.
As we perused the menu, which is rich with options for vegetarians and vegans as well as meat eaters, I found myself listening to the dance music that was playing. It was kind of exotic sounding. I don’t normally like dance music, but it seemed to fit well in Yaz. Bill got up thinking he had to order at the counter, but the waitress told him she’d come to us.
The counter kind of confused us at first.
Yaz offers a full bar as well as an interesting menu with a number of different choices. You can have a yufka (which appears to be a wrap), tajine, teller, or a salad. They also offer soups, snacks, and desserts. Prices are very reasonable and portions are large. Although we were both hungry, we decided against getting any of the grill specialties. Instead, we had burgers.
Bill had a kofte, which was much like a cheeseburger, except it was made of meatballs and came on sesame seed bread. It included grilled onions and mushrooms and barbecue sauce. It also came with optional cheese, which Bill included, and a side of potatoes with mustard sauce and barbecue sauce.
Bill’s excellent burger. I probably would have liked it sans fungus.
I went vegetarian for once and had a delicious falafel burger. It was served on the same sesame seed bread and came with lettuce, tomato, hummus, mango sauce, pomegranate seeds, and grilled onions. I took mine without cheese. Our sandwiches came with an additional side of fresh bread that was delicious.
This was an excellent sandwich. I am definitely not someone who ordinarily eats vegetarian, but I was very happy with this. I would order it again. Yaz offers several options for vegans and vegetarians. I also enjoyed the dips that came with the sandwiches, especially the sweet, spicy mustard. The barbecue sauce tasted strongly of harissa.
After we ate, I went to use the ladies room. Unfortunately, it was closed. There was a sign on the door asking the ladies to use the men’s room. I couldn’t help but laugh to myself. Germans have no problems with unisex bathrooms!
Tonight’s dinner came to a very reasonable 24,50. Bill rounded up to 30 euros, which seemed to please the waitress. We were done and out of there less than an hour after we arrived. I imagine Yaz is very popular at lunchtime.
The sign at the entrance to Yaz. It kind of shows you what they offer.
Outside the restaurant.
Overall, we were very happy we stopped by Yaz tonight. It was a refreshing change of pace and any time I manage to go meat free and enjoy it, I feel good. I would definitely recommend Yaz to anyone else who enjoys Middle Eastern food, especially if they happen to be in Stuttgart at a time when other eateries are “paused”.