“New midtown restaurant Duo is a successful culinary coalition”

New midtown restaurant Duo is a successful culinary coalition

Posted: 28 Jul 2010 05:48 PM PDT

By DEREK DONOVAN

The Kansas City Star

Ethiopian/Eritrean dishes at Duo, such as the chicken doro watt, are served in tidy mounds on a large injera, a tangy pancake made from the grain teff.

T he menu at Duo, a new restaurant on Main Street just south of Linwood, promises "authentic Ethiopian/Eritrean and Jamaican cuisine."

An unlikely pairing? Maybe — but then again, the food traditions of eastern Africa and the Caribbean both feature sweet spices, meaty stews and liberal dashes of heat. This might just work out.

Elsa Abraham runs the newly opened eatery, which features three pages of dishes — two from Ethiopia and Eritrea, and one from Jamaica. The African offerings include that region's rich stews, about half of which are vegetarian. On the Jamaican side, there's goat, tofu and chicken prepared stewed, curried or jerk.

The day of my visit, Abraham said things were running a little slow. "Our waitress didn't show up this morning," she said, explaining that left only two people to run the whole operation.

That's OK — we'll just pretend we're on island time. The only Jamaican item available that day was the jerk chicken, which I was leaning toward anyway. My companion chose the beef tibbs, described as cubed meat with tomatoes, onion, garlic and spices. Wanting a bit more variety to choose from, we also ordered a vegetarian combination plate.

Not long afterwards, Abraham brought us three armloads of food. The jerk chicken was served chopped into two- or three-bite chunks, still clinging to the bone. The meat had a deep, smoky flavor. A chili kick started out as a nice accent and became cumulatively fierier as I ate. By the time I was done, I was sweating and enjoying every bite. Accompanying the chicken on the plate were a huge helping of coconut-scented rice and peas (really kidney beans), two chunks of fried plantain and a sweet and savory cabbage/carrot/potato stew. Preceded by a simple and impeccably fresh green salad, this was a lot of food.

Across the table, my friend's beef dish smelled intoxicating, with chunks of meat and vegetables heaped on a piece of the tangy pancake bread injera at least 14 inches in diameter. It was garnished with a portion of spicy red lentils and more of the salad.

But we still had that vegetarian combo to tackle: On another huge injera, more salad, more of the red lentils on his plate and more of the vegetables from mine, plus good-sized helpings of garlicky, tender chopped greens and our favorite, the smooth legume puree called shiro. It looked a bit like Mexican refried beans but tasted of its complex combination of tomatoes, onions and spices.

We left overstuffed, but blissfully so.

duo
3415 Main St.

816-756-5111

Hours: Tuesday-Sunday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m.

Don't miss dish: We didn't have a dish we didn't enjoy, but the mixed-vegetable atikilett watt, vibrant yellow with turmeric, won my highest marks

Close second: The earthy and peppery jerk chicken

Vegetarian choices: Many, including Jamaican tofu and five East African stewed dishes

Atmosphere: Duo occupies a light, open spot in a quaint strip of storefronts on Main Street just south of Linwood. Its high ceilings and exposed brick wall aren't fancy, but the space feels freshly scrubbed.

Food prices: All main dishes $8-$9.

Handicap accessible: Yes

Bottom line: It isn't fast food, but Duo's distinctive menu and intricate flavors deserve a visit or two.

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Wednesday, July 28, 2010