Al Assel opened their store in Parramatta in early November 2022, and N and I were for their baba ghanouj.

Pita Bread. Each table was provided with a complimentary basket of 5 pieces of bread.

Baba Ghanouj ($13.00), ‘smoked eggplant, tahini, labneh, olive oil’.

This cold mezza is our favourite baba ghanouj and the sole reason we return to this restaurant. We would have loved to drop by and order just this dish if it were socially acceptable, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that everything else we order when we visit Al Aseel is to enable us to eat this dish. It was every bit as satisfyingly smoky and delicious as we remembered, and the price has remained the same since at least 2015.

Rahib Batenjan ($15.00), ‘fire-roasted eggplant, tomato and red pepper salsa, pomegranate reduction’.

This cold mezza was fresh with the softness and sweetness of the eggplant contrasting with the crunch and gentle acidity of the salsa. However, the salsa was also dominated by a very green flavour from the green capsicum and we could not detect any notable fire-roasted smokiness to balance the greeness.

Kibbeh Mishwiyeh ($18.00), ‘charred croquettes of mince, pomegranate, walnuts, house-roasted spices’.

This was something of a mix between falafel and kebab meat with an additional crunchy texture. The description as a ‘croquette’ drew us in for the hopes of something crunchy with a soft interior, but alas this was not the case and not something we’d reorder.

Batata Bi Kizbara ($16.00), ‘twice cooked crispy potato, garlic and chilli oil, fresh coriander’.

The potatoes were not nearly as crispy as the description suggested due to the sauce, which also carried an unexpected acidity and only mild heat.

This recent visit continued to prove to us that the baba ganouj is the dish that draws us back. In the future, we may just order it for takeaway because the pressure that their waiters — while friendly — put on us to order additional dishes has been immense on every visit (at both their Newtown store and at Parramatta). Indeed, we had to firmly stand out ground on ordering 4 appetizers between two people for a brunch.

Al Aseel is located at Shop 1/85 Victoria Rd, Parramatta NSW 2150.