Ain’t That America II: World Cuisines of Cary, NC
I was once asked what’s missing from the Charlottesville food scene. My response:
With more than 200 countries in the world, each with their own diverse cuisines, Charlottesville could never begin to scratch the surface of them all. Sure, I miss some foods I enjoyed when living in larger cities, but we do awfully well for our size.
As for some of those missing foods, a silver lining of traveling for youth sports is the opportunity to explore elsewhere. For a Charlottesville food writer on such trips, research focuses on cuisines unavailable back home. Regardless of the destination, that research uncovers people pouring their passion into sharing foods of their heritage with others. Cary, NC, for example, is a beautiful, welcoming, city whose multicultural food community makes it easy to explore cuisines of the world without traveling far at all. Families of immigrants share their culture while building lives in America.
The Silk Road, which gives its name to the first restaurant below, was an ancient trade route spanning Asia, Africa, and Europe that facilitated the exchange not just of goods, but also cultures. The cuisines of countries along the route still bear influences from one another to this day. Yet, the Silk Road is 4,000 miles long. Blending cultures took years. In Cary, cuisines from places on or near the Silk Road – Uzbekistan, Nepal, Yemen, Lebanon, Palestine, Lithuania, Germany, Italy — are just minutes apart. Some highlights:
Uzbekistan: Silk Road
What’s it like to eat at a restaurant in Uzbekistan? Shuhrat Hotamov should know. Hotamov grew up in the landlocked former Soviet Republic working at his family’s restaurant. Thrilled by the energy of a bustling kitchen, Hotamov dreamed of becoming a chef like his grandfather.
In 2010, Hotamov moved to the United States, to seek a better life for his wife and two daughters. And last year, he realized his dream of opening a restaurant. While Hotamov heads the Silk Road kitchen, he credits his staff for their role in the food, most of whom are immigrants like him. “Hailing from different countries and cultural backgrounds, our chefs bring their own expertise to the table, whether it’s perfecting traditional techniques, baking fresh bread, or presenting dishes with artistry and precision,” said Hotamov. “Together, their collaboration creates a menu that is both authentic and innovative.”
Each of his dishes tells a story, Hotamov says, primarily of his family’s traditions, and also of the influence the Silk Road had on the cuisine of his heritage. Fried Lagman, for example, may seem like an Italy-China mash-up, but it is an Uzbek dish of hand-pulled noodles in a spicy tomato sauce, enriched with soy sauce.
Beef Samsa are pastries of flaky, layered dough stuffed with beef and onions.
And chicken tabaka is a Cornish hen that Hotamov first marinates in garlic and then flattens, rubs in spices, and fries in a pan. It may ruin all other chicken for you.
Nepal: Himalayan Nepali Cuisine
Cary’s greatest concentration of regional cuisines is at the corner of East Chatham Street and Maynard Road. There, the strip mall boasts foods of India, Pakistan, China, Taiwan, Korea, Iraq, Ethiopia, Jamaica, Mexico, and El Salvador, among others. And, then there’s Nepal. Nirmadun Pun and his family have earned a local following for their Nepalese food.
Traditional momos are among the most popular orders, and the chicken tikka masala rivals any anywhere. Pun’s family, meanwhile, recommends chili MoMo, lamb saag, chicken saag, govi manchurian, and lamb kadai. As an extra act of love, they offer ginger tea to guests, even those waiting for takeout.
Germany: Annelore’s German Bakery
Few cities celebrate Christmas like Cary. Downtown Cary Park becomes a holiday village, ornament-clad trees line the streets, and decorations and activities are everywhere. And then there’s Annelore’s German Bakery.
German-born Annelore Gstattenbauer bakes delicious treats all year long, but come the holidays, her Bavarian Christmas spirit makes the place magical. There’s a long tradition of Christmas baking in Bavaria, which the talented and passionate Gstattenbauer shares with Cary each year. If you’re not lucky enough to visit Cary in December, never fear. Her creations are delicious no matter what the calendar says.
Lebanon: Sassool
Like many things do, Sassool began with a love of bread. When the Saleh family fled Lebanon’s unrest for the United States in 1976, as much as they embraced their new home, there was one thing they still missed. Pita bread. The closest thing they could find – tortillas – did not scratch the itch. So, they decided to make their own, opening a bakery in 1977, Neomonde. After a decade of success, they launched a restaurant. And in 2011, one of the Saleh brothers – Mounir – branched out to open his own restaurant. On Mother’s Day 2014, he renamed it Sassool – the childhood nickname of his mother Cecilia, whose recipes inspire the restaurant’s offerings.
With a wood-fired oven blazing all day long, they never stop baking pita at Sassool. They’ll slide from the oven as many discs as you’d like to go with your food. As accompaniments, dips like hummus and toum rival the best I’ve ever had, and the many side dishes are so delicious that regulars often elect the Pick-4 Sampler, a platter of four salads and sides. Saleh’s daughter Simone, who manages the restaurant, recommends mjadarah, tabouli, fatoush salad, batata harra, and autumn root salad.
Lithuania: Baltic Bites
Danute Senfeldiene claims to run the only Lithuanian food truck in the country. If that’s true, what an enormous void she has filled with Baltic Bites, which she has run with her family since 2018.
One of Washington D.C.’s top chefs once told me how the soulfulness of the late Martha Lou Gadsen’s cooking at her Charleston restaurant would bring him to tears. Senfeldiene’s food at Baltic Bites stirs similar emotions: handmade dumplings with mushroom sauce and sour cream, beet salad, cucumber and onion salad, and a gift, fried garlic bread.
The talented folks behind Bond Brothers Beer Company have the good sense to invite Baltic Bites for regular appearances. If I lived near Cary, I’d try never to miss one. Tip: Even if a food truck is not serving at Bond Brothers, it’s an ideal place to bring takeout, relax, and enjoy world class beer and hospitality.
Laos: SAAP
While all the food is delicious at SAAP, the magic is in the sauces. In Laos, dipping sauces known as jeow are on the table for every meal. As a child, Chef Lon Bounsanga recalls his father would fill the fridge with the ones he’d make. The family would dip various proteins or, the favored Laotian vehicle for absorbing flavor, sticky rice.
The ones at SAAP would do his father proud. Clockwise from the top-left is jeow Mak Len, with beef jerky; sweet chili sauce, with the lettuce wrap plate; peanut sauce, with chicken satay, and a fiery jeow bong, with Lao herb sausage.
Speaking of proud fathers, the hospitality, managed by Lon’s daughter Hera, is warm and impeccable. And, daughter Grace puts Mezcal and grapefruit bitters in her Negronis.
Palestine: Asali Desserts and Cafe
Celebrating the pastries of Palestine, Asali Desserts and Cafe is a family affair. The name is even a reflection of family, combining the last names of owners Hanadi Asad and her husband, Jamaal Ali. All five of their children have worked at the cafe, and many of the recipes come from their grandmothers.
It’s a beautiful space where the pastries themselves add to the decor.
Za’atar Pie is Arabic cheese bread topped with sliced olives, grape tomatoes, and za’atar, a spice blend of sumac, sesame, and thyme. The family recommends dipping it in a side of hummus. Good call.
Yemen: Sheeba
In Dearborn, Michigan, Ismael Aljahmi and his family have built an empire of four restaurants serving the cuisine of their native of Yemen. It is food that dates back thousands of years, and the Aljahmi family believes it warrants more appreciation. With their restaurants, all named Sheeba, the family’s aim is to share their culture and cuisine with the world.
To that end, when a family friend in Cary, NC told them of a vacated restaurant space he owned, they leapt at the chance to fill it. Aljahmi’s nephew Gabriel was sent to Cary from Michigan to bring his family’s Yemeni food to the South. And it’s outstanding.
Seltah, the national dish of Yemen, is a stew of root vegetables and whipped fenugreek. On the side, to scoop up the stew, is fresh baked tanoor bread, with a delicious char that rivals any NY pizzeria.
Italy via Brooklyn: DiFara Pizza Tavern
Speaking of New York pizzerias, pizza artisans don’t open second locations. Their work is too precise. Before passing away in 2022, Dom DeMarco, who emigrated from Italy in 1959, spent decades making his legendary pies by hand one at a time. The pizzeria would have to close whenever he was unavailable. A second location was never a thought.
So, it was more than a little unexpected when, in 2020, he allowed his nephew Greg Norton to open an outpost in Cary, NC. At DiFara Pizza Tavern, Norton honors his uncle’s legacy with attention to detail that would make him proud — from imported ingredients, basil cut to order, and a water treatment system to replicate the composition of the NYC water that some consider key to the quality of the city’s pizzas. Norton’s wife Valerie makes sure the hospitality does justice to the pies. It’s a treat every time we are in Cary.
