Rouj Modern Lebanese Restaurant

Last night I went to Rouj Modern Lebanese restaurant in Rosalie, for a birthday celebration for a friend.  When I left, I could feel my skirt and stomach had become best friends. 

Instead of ordering the banquet (I couldn't imagine eating anywhere near 4 courses, especially when I'd seen a photo of the birthday cake), we ordered 2 trios of dips for starters.  Really good pita bread, with dishes of hommus, babaganoush, and ... something else yummy.  Pretty vegetables sat alongside the dishes - slices of tomato and cucumber, gherkin, olives, pickled chilli, and something pink, which turned out to be pickled turnip.  The verdict from those who tasted it was that it was prettier than it was yummy. 

I ordered an eggplant kebab for a main, which came with my choice of salad (tabbouleh) and fries.  Really good fries. 

Birthday cake.  Mm, birthday cake.  At the appointed time, all the lights in the restaurant went out, and out came the cake-bearer as a modern rendition (with birthday girl's name) of Happy Birthday was played.  Sparklers, and a bonus baklava (with sparkler, too) made it rather exciting.  About 15 minutes after our cake, the scene was repeated for the table next to ours.

The decor was, I guess, upmarket cafe.  Nice light fixtures (if a bit low - every time we got up for something we had to hold one out of the way); a nice wall tapestry; comfy bench along a wall; tiled tables.  Apart from the quantity of food listed in the banquet, we could not as a group see how it would fit (even one course at a time) on the small tables.  We were a largish group, so space was a tad limited - my elbows kept knocking those of the friend next to me, until we decided to be traditional and use our hands...  Service was really good - knowledgeable staff, and although it was a busy night (full, as far as I could tell) they were on hand at the merest suggestion of a question.  My glass was filled whenever it was dipping below half-full, so they get my tick.  And even though it was a Saturday night in a swanky area and we were a large group, there was no problem in splitting the bill as some people (myself included) had to leave a little earlier than the rest.