The Helmand - @@@@

Went here Thursday night with some friends who used to live in Boston. It was an Afghani restaurant they highly recommended. I can't remember ever having that cuisine, so I was a little skeptical and worried it would be too much like Indian. Looked at the menu online and the Arabic influences convinced me to go.

Am I glad I did. We started with a pumpkin app called Kaddo. It is pumpkin baked with sugar and topped with yogurt sauce and a separate ground beef sauce. It sounds weird, but tastes amazing. The pumpkin was soft but not too mushy. Sweet but not too sugary. Beef sauce savory but not too salty. Overall one of the best apps I have ever has right up there with the stuffed Italian hot peppers from Bravo Franco in Pittsburgh.

For my entree I had the shish kabobs. They were lamb and cooked medium rare. It was seasoned pretty well, but not as good as the Arabic back home in Michigan. Also served with it was pallow rice, which is rice seasoned with cardomum, cinnamon, nutmeg, cumin, and black pepper. The rice was kinda Indian-y but ok. My friends got the lamb chops, which looked much superior to mine.

Overall I thought this was a great place and am really glad I tried it. I will definitely come back for the app and the lamb chops. Thanks Aviva for the recommendation!

143 1st St
Cambridge, MA 02142