Since sharing a list of recently opened restaurants to check out, Fairview Heights quietly welcomed the opening of Royal Palm Mediterranean Cuisine.
I heard about the Aug. 23 soft opening from city officials on Tuesday while attending another event in town. My initial disappointment that I missed it quickly passed. When I stopped by the restaurant for details – mainly to see the menu – I did something I very rarely do on the clock.
I stayed for lunch.
As a rule, I don’t partake in the offerings of the restaurants while I’m covering them. Then again, aren’t most rules made to be broken?
I started with a sampler plate with pickles, olives, coleslaw, a tahini dip, a single falafel and some pita bread. Everything was very tasty, a good sign of what would follow.
Samples of the fare at Royal Palm Mediterranean Cuisine in Fairview Heights
The menu has a lot to offer, so I’ll share some highlights:
A vast menu of savory flavors … and hookah
Hummus and hummus with meat are the first items listed under appetizers. Standouts include the baba ghanouj, sujuk (spiced ground lamb and beef), sambousas (in meat, potato and cheese) and arayes, which is a mix of ground beef and lamb, parsley and spices stuffed into a freshly baked pita bread.
Soups and salads, sandwiches, entrées, casseroles and desserts are also available.
Go for a Fattoush (salad of mixed lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, onion, sweet peppers, parsley and radish drizzled with a lemon, olive oil, garlic and sumac dressing) or a nice lentil soup. Under sandwiches, go for a gyro, kabob or shawarma.
Breakfast items include the nakanek & eggs (spiced ground lamb and beef sausage links with onions, garlic, mixed peppers and eggs), shakshuka (chunks of tomatoes, olive oil, peppers, onion, garlic and spices with poached eggs) and veggie frittata.
Main entrées are served with rice, bread, salad, grilled tomatoes, peppers and onions. Some of them include lamb chops, grilled chicken and shawarma (beef, chicken or a combo).
Traditional Palestinian dishes are offered, too:
Maklubeh: Palestinian rice dish flipped upside down to reveal delicious layers of vegetables and meat (lamb or chicken). Served with Arabic salad;
Musakhan flatbread with ½ gilled chicken: Traditional Palestinian grilled chicken dish served with caramelized onions on a flatbread;
Baked Lamb Shoulder: Served with rice and salad.
Manakeesh, which as of Tuesday was not yet available, are levant flatbreads made with in-house dough. Options include cheese, za’atar (herb blend), vegetable, sujuk & cheese, and meat (ground beef and lamb).
It seems like I’m not doing justice to the menu in this column. My recommendation is to pay Royal Palm a visit and see it all for yourself.
The falafel sandwich with fries at Royal Palm Mediterranean Cuisine
I ordered the veggie stuffed grape leaves appetizer and the falafel sandwich, which came with fries.
The food was fantastic, but I have to mention the falafel. It was perfect. The outside was crispy and golden, and the inside was light and flavorful. Combined with the tomatoes, pickles, cucumber and tahini sauce and stuffed into a fresh pita, it was delicious.
And filling. I definitely ate too much and wasn’t at all sorry about it.
In addition to the extensive menu, Royal Palm also has a hookah room with its own menu. While I didn’t partake of this particular amenity, I was amazed at the number of flavors, which have different price points.
Maybe I’ll try that sometime, even if I don’t smoke.
About Royal Palm Mediterranean Cuisine
Royal Palm Mediterranean Cuisine is located at 130 Ludwig Drive in Fairview Heights.
The building previously housed three other restaurants since its construction in 1993. Carlos O’Kelly’s Mexican Café was there from November 1993 to November 2008. Then came Little Italy, which operated from July 2009 to December 2010, followed by Agostino’s Restaurant & Bar from November 2011 to February 2023.
Another restaurant, Jack Henry’s, was to open last fall. However, plans fell through, and the restaurant owner abandoned the project to open another restaurant in Iowa.
Royal Palm’s hours of operation are 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day. For more information, call 618-213-6355, visit royalpalmmediterraneancuisine.com or follow the business on Facebook and Instagram.
Dining and Cooking