Kabab Palace in Tempe isn’t just the only Afghan restaurant in town; it’s delicious

Kabab Palace's house naan, made with a blend of regular and whole wheat flour, was fresh, and great for soaking up all the sauces, but not really noteworthy on its own. However, I liked the trio of condiments — cilantro-walnut, yogurt-mint, and red chile sauces — as well as two kinds of traditional boiled-then-baked rice. Challow was the lighter one, speckled with cumin seeds, while pallow, seasoned with cumin seeds, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, and black pepper, had a discernible flavor that hinted at sweetness without actually being sweet. Most of the entrees came with one of these.

Lamb loomed large on the menu, showing up in half a dozen dishes. I tried it in dwopiaza and sabzi challow, and was torn between the two. The first, a sauté made with marinated, grilled leg of lamb, yellow split peas, and marinated onions, had a more vibrant flavor, and it also came with a side of garlicky mushrooms. However, the chunks of lamb were much moister in the second dish, sautéed with mildly seasoned spinach.

Vegetarian kourma challow was a zesty, garlic-tinged jumble of potatoes, turnips, green beans, carrots, onions, tomatoes, and cauliflower; the addition of cilantro perked up the flavors. But it wasn't nearly as dynamic as koufta challow, moist, beefy meatballs in a spicy tomato sauce with peppers, peas, and sundried tomatoes. In the way of kebabs, theeka kabab consisted of prime rib chunks that had been marinated in garlic, onion, and sundried baby grapes, and then grilled with pieces of pepper. They were nicely charred and juicy inside, definitely worthy of the restaurant's namesake.

Besides rice pudding, there was a handful of homemade desserts to pair with strong Turkish coffee. Feereny, a thick, creamy pudding, was lightly sweet and, like the rice pudding, tasted of cardamom and pistachio. Homemade mango ice cream was simple and refreshing, and bucklawa — a honey-drenched confection otherwise known as baklava — had many layers of pastry, which gave it a doughy flavor. As with other dishes at Kabab Palace, it was similar to versions I've had elsewhere, but still quite unique.

For the moment, Kabab Palace is literally one of a kind in the Valley. But I'm sure that if anyone else decided to open an Afghan restaurant in town, they'd face some stiff competition.