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Mediterranean Déjà Vu Fairfax, Va., Temel Offers Trendy Greek Cooking by Rachel Hunt and Stephen Qualiana We found Temel Euro-Mediterranean Restaurant accidentally, which is not the way we like to do things, but our plans went awry. Originally, we had planned on dining at a Burmese restaurant, but when we arrived there it was mysteriously closed, even though we had phoned two hours earlier and made reservations. Determined to dine out, we found another new restaurant in the area and decided to give it a whirl. It was called Temel and was located in a small quiet strip mall in suburban Fairfax, Va. The interior was rather attractive in a modern way, but not too reminiscent of the Mediterranean, which is fine because restaurants often go overboard with their ethnic themes. We were seated in the large dining room, where there was probably more than 20 empty tables, but it was after all a Monday evening. Near our table was a large black metal wall hanging with ridges that water cascaded over to make relaxing patterns. While hypnotized by this waterfall, we thought of how the opening of Greek restaurants, generally calling themselves Mediterranean, have flooded the metro area in the last couple of years. We love Mediterranean and especially Greek food, but what we have noticed is that the menus and dishes are so similar at these Mediterranean bistros that you would think they were all franchises in the same chain. We started off with a Temel platter ($8.25). The cigars of feta, parsley and dill wrapped in phyllo were both crisp and tangy. The humus was some of the smooth and strong on the tahini. The dolmadi were exceptionally fresh. The traditional Greek appetizer was grape leaves stuffed with lamb and rice, but Temel’s had pinenuts and the unexpected zing of cinnamon. The fried zucchini was dipped in a light batter, and deep-fried till crispy on the outside yet supple in the middle without being greasy. The falafel platter ($6.50) was a fun, finger-food appetizer. The silver-dollar-size falafel patties were accompanied with tahini sauce and a spicy onion-rich salsa for dipping. The waiter was very young and untrained, so we didn’t blame him too much for his inability to help us select dishes. All he could advise was that "they’re all good." We forgave his lengthy chatter as trying to be friendly and his mispronunciation of some dishes. The kitchen of Temel offered nothing special in the way of presentation beyond plain but appetizing. All the food was served on standard-issue restaurant-white plates with just a nod to food placement. That’s the kind of place it is. The baked zucchini ($8.25) was a nice surprise for us, with tender zucchini sliced lengthwise and stuffed with ground meat, flavored lightly with spices and strongly of mint and in a rich tomato cream sauce. The baked Turkish salmon ($13.50) was an appetizing assortment of ingredients, layered into a casserole type of dish that may have erred slightly on the bland side. Flaky chunks of salmon were layered with sliced Greek potatoes with spinach rolled in, topped with a butter sauce. The pasticcio ($8.50) had some fine and delicate flavors with a tender bed of noodles and finely ground beef perfumed with spices. We could not complain about the mixed grill shish kabob. The thin chewy pita we used to wrap the seasoned marinated chunks of beef, chicken and lamb along with green bell peppers and plum tomato halves was superior. Our only reservation was with the tomato, which was hard and pulpy, but we know how difficult it is to get a good tomato in this town. The accompanying vegetables were served in a small paper bag and contained a medley of peas, carrots, corn, lima beans and cubes of potatoes was unusual in that it was grilled. The sucak ($8) is becoming a standard at the Mediterranean restaurants. Other ones we’ve seen are also pizza served in canoe-shaped pie with thin crust, mozzarella cheese—even with the spicy Turkish sausage slices. The Greek rice pudding ($2.95) was smooth, rich and creamy, a bit thicker than we are accustomed to. One of the desserts, kunefe ($4.25) was similar to a toasted corn muffin, sprinkled on top with ground pistachios, covered with honey sauce. Old favorite Baklava ($3.50) was very nice, crisp phyllo, lots of honey sauce, very finely ground walnuts, also strewn with chopped fruit—slices of apple, strawberry and banana. Although we enjoyed our visit to Temel, we hope the Mediterranean bistro trend fades before we get too much of a good thing. Temel is at 3232 Old Picket Road, Fairfax, Va. The telephone number is (703) 352-5477. Lunch is served Monday to Friday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dinner is served Monday to Friday from 5 to 10 p.m. On weekends the restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Dress is casual. All major credit cards are accepted. Rachel Hunt and Stephen Qualiana are the restaurant reviewers for The Washington Diplomat.