At Mandi, Eating Feeds Empathy

With a plethora of stunning lamb dishes for all occasions and moods, sensual fish and chicken options, bean and rice dishes, there is so much to explore here that one visit is not nearly enough.

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Let’s Eat!

Along an Anywhere USA strip of malls near the southern border of Milwaukee in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, you’ll be amazed to find some of the most hearty and heartening cuisine available in the Badger State. Yet this is no cheese-based American pub food. In some ways it’s the opposite of American, in another, exactly what America is meant to be, or at least sometimes strives to become. That is, in a word, multicultural.

In this spirit, Mandi Restaurant will serve you a burger and fries, chicken tenders, or even a Philly Cheesesteak if that’s what you really want. If you were expecting Mediterranean, they have shawarma and gyro. However, Mandi’s clear specialty is Yemeni food, and make no mistake, the oft vilified and embattled country of Yemen is not on the Mediterranean. It isn’t even close, and the deeply flavored Yemeni food has arguably less in common with those more familiar cuisines to the north than it does with its East African neighbors west across the Red Sea and south beyond the Gulf of Aden. Throw in some influence from India to the east by way of the Arabian Sea and you start to see that Yemen truly sits at the crossroads of the seafaring world, in its geography, its culture and its cuisine.

With a plethora of stunning lamb dishes for all occasions and moods, sensual fish and chicken options, bean and rice dishes, there is so much to explore here that one visit is not nearly enough. My favorite thus far is the lamb stew Fahsa, served bubbling in a clay pot alongside a massive Yemeni seeded flatbread that isn’t quite pita or naan, but somewhere in between. Chunks of lamb are submerged in a rich earthy broth of tomato, peppers, chilis, savories and a blend of herbs and spices, including a healthy dose of turmeric. To describe the lamb as tender does not do justice to how perfectly it melts in your mouth, in turn, melting your heart. I’ve honestly never had a better lamb stew in my life and I’m no spring chicken!

Red Tea, Clove and Cinnamon

Speaking of chicken, the word Mandi refers to the tandoor-esque clay oven where the slow-cooked Mandi Chicken dish is made manifest. It’s a popular option, more affordable than the lamb, served on an ample bed of saffron rice with a small side salad and a bright fresh herbed salsa. If you don’t want to eat meat, three different bean dishes offer a variety of flavors. The Yemeni beans come with a drizzle of yogurt and sprinkling of cilantro. The mixed beans include fava and white beans with a coriander-heavy blend of spices. Each comes with that special Yemeni flatbread, which seems homemade as it comes out warm and soft. Wash it all down with red tea, freshly brewed with hints of clove and cinnamon. It’ll make you smile.

The place is quite small, one short bar with just a few stools facing out the front window, one long table for large parties, one small table for two near the ordering counter, and another tucked in around a bend on the way to the bathroom. That’s it! The tables are adorned in gold and white lace-patterned tablecloths beneath a protective plastic. It is a simple unassuming setup for a restaurant but it’s warm, welcoming, thoughtful and thorough in its attention to what really matters — the food, the attitude, and the cleanliness!

The tragedies of ongoing civil war, relentless drone strikes, and rampant starvation in Yemen make it all the more necessary and significant for us to experience the tastes and hospitalities of this otherized culture. It is clear as day through how they feed you that Mandi’s operators value hard work, are dedicated to making a meaningful positive contribution to their community and are grateful for the opportunity. Discover this for yourself at 6508 S. 27th Street, south of College Ave just past the Pick and Save. Maybe after picking up a visiting friend or family member at the nearby Mitchell Airport will be the time for you. Or after a nice hike across the Seven Bridges in Grant Park. Or after hitting a box store up the block. Whenever you can, give Mandi a try. You’ll feel the aching soul of the Arab world in every bite—a feeling we all should open ourselves up to, in this moment as much or more than ever before.