Mirage Restaurant

Award winner

2284 Gulf to Bay Blvd., Clearwater, FL 33765

(727) 724-3604

http://www.miragerestaurant.com/

Awards: Florida Trend Golden Spoon

Categories: Restaurant

Cuisine: Greek, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern

Features: Buffet, Kid-friendly

Cost range: 10.01-20.0

Payment options: Credit cards accepted

Alcohol: Beer and wine only

The most dynamically flavored dishes don't seem to appear on the weekday lunch buffet; thus a dinner visit is in order (caution: belly dancing Friday and Saturday evenings). Two of the most famous Persian dishes, fesenjan and shirin polo, are elegantly rendered at Mirage. The former is chicken bathed in a sweet-sour sauce made of ground walnut and pomegranate juice, the tangy stew ladled over basmati. The latter is a traditional Iranian wedding dish, a chicken-rice hootenanny of saffron, orange peel, pistachio and slivered almonds. Sweet but with the sharp taste of barberry (like a cranberry with 'roid rage), it's a lovely dish.

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