Pomella

3770-B Piedmont Ave./MacArthur Blvd., (510) 250-9215. Daily 11-8.

entry to Pomella in Oakland, California

Situated in a duplex shared with Dona Mexican restaurant, Pomella specializes in Middle Eastern and Israeli fare and offers counter service--items are brought to the table. Big bowls of composed salads are particularly popular, and most items are meant to be shared. Ingredients are mostly organic, lamb is grass fed, salmon and shrimp are sustainably farmed, and the flatbread and pita are freshly housemade.

dining room at Pomella in Oakland, California

My dining partner and I shared a delicious shawarma lamb lafa wrap, which consisted of flatbread stuffed with tasty lamb, hummus, cabbage, salad, tahini, and a lemon-herb sauce. Next time I think I will try one of those salad bowls, or maybe a hummus plate with cheese-stuffed falafel, plus a side of pomegranate eggplant with yogurt-tahini sauce and also a seasonal panna cotta dessert that currently comes with pureed plum sauce.

shawarma wrap at Pomella in Oakland, California

Thinking ahead, I smartly picked up from the grab-and-go fridges some dense hummus, pretty pink pickled vegetables, and several pita breads to take home for dinner.

grab-and-go fridge at Pomella in Oakland, California

take-out hummus, pickled veggies, and pita bread at Pomella in Oakland, California

Seating is on a spacious open-air patio accented with blooming magenta bougainvillea, as well as indoors in a colorful space topped by garden lights crisscrossing the ceiling. A metered parking lot adjoins; street parking can be difficult.