Value and freshness satisfy at Bread Bites

I won’t bury the lead: Bread Bites is my favorite restaurant I’ve discovered since emerging from my height-of-the-pandemic isolation cave. I’ve sampled its food on three occasions now, and each time I’m blown away by the freshness and home-cooked level of care. 

I was thrown off for a long time by its name, which does not suggest the Middle Eastern delights on offer. Upon closer inspection, the name refers to its signature menu item — bite-sized envelopes of bread with your choice of delectable fillings. My dining companion ordered an olive and cheese bite to accompany her entrée, and my stolen nibble was superb.

For my dinner, I went with one of the “pies,” pizza-like configurations cooked in a brick oven with a variety of toppings to choose from. I got the Armenian pie, which was covered in a layer of succulent ground beef seasoned with (I’m guessing) a blend of allspice, garlic, onion and roasted red pepper, which lent a surprising sweetness. It came with lemon to squeeze on top as well as tahini to drizzle, which only heightened the already dazzling flavor. 

The pie’s bread base is excellent, but it’s important to try it on its own to appreciate it fully. Thankfully, my meal came with seemingly just-baked rounds of the stuff to accompany my sides of hummus and the house salad. The hummus is smooth, creamy and milder than most varieties, perfectly combined with bites of the mouthwatering, fuchsia-hued house dressing on the salad. I’m trying to resist being superlative, but that dressing would be convincing to the most ardent salad denier. 

When my loaded tray of food was set before me, I thought, “Certainly, I’ll have leftovers.” But it was just too good. And for only $12.25, I can’t be mad about it. Not pictured is the baklava cheesecake I had to get after seeing it all over social media. (Shoutout to the Lansing Foodies Facebook group, an indispensable resource.) It was as delicious as it sounds — a layer of cheesecake covered in crushed, honeyed pistachios, drizzled with a not-too-sweet, house-made strawberry sauce, capped with a flaky layer of phyllo dough. 

I didn’t order one this time, but I must also recommend the soups. (I’ve tried two.) What I can’t get over is how homemade everything looks and tastes and how reasonable the prices are. Bread Bites has all the greatest hits you’d expect at a Middle Eastern restaurant as well as new things to try. If you’re anything like me, you’ll probably find yourself going back until you’ve tried it all.