Chistā, a Persian restaurant led by executive chef and partner Mojdeh Eghbal, opened to the public Nov. 11 near Rainey Street, a spokesperson for the restaurant said.
What’s on the menu
The menu draws on regional Iranian cuisine and Eghbal’s family recipes and travels, the spokesperson said. It includes cold and hot bites, salads, seafood, rice dishes and charcoal-fired kebabs, according to the restaurant’s website.
Cold bites include Persian gazpacho with cucumber, yogurt and raisins, and a grilled peach labneh with roasted garlic, rose petals and salted dried mint. Hot bites include a koobideh kebab hand roll on house-made lavash and a golden potato kuku.
“Strained yogurt is a staple of the Iranian table,” Eghbal said in a statement. “I pair it with Austin peaches and Persian flavors such as roasted garlic, dried mint and rose petals. Grilling intensifies the peach’s sweetness and balances the creamy, tangy labneh.”
Larger plates include ghalieh mahi, a stew from southern Iran’s coast with pan-seared whitefish, cilantro, fenugreek and tamarind sauce; fesenjoon chicken in a walnut-pomegranate stew; and beef and chicken kebabs. Tahchin, a crispy saffron yogurt rice with lamb and eggplant, is available by preorder for two, according to the menu. Starters and salads run $16-$23, and entrees range from $23 to $85.
