A Generous Meal at Ishtar in Downtown Fargo

A bowl of creamy hummus can set the tone nicely at Ishtar, the small downtown Fargo restaurant serving a broad spread of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern dishes. It is an unassuming room, with booth seating and a quiet enough atmosphere for an unhurried conversation, but the plates arrive with care rather than fuss.

The menu gives a group plenty to work with. There are wraps and rice plates, grilled meats and soups, vegetable-forward starters and salads, plus lamb, fish and kabob dishes when a simple sandwich will not do.

Ishtar works as an easy lunch stop, but it also holds up for dinner when the table starts filling with hummus, small plates, tea and a few different entrees. The food is fresh, warm and generously portioned, with a balance of seasoning that keeps the meal from becoming heavy.

Hummus is the order to put in early. It is notably smooth and fresh, a useful companion to a plate of meat, a falafel order or whatever vegetables and salads land on the table.

It also has enough character to stand on its own as a starter, rather than serving as an obligatory beige dip before the main event. A spread built around hummus, tabbouleh, dolmas and falafel makes a satisfying meal for people who prefer to sample around.

Samosas are available in an assortment, and kuupa appears among the appetizer choices as well. These are the kinds of menu details that make it easy to turn an entree order into a longer, more varied table meal.

Chicken shawarma and beef shawarma are central choices, available for diners who want the direct satisfaction of a well-filled wrap or a more substantial meal with rice. The chicken shawarma wrap is also a strong takeout option, especially paired with lentil soup.

Gyro fans have several paths: chicken gyro, beef gyro and Greek gyro all appear on the menu. The meat portions are notably generous, so these are not skimpy sandwiches dressed up with a lot of bread.

For a quick meal, a shawarma wrap and soup is a sensible two-item order. For a longer sit-down lunch, a gyro plus a shared appetizer gives the table a little more to explore.

The kitchen goes well beyond wraps. Chicken tikka, beef tikka and beef kabob offer grilled-meat options, while lamb chunk dishes give the menu another heartier direction.

The lamb shank with rice has its own following. It is the sort of deeply comforting plate that suits a cool Fargo day, particularly with hot tea alongside it.

Pompano fish appears among the entree choices, an appealing detour for diners who would rather skip red meat or chicken. Fresh vegetables and salads add color to the plates; even the salad has enough flavor to avoid the role of mere garnish.

Lentil soup is not just a menu filler here. It is a standout bowl: warming, well-seasoned and substantial enough to deserve its own spot in the order.

It pairs naturally with a shawarma wrap, but it also makes sense next to a plate of appetizers when the table is sharing. Tea is available, too, and it fits the slower, more lingering side of a meal built around rice, lamb and soup.

Meat dishes take up plenty of space on the menu, but Ishtar also offers a substantial vegetarian selection, with vegetarian dishes clearly identified. Hummus, falafel, dolmas, tabbouleh, salads and lentil soup create a solid starting point for a meat-free meal.

That variety matters when diners at one table want different things. One person can settle into a lamb-and-rice plate while another builds a meal from falafel, hummus and vegetables, without anyone being left with a token side dish.

Ishtar has the intimate scale of a neighborhood find rather than a large, polished restaurant production. The dining area includes booths, and the room is generally calm enough that a dinner for two does not have to compete with a loud crowd.

Ordering can happen at the counter or with help from the front staff, and the service style is friendly and attentive. With a small team at work, the pace can naturally depend on how busy the room is, but food is served warm and with careful presentation.

Dine-in and takeout are both available, making the restaurant useful on days when a sit-down plate of tikka and rice sounds right and on days when a chicken shawarma wrap, falafel and lentil soup need to travel home.