Hummus.
I’ve been meaning to write this story for years.
Danbury has awesome hummus and it has awesome pita bread.
The pita bread used to be baked on Beaver Street by a brother and sister who worked through the night, and then delivered the fresh pita in the morning. Today, the bakery is located in Yonkers, from what I’ve heard. It’s still available each day in Dabury, not as fresh, but it’s still excellent.
About the hummus. This isn’t a gray area.
The best hummus in Danbury is made by John Hanna on Lake Avenue, and you can eat it either at Hanna’s Middle Eastern Restaurant, 72 Mill Plain Road, or next door at his deli. They’re side by side and you can’t miss them.
About Hanna’s hummus, you can find competing hummus, a close second, at Vivianne’s Middle Eastern Food, 36 Tamarack Ave. Her cousin Richie introduced me to her, and she is the opposite of grumpy.
Once, I stopped in for lunch and I couldn’t remember Richie’s name. When I asked how he was and she figured out I couldn’t remember his name, she very politely said, “Well, Richie is doing very well.”
Funny thing about Hanna’s. I like the people and I’ve enjoyed great food there for years.
I tell people it’s the best hummus, and some people tell me John Hanna is grumpy.
I’ve heard him referred to as “Mr. Grumpy,” but I don’t see it myself. He’s always friendly, and not only does he typically walk up front to take care of me, he walks up front and takes care of most shoppers.
Hanna runs both a restaurant and the Lebanese deli. The restaurant is excellent, and whatever you want from the deli is on the restaurant menu.
About the deli. It has fresh olives, and we all know we can buy olives pretty much anywhere right now, but he’s got olives in barrels in murky liquid, and coming out of those vats, they seem better somehow that the shriveled niblicks you pick up at Super Stop ‘N’ Shop.
You can buy Turkish Delight at Hanna’s, along with fresh nuts, dates, cheese and salads. (If you don’t remember Turkish Delight, it’s what the White Witch fed Edmond to capture his soul in “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.”
