Grill Kabab on Route 30

Happy accidents

You know how it goes: you're driving past and a sign catches your eye--this time it was 'GRILL KABAB' (1495 Lincoln Way East, Suite 109B, on that little strip mall East of I-81 and West of Walmart with the Dunkin Donuts). You're thinking: "we haven't seen a place serve honest-to-goodness Mediterranean style skewered meat since Bombay Diner on Wayne Ave closed during the summer." 


Inside's striking--tinted glass gives the interior a subdued brightness; minimalist decor and furniture, your basic Industrial Black. The menu isn't extensive: chicken, lamb, beef and vegetable kababs; lamb chops; some vegetarian options (but hey in my book a small menu isn't such a big deal if you can do what few you've got well). A sunnily smiling cashier took our order...which took a little time (to be fair there were only two behind the counter--her and the cook--and she apologized for the delay).

But the food's the thing of course and as it turns out was worth the wait. Luz opted for a mixed kebab plate: chicken and lamb. She was presented with a pretty plate of cumin-rubbed chicken and lamb, with a side of two dipping sauces (yogurt, I believe, one flavored with cilantro)

I had opted for the lamb chops and was given small but thick and tender morsels of lamb, grilled a perfect medium rare with cumin-rubbed crusty outside and lovely pink inside (can't stand well-done flesh--a waste of time in my opinion). Both dishes came with salad--lettuce, diced tomatoes, diced cucumber--in a robustly tart dressing that cut the richness of the meat. The long-grained basmati rice soaked up the lamb juice and sauce, and helped round out the meal nicely. 

With the meal, which was Middle Eastern, came naan, which was Indian: large disks of crusty brown grilled flatbread drizzled with ghee, the unbelievably rich clarified butter of India; they were accompanied by hummus (chickpeas mashed with tahini (sesame seed) paste) and saag palak--spinach chopped fine and sauteed with yogurt and spices.

O , and as for the delay--the cashier apologized again and gave us a chit for 10% discount, the next time we come over. Which we didn't really need--we were planning to sample the seafood options (salmon, if I remember right), the vegetable kebabs, and other dishes. But it's a nice little gesture.