expanded Schwarma King now open

Yesterday I wanted a chicken schwarma. So I walked over to Schwarma King and was nicely suprised to see that his renovations are pretty much done and the expanded menu is good to go. My cravings for a chicken schwarma were still running high and my desire to get back to see Crazy Carl back in a Sox uniform made time an issue as well. So I still got a chicken schwarma, but I also got a falafel sandwich and it was very very good (much better than the sandwhich across the street at Salaam (which is odd because Salaam makes the best falafel in the city I think)).

The chicken schwarma has been slightly re-designed and I think improved. The sauce has a little more garlic and I think it's possible that the chicken is not on a spit now (or at least it's not cut from a spit and put directly in the sandwhich). The chicken is much more tender and juicy and seems permeated with more flavor. There's also lettuce and pickel in the wrap.

If the the two items I tried were any indication of the rest of the food, I think the King has a winner. The man clearly cares about the quality of his food. Prices are pretty low (the schwarma is still $4.95--the large, which all he offers now) and the menu has a variety of things that I wish I could remember (of course I forgot the menu).


On the other hand, there is a new place on Kedzie where George's used to be. City Noor Kabab I think it's called. I haven't eaten there but I was a little disappointed to see that the outdoor menu lists hamburgers and hot dogs and Italian beef before any Middle-Eastern food. Then again, who knows? They could be the best hamburgers in the world or the Middle-Eastern food might be their real strength and they are just trying to bring in some non-Middle Eastern with the other stuff while assuming their Middle Eastern customers will know the deal and still come for the Middle Eastern food. As far as I'm concerned, it can't be any worse than Georges's.

I noticed City Noor's kebab place just the other day as well, but haven't had a chance to stop in. I didn't notice the sign touting burgers and Italian beef. City Noor is also a butcher two or so doors north that is quite excellent based on my few visits and the recommendations of some others, so I have high hopes for the restaurant.

Burgers and hot dogs seem more apropos of the recently opened Stop and Go (or something like that) gyro shop that opened in the strip mall just south of the train tracks. I haven't tried this place either.

And I'm eager to try the new Shawerma King, too, though disappointed the small sandwiches are no longer on offer--such a pleasant snack and a bargain to boot.

Finally, around the corner on Lawrence, I'm pretty sure I saw a banner on Luxor Cafe (erstwhile Egyptian place) proclaiming "South American Cuisine" or some such. Any word on this?

A lot's going on this area...

Antonius and I had lunch yesterday at City Noor Kabab, thanks to a tip from someone with three initials. We enjoyed the food (kofta kabab, lamb kabab, okra with rice, baba ghanooj, salad), but feel we should warn fellow chowists that things are still a bit disorganized there (they opened only four days ago, and were expecting their menus to be delivered later yesterday, for example).

As Aaron mentioned, the owners are the Palestinian couple who run City Noor Market just a few doors north on Kedzie; their chef is Egyptian. They were very welcoming, happy to see us in their new place, and are eager for feedback. We certainly plan to visit there again.


City Noor Kabab
4714 (B) N. Kedzie Ave.
773 267-9695

Where is that guy with three initials?

By his own wishes, on permanent retirement from internet food boards. Too bad, he was so interesting to read.

i had the pleasure of eating there w/ the three initialed one sunday. the schwarma was wonderful - the meat tender, juicy and with a good amount of heat. and the falafel is now my favorite in the city - made with fava beans instead of chickpeas, made fresh as we watched, these little gems were light and airy, sprinkled with sesame seeds, with a pale green hue inside which came from the slight mint seasoning. they were served with yogurt/cucumber sauce with a generous dollop of a very falvorful green sauce (mild heat, but the chef gave us a side of the same green sauce, high heat - that i much preferred).

this place is definately worth a second (and third, etc.) to check out the rest of the (not yet arrived ) menu.

leesh

Sharon,

Please clarify, did you get the fava bean falafel at City Noor Kabab or at Shwarma King? I know at least one person who will flip to have access to fava bean falafel.

Thanks!

CMC wrote:
On the other hand, there is a new place on Kedzie where George's used to be. City Noor Kabab I think it's called. I haven't eaten there but I was a little disappointed to see that the outdoor menu lists hamburgers and hot dogs and Italian beef before any Middle-Eastern food. Then again, who knows? They could be the best hamburgers in the world or the Middle-Eastern food might be their real strength and they are just trying to bring in some non-Middle Eastern with the other stuff while assuming their Middle Eastern customers will know the deal and still come for the Middle Eastern food. As far as I'm concerned, it can't be any worse than Georges's.

Actually, I think theyre trying to bring in their Middle-Eastern customers on a
more regular basis, especially the ones with families (and younger kids).

IMHO they will draw a lot of Middle Eastern Muslims (as well as other Muslims,
from Asia and the like), who come especially for the burgers and hot-dogs
and Italian Beefs. This is because City Noor (affiliated to the butchers shop,
and getting the meat for their restaurant from said butcher shop) is well
known as a provider of Halal Meat, which is very important to a lot of
Muslims.

A fair number of middle-easterns may not go to a middle-eastern restaurant
at all, often enough - after all, they make similar food at home (and, many will
tell you, they do it better at home OTOH, an increasing number of younger
ones (especially kids) *want* hot-dogs and burgers and Italian Beefs. And
they cant get it anywhere - a lot of Muslims will eat *only* Halal meat, and
so they dont have the option of going to Mcdonald's or BK or Jury's for
burgers, or to Superdawg or Poochie's etc for hot dogs, or to Johnnie's
or Al's for Italian Beef. Their only option is to try and make them at home
(thus, if you go to a Halal Butchers, they will often provide beef patties
and hot-dog links etc on the side too, or even in their "frozen food"
section. These are, obviously, not nearly as good as pretty much any
burger or hot-dog stand in Chicago). These Muslims are meat-eaters - but
when they leave home they are usually enforced-vegetarians (last weekend
for exa,mple I was in a car in downstate Illinois with 3 such, and we stopped
at a Pizza Hut - and, all 3 Hyderabadis who are heavy meat-eaters, ordered
only cheese pizza

City Noor will offer an alternate option for this section of the populace. I'll bet
you that a *lot* of Middle-Eastern muslims who end up going there *will* eat
the burgers and hot-dogs and Italian Beefs. OTOH, I think almost no
"Americans" will order these items - not if they are smart Why would one
want to try the Italian Beef at Noor's when one can consume the best at
Johnnie's, after all? For the ones not constrained by Halal-laws, their
best option at City Noor will obviously be the kababs, the schawarma's,
the falafels et al.

c8w

I bet the fava falafel were from city noor, as it is mentioned they have an egyptian cook. My experience is that favas for falafel are more of an egyptian thing than in other parts of falafel world

yes, it was at the city noor kabab. i would have tried the food at the other places in the area, schwarma king, noon-o-kabab, salaam, however, was too full and verrry satisfied from the selections at city noor kabab.

leesh

Cathy2 wrote:Sharon,

Please clarify, did you get the fava bean falafel at City Noor Kabab or at Shwarma King? I know at least one person who will flip to have access to fava bean falafel.

Thanks!

Who would that be?

I am so tired of hearing Salam's chickpea falafel spoken of in superlatives!

Erik M.

Finally made it to City Noor Kabab, albeit briefly and for quick takeout. The menus have arrived, and surprisingly to me, they offer, in addition to the Middle Eastern stuff, a section of "Special Pakistani & Indian Plates" that includes mostly chicken/lamb/beef biryani and a few parathas.

The "House Specialties" are, according to the menu, all charcoal grilled--lamb leg, lamb chops, goat steak, beef steak, veal steak.

Among the other delicacies, under sandwiches, is listed:

Liver, Kidney, Heart or Spleen (or together) ﮐﺒﺓ ﺃﻮﮑ ﮐﻼﻮﻱ ﺃﻮﻗﻠﻮﺏ ﺃﻮ ﻃﻌﺎ ﻞ ﺃﻮﻣﻊ ﺑﻌﺽ
(From Goat, Lamb or Veal)

(The Arabic is a close approximation of what actually appears. The first word, moving right to left, is certainly misspelled, as is the fourth from last. But you get the idea. And it's fun to play with Arabic characters.)

The back of the menu lists "Every Day Two Kind of This Special of the Week". The list of 19 items includes such diverse offerings as: Mansaf (rice, lamb, yogurt), White Kidney Beans (Mixed with lamb or beef), Spaghetti (With Meat & Tomatoes), and Dolma or Pacha.

In any case, the menu seems promising.

For food, we just got two sandwiches--one falafel and one chicken shawarma. The falafel sandwich was the best I've ever had, largely due to the limey, hot peppery, green sauce. Wow, this stuff was great. But the falafels, too, crumbled into manageable pieces rather than stuffed as whole balls, fava beans (as mentioned) freshly fried. Truly a great sandwich. The chicken schwarma looked good, but I think suffered from us being among the first customers early on a Sunday afternoon. There was no meat on the shawarma spits, so I imagine this was leftover. It failed to live up to my ideal, Shawerma King (though I haven't tried since the expansion), but I did like it better than the sandwich at Salam.

We didn't sample the kids menu, though Watson has since asked if we could return with peanut butter to garnish the pitas. He was also entranced by Middle Eastern music videos playing on a large screen television.

Cheers,

Aaron

Aaron,

Having been to City Noor six or seven times, now, I can tell you that your shawerma was not "leftover." To date, the rotisseries have not been put to use, and I have been given no clear indication as to whether they ever will be.

Dishes have varied so greatly from visit to visit that I am reluctant to comment on much at all. Yes, as it has been mentioned before, the falafil is made from ful nabed (fava), exclusively. I was very impressed with them on my first two visits. Since then, my enthusiasm for them has waned. In part, I attribute this to the fact that they have been prepared by a total of four different chefs. FWIW, it is the female chef from Jordan whose falafil has pleased me the most. [If she happens to be in, ask for a sample of her housemade pickled cauliflower.]

Oh, the kefta, which I have tried twice, has been exceptional. The meat was flavourful, moist, and did not suffer from overhandling. It was markedly better than all of the other kefta preparations that I have had in this town.

Time has not permitted me to order any of the grilled "specials," but I have had two of the dishes from the backside of the menu. Suffice it to say, and as you have already done so, yes, "the menu seems promising."



Regards,
Erik M.

Thanks, interesting note about the rotisserie. Our food was prepared by the woman I know from the butcher shop two doors north, but whose name I keep forgetting. Interesting, also, that there are several cooks.

One other thing--I asked how their first few weeks were going, and she said they needed more people like us. I wasn't sure if she was referring to our pale skin or our two young children. Nor was I sure if she meant it as a general, "Well, we're open now" or if it belied a concern that the operation was getting off the ground more slowly than anticipated.

But it sounds like you're doing your part. Six or seven times is pretty good. Give me a shout sometime, and we can meet you up there. I'm always looking for an excuse to drag Kate and the boys out to eat.

Look forward to hearing the results of your future explorations.

Cheers,

Aaron

Erik M. wrote:
Having been to City Noor six or seven times... Dishes have varied so greatly from visit to visit that I am reluctant to comment on much at all.

Erik:

Amata and I have been there once so far and will be returning, as the City Noor butcher shop is one of the few places we visit regularly for meat. The inconcistency you describe reminds me of our experiences with Al Kheimiah after they started their remodelling: wild variation in quality and details of presentation, service, recipes...

By the way, last time we were up there, we stopped in at Al Khayam (the grocery side of the business) and -- lo and behold -- they were rearranging and remodelling the store yet again. That's a long time to set up a couple of tents*...

Oh, the kefta, which I have tried twice, has been exceptional. The meat was flavourful, moist, and did not suffer from overhandling. It was markedly different than all of the other kefta preparations that I have had in this town.

On our one visit (mentioned briefly above in this thread) we had the kefta/kofta and agreed that a) it was excellent; b) quite different from other versions we've had. Both with regard to texture -- softer, more moist than most-- and flavour -- more restrained and balanced, especially without any sharp edge, be it from chile or garlic or onion or the 'sweet' spicing (allspice or cinnamon), it was the best we've had in Albany Park.

By the way, though I've mentioned this before (at least on CH), it might be appropriate to mention it again here, I get my ground meat for kefta at the City Noor butcher shop; they often have their own mixture of lamb and beef already made up but if not, I pick the cuts and have the owner grind up the meat in the appropriate proportions.

Antonius

* That's what the name means in Arabic.

Antonius,

A few random comments:

Anymore, I generally refrain from engaging in the subject of Middle Eastern food on the boards. As several people here know, and have heard me say many times, I am quite particular about the foodstuffs and dishes from that part of the world, having lived and traveled there extensively. I know what I know and I know what I like, to be perfectly blunt about it. Whether or not others manage to feel the same way I do about something, I care not a wit. To be even more blunt, I am not particularly fond of the vast majority of representative foods found in this town. It was word of the fava falafil at City Noor that brought me out of my spider hole.

I appreciate your suggestion about the City Noor Meat Market. I am familiar with the shop, but have never tried the item that you mention. I will keep it in mind the next time that I plan a dinner party menu accordant with that item. [As I live by my lonesome, the likelihood of me doing so for just myself is slim.]

I should have mentioned in my response to Aaron, as it has not been mentioned here, before, that the falafil made by the female chef are in a style that I have only seen in a few isolated circumstances*. After hand-shaping the fava "rissoles," and before placing them into the fryer, she heavily coats them on one side with sesame seeds. While not my favourite preparation, this is not altogether disagreeable to me. Interestingly, I have not had them made the same way by the other chefs.

One more note on the falafil, and again as no one has mentioned it here, before, is the fact that the falafil are six to an order, unless ordered as the basis of a sandwich. This ensures that the falafil will always be made and fried to order, but the fact that they are batched may be a turn off for those bargain hunters that are enamoured with Salam's by-the-piece pricing scheme.

Erik M.

* Once in the former Trucial State of Ra's al-Khaymah, another time in the former Trucial State of Ajman (at a hotel--The Ajman Beach Hotel-- nonetheless), and twice in Upper Egypt.

Erik M. wrote:I should have mentioned in my response to Aaron, as it has not been mentioned here, before, that the falafil made by the female chef are in a style that I have only seen in a few isolated circumstances*. After hand-shaping the fava "rissoles," and before placing them into the fryer, she heavily coats them on one side with sesame seeds. While not my favourite preparation, this is not altogether disagreeable to me. Interestingly, I have not had them made the same way by the other chefs.

Actually when I was there a few weeks back (see my post earlier on in this thread) that was exactly how the chef made them (stout egyptian fellow)

Leesh

I stopped in at the newly remodeled Schwarma King today for lunch and I wasn't terribly blown away. The chicken sch. sandwich was tender, but tasted mostly like a grilled chicken sandwich on lavash. The beef schwarma was much more flavorful than the chicken but didn't really blow me away.

I was much happier with the thick, tart yogurt salad and the slightly smoky baba ganouj.

It sounds like you are describing the chicken sandwhich that is on the menu. While decent, I agree it's nothing amazing. His chicken schwarma sandwhich, which isn't on the menu, however, is top notch.

Also, try the green bean salad (I can't remember the menu name). It's amazing--perfect blend of garlic, olive oil and herbs. His kefta and shish-kabobs are really good as well.

CMC wrote:It sounds like you are describing the chicken sandwhich that is on the menu. While decent, I agree it's nothing amazing. His chicken schwarma sandwhich, which isn't on the menu, however, is top notch.

Also, try the green bean salad (I can't remember the menu name). It's amazing--perfect blend of garlic, olive oil and herbs. His kefta and shish-kabobs are really good as well.

I was very wary of this since I didn't see it on the menu. I made sure to ask him, before I ordered, "Do you have a chicken schwarma sandwich?"

He said, "I can make you one, yes."

I said, "It is not on the menu?"

He replied, "No, but I will make it special".

Maybe he changed his mind last-minute.

Did it have a pickle? Outside of trying to describe the overall taste differences, I know the schwarma has a pickle and the other sandwhich doesn't. (His old style chicken schwarma didn't have a pickle, but when he expanded the menu his schwarma changed a little, in my opinion for the better).

CMC wrote:Did it have a pickle? Outside of trying to describe the overall taste differences, I know the schwarma has a pickle and the other sandwhich doesn't. (His old style chicken schwarma didn't have a pickle, but when he expanded the menu his schwarma changed a little, in my opinion for the better).

There was indeed a pickle.

CMC wrote:Yesterday I wanted a chicken schwarma. So I walked over to Schwarma King and was nicely suprised to see that his renovations are pretty much done and the expanded menu is good to go. My cravings for a chicken schwarma were still running high and my desire to get back to see Crazy Carl back in a Sox uniform made time an issue as well. So I still got a chicken schwarma, but I also got a falafel sandwich and it was very very good (much better than the sandwhich across the street at Salaam (which is odd because Salaam makes the best falafel in the city I think)).

The chicken schwarma has been slightly re-designed and I think improved. The sauce has a little more garlic and I think it's possible that the chicken is not on a spit now (or at least it's not cut from a spit and put directly in the sandwhich). The chicken is much more tender and juicy and seems permeated with more flavor. There's also lettuce and pickel in the wrap.

If the the two items I tried were any indication of the rest of the food, I think the King has a winner. The man clearly cares about the quality of his food. Prices are pretty low (the schwarma is still $4.95--the large, which all he offers now) and the menu has a variety of things that I wish I could remember (of course I forgot the menu).

We wanted a quick bite after a day on Da'Bomb and decided to try the new King. CMC's comments were spot-on. The chicken shwarama does not seem cut from the spit, but that did not ruin it. Actually, it just added a third texture to the meat. There was the shwarma crust, the interior moist and the third, a striping of char from the final heat-up on the grill. The sandwich itself, especially as customized with available condiments, is likewise a marvel of extra flavors. Sweet sumac dusted onions, the sneaky garlic-yoghurt sauce, the much less sneaky green hot sauce, the thin pita. Sigh, if they only added a few pickles, but the thing was still kingly.

Everything else we got was fit for a king too. Really good, smokey baba ganoush, smooth homous, and a tabouleh that seemed possesed of something that notched it up way past similar dishes around town, but something I could not identify.

Shwarma King is not the pleasarama of all around eating that is Steve's Shish Kebab House or even the dirt cheap fix that is Pita Inn, but it is a fine house of eating in our city.