kl5 wrote:

d4v3 wrote:So, any guesses as to how much our lunch at BB&P cost?

My guess: $48.00, after tax and before tip.

Kl5,

Good guess, but a little high. Lunch for 6 was $45.02 including tax, not including tip. An incredible value.



Enjoy,
Gary

And you can feed five women at BB&P for $30.01. Cathy2 and I did that last night -- and took home leftovers.

You know, this place keeps surprising me. I guess the problem is that I still think of it as hole-in-the-wall fastfood place. A few weeks ago, I ordered the shish kebab, thinking it would not be that good. Once again, it was much better than I expected it to be, not in the same class a Cafe Suron, but a total deal at 7.99.

Tonight, I had a similar experience. Being a Friday, the father of the family was running the show. We ordered the fantastic fried Kubba Mosul, pictured on the previous page, with the wonderful mango mustard chili sauce. For an entree I decided I would have a "cornish hen". It was another dish I had avoided, thinking this glorified hotdog stand could not possibly make a decent cornish hen. Once again, I was very pleasantly surprised. The dish was 6.95 and included salad, lentil soup, pickled vegetables, rice and "stew". It featured a cut up cornish hen, grilled perfectly, juicy and moist inside with a nice char on the outside.


What they call stew is actually a vegetable soup which is poured over the rice. It seems to change all the time. Sometimes it is okra and navy beans in tomato sauce (my favorite). Other times it has been potatoes and peas in a yellow curry broth. Tonight, it was green beans in tomato sauce with a nod to the American diner, a frozen vegetable medley. Still, it was tangy and good.


The owner was very hospitable. He loves when people enjoy his food. He sent over a complimentary hummus, as well as bringing us two glasses of Assyrian tea at the end of the meal. When we told him we were too full for dessert, he brought out a rice pudding and a kenafa to go, on the house. I was going to take a photo of the very pretty kenafa when I got home, but I ended up eating it instead. It is a sort of cheese custard topped with shredded Phylo dough which is broiled until crispy and served in a honey syrup. It was delicious, with contrasting layers of textures. From the top down, there was the crispy broiled topping on top of a chewy melted cheese crust over the creamy flan-like body and finally resting in a pool of sweet honey syrup. On the other hand, the rice pudding was, well, rice pudding.

d4v3 wrote:It featured a cut up cornish hen, grilled perfectly, juicy and moist inside with a nice char on the outside.

Dave,

Love Cornish hen and Big Buns and Pita's preparation looks terrific, sounds delicious and the price most certainly is right. It's been over a month since I've been, time seems ripe for another visit.

Enjoy,
Gary

d4v3 wrote:You know, this place keeps surprising me. I guess the problem is that I still think of it as hole-in-the-wall fastfood place. A few weeks ago, I ordered the shish kebab, thinking it would not be that good. Once again, it was much better than I expected it to be, not in the same class a Cafe Suron, but a total deal at 7.99.

The owner was very hospitable. He loves when people enjoy his food. He sent over a complimentary hummus, as well as bringing us two glasses of Assyrian tea at the end of the meal. When we told him we were too full for dessert, he brought out a rice pudding and a kenafa to go, on the house. I was going to take a photo of the very pretty kenafa when I got home, but I ended up eating it instead. It is a sort of cheese custard topped with shredded Phylo dough which is broiled until crispy and served in a honey syrup. It was delicious, with contrasting layers of textures. From the top down, there was the crispy broiled topping on top of a chewy melted cheese crust over the creamy flan-like body and finally resting in a pool of sweet honey syrup. On the other hand, the rice pudding was, well, rice pudding.

Kenafa (or Konafa) is available most places IMHO - at least, Pita Inn
*always* has it. It is my dessert of choice there, I prefer it to the
baklava (which is the only other dessert Pita Inn carries). You can
also get konafa at most Middle-Eastern bakeries and sweet shops
on Kedzie.

As for Big Buns and Pita.. I have been a couple of times. Tried a few
different items, going by the posts above. Everyone had raved about
the Quuzi, so that was part of hte first meal itself - I didnt think *that*
much of it, personally, it was just ok lamb shank IMHO (maybe my
opinion was colored by the fact that I had just gotten a superior
lamb shank at JK Kabab House just off Devon a day or so earlier).

OTOH, the kofta kabab, the shish kabab etc - all were quite excellent
(and also a remarkably good value). I much preferred these to their
lamb dishes, they were very good. I have not made it there for
lunch, but their lunch special must surely be a new entrant in the
"best meal under 5 bucks" thread of a couple of months ago - IIRC
they told me it was a good sized kabab, plus rice, soup etc, for
about 4 bucks. And if the kabab is the same, thats a pretty damn
good kabab.

The other thing I must make special mention of - I usually ignore tea in
these kinds of establishments, dont think much of them. However when I
heard they had Assyrian tea, I had to get it (my mechanic is Assyrian
and has sometimes provided very good tea while Iam waiting for
my oilchange etc And this was really quite excellent. It will always
be a part of my order from now on.

Overall a quite excellent place - the friend I went with was somewhat
reluctant when I first told him of the place (he wanted Middle-Eastern
food, but was pushing for our more usual Pita Inn rather than a brand
new spot with I claimed was named "Big Buns and Pita" But he was
very much sold by the end, and insisted he'd be back at the earliest.
Talked to the owner only for a minute or so, and he was very pleasant
(however he didnt send us any gratis dessert, we not looking nearly
as important personages as d4v3

c8w

P.S. Talking on this place, BTW, I noticed it was quite literally next door
to the much-lamented Cafe Salamera. Is that due to reopen anytime
soon? I do seem to remember talk of mid-December a while ago?

I also didn't find the stews that memorable but was really pleasantly surprised by the cornish heans and the fava beans and the kababs in general.

anyone have an update on salamera?

zim wrote:anyone have an update on salamera?

At the beginning of December, the place looked like it was about to open. There were Lavazza posters up and table cards hawking fruit smoothies. There was also a sign that said "Grand Opening Soon". Since then I have checked the place every week, but as of last week, it was still not open. I will check again today. From what I can see through the window, the new emphasis is definitely on beverages. Unfotunately, there is another newly opened "cafe" offering Italian coffee just down the street. I am not sure the southeast Rogers Park cappuccino market will support two cafes almost across the street from one another. I hope Norca quickly realizes that her future lies in pork bellies, not coffeee and cocoa beans.

The sign on Salamera mentions that it opens today (January 9). We also had the impression that it was being converted into a cafe, with an emphasis on beverages.

There were definitely people inside with the lights off when we drove by at ~9:30 last night.

Are you guys sure that the beverage stuff isn't there from one of the seemingly dozen other places that opened and failed in the same space since Salamera closed? As I recall, the very first operation to take over that spot was a smoothie place.

Had the lomo saltado at La Unica a couple of weeks ago. Good, but not the same. I wants teh Salamera!

cilantro wrote:Are you guys sure that the beverage stuff isn't there from one of the seemingly dozen other places that opened and failed in the same space since Salamera closed? As I recall, the very first operation to take over that spot was a smoothie place.

Yeah, I am afraid the cafe stuff is all new. When we spoke with Norca there a couple of months ago, none of it was up and the blackboard was blank (now it has coffee drinks listed). She even showed us the coffee and cocoa posters. However on a more promising note, she did say her mother would once more be cooking for the new venture. We just need to give her encouragment in the right direction.

d4v3 wrote:We just need to give her encouragment in the right direction.

Yeah, as long some version of the old menu is a subset of the new one, she can serve McRibs for all I care. It seems pretty clear that the first time around they failed to attract many locals, so maybe this incarnation will do the trick.

(Er, it's best not to think too hard about how exactly coffee drinks will accomplish this, lest I get depressed again.)

LTH,

Stopped in for a pleasant solo lunch at Big Buns and Pita (and that ain't no lie) earlier in the week. Hadn't been in a month or so and am happy to report the hummus w/shawirma and lahim beajin was as good, if not even better, than my last visit. They were using the thin pita that d4v3 prefers as well.

The only downside to lunch is after I read this post by c8w I feel bit guilty for not going to Cafe Salamera.

Enjoy,
Gary

As much as I want to like this place, the food that I've tried so far has been decent at best, but more often poor-ish to downright poor, and, in these latter assessments, today's lunch was no exception...

1. Lentil Soup

- Tasty, as many others have already indicated, yes. But, I'd bet anything that commercial seasoning mix plays a role, and I'd rather do without it.

2. Tabbouleh

- It looked nice enough, with a fine mince of fresh parsley, tomato, and green onion. And, it looked to hit the mark with a proportionate amount of bulgar, but...

- It completely lacked for flavour in the way of salt and lemon juice. And, the only flavour that it did have came by way of low-rent salad oil (it certainly didn't taste like olive oil), which gave the whole thing a very unpalatable mouthfeel, and which I'd swear I still taste, some three hours on...

3. Hummous/Shawarma

- The hummous had an odd, unpleasant tanginess from, what I'm guessing was, the inclusion of bottled lemon juice.

- The shawarma meat was by no means great, but it was the highlight of my meal. Unfortunately, the meat sat in a pool of low-rent olive oil, which became nearly impossible to avoid after a few bites.

Now, I have had a couple of perfectly serviceable rice-based dinner plates, and there are a couple more I'd like to try, but when it comes to the sandwiches, salads, fried items, pickles, soups, and their likes, I've given up. For those sorts of things I will continue to patronize Salam, Semiramis, City Noor, Al-Khaymeih, etc.

E.M.

Erik M,

As much as I like Big Buns, I do agree with your assessment of the Hummous. I was disappointed in the Taboule as well (on the other hand, I think you are off target on the soup). Regardless, there are some things that Big Buns does well. Since it is an Assyrian place, their strengths tend to be with Assyrian dishes rather than the basic Middle-Eastern stuff. I like the Kibbeh Mosul, Cornish Hen and the Tashreeb. The Fava and Chickpea Falafels are excellent with the mustard sauce (you can order them ala carte for .35 each). The Fava bean Madames is tasty. The Shawarma is usually just OK (depending on timing), but the Kefta Kebabs are very good. Compared to Larsa's, the Lahim Beajin is not that great, and the dolmas are an awful mushy mess.

BB&P has its definite shortcomings, but the appeal is that it is really cheap and totally unpretentious. If it was anything more than a glorified hotdog stand, I would hold it to a higher standard. In fact, the vast majority of its business is in burgers, dogs, chicken fingers and pizza puffs. Given the environment, the things that BB&P does do well (like the cornish hen) are surprisingly good, and a real bargain. If I lived closer to the Middle-Easten places you mentioned, I would definitely go to one of them for Hummous, Baba Ghanouj etc. However, if you compare BB&P with other Assyrian places like Venus and Larsa's, I think it holds it own. Each one of those places is good at some things, but not so good at others, as has been discussed in other threads.

Dave

Erik M. wrote:3. Hummous/Shawarma

- The hummous had an odd, unpleasant tanginess from, what I'm guessing was, the inclusion of bottled lemon juice.

- The shawarma meat was by no means great, but it was the highlight of my meal. Unfortunately, the meat sat in a pool of low-rent olive oil, which became nearly impossible to avoid after a few bites.

Erik,

I like BB&P's hummus, which is not to say I don't prefer other versions, including my own. Far as bottled lemon juice, both my plates included pieces of fresh lemon so, while I'm not arguing with your observations, I've witnessed your astute perception of taste many a time, bottled lemon juice was not in play Wednesday.

Olive oil wise, I often find the olive oils used, and sold, at Middle Eastern establishments slightly dull flavored with an oily mildly slick mouthfeel. Nablus and Slutan being two examples.

Enjoy,
Gary

d4v3 wrote:For an entree I decided I would have a "cornish hen". It was another dish I had avoided, thinking this glorified hotdog stand could not possibly make a decent cornish hen. Once again, I was very pleasantly surprised. The dish was 6.95 and included salad, lentil soup, pickled vegetables, rice and "stew". It featured a cut up cornish hen, grilled perfectly, juicy and moist inside with a nice char on the outside.

LTH,

Ellen and I had a very pleasant meal at BB & P last evening with d4v3. Everything really fell into place, though for me the highlight was Cornish Hen. Marinated, grilled, bits of char, moist tender meat and, as Dave says above, an incredible all inclusive deal at $6.95.

Ashur, cousin of owner, with Cornish Hen in grilling rack.


Cornish Hen


Big Buns Home Style Fries, light coating gives crunch, noticeable garlic, very tasty.


Yesterday was my day for Middle Eastern, had lunch at Al-Khaymeih. Crisp on the outside, moist inside, falafel and hummus w/meat. In addition to lunch being quite good, I had the pleasure of meeting fellow LTHer Joel Wanak.

Enjoy,
Gary

Big Buns and Pita
6649 N Clark
Chicago, IL
773-262-2000

Al-Khaymeih
4742 N. Kedzie
Chicago, IL 60686
773-583-0999

G Wiv wrote:Ellen and I had a very pleasant meal at BB & P last evening with d4v3. Everything really fell into place, though for me the highlight was Cornish Hen. Marinated, grilled, bits of char, moist tender meat and, as Dave says above, an incredible all inclusive deal at $6.95.

G Wiv wrote:Yesterday was my day for Middle Eastern, had lunch at Al-Khaymeih. [...]

Interesting.

As I've mentioned here before, Al-Khaymeih prepares a fantastic grilled Cornish Hen.

E.M.

My partner and I decided to take my oh-so-aged parents to BB & P because of this post and we had a lovely time. The owner was very friendly and hospitable, we had lots of food for very little $$ (depression era parents LOVE that). My partner had the lamb shank with the interesting sauce flavored with preserved lemons brought from Basra. I had the vegetarian plate. The djajik was very good, I agree the hummous is perhaps too tangy, but all in all, we will definitely go back with more friends. (Even though it's quite a distance from us).

Erik M. wrote:As I've mentioned here before, Al-Khaymeih prepares a fantastic grilled Cornish Hen.[/b]

Quite delicious, deeply penetrating marinade, assertive, but not overpowering, spicing, tender moist flesh with lovely bits of grill char.

Al-Khaymeih Farouj (marinated, grilled Cornish Hen)


Bonus points for accompanying ramekin of whipped garlic dip (toum)

Nice recommendation, thanks Erik.

Enjoy,
Gary

Al-Khayameih (Al-Khaymeih)
4748 N Kedzie
Chicago, IL 60625
773-583-0999

G Wiv wrote:Quite delicious, deeply penetrating marinade, assertive, but not overpowering, spicing, tender moist flesh with lovely bits of grill char.

I'm glad that you liked it.

G Wiv wrote:Bonus points for accompanying ramekin of whipped garlic dip (toum)

Me, I find that toum tends to compete with alot of poultry prepared in this manner, and, as I shared with you in a recent p.m., if I ever feel the need to make enhancements at table it is with the tiniest dab of tahina sauce.

Now, if you'd like to try yet another take on grilled Cornish hen, and yet another which I greatly prefer to that of BB&P, head up the street from Al-Khaymeih to Mataam Al-Mataam...


farrouj

The entrees at Mataam Al-Mataam are served with your choice of one of the daily special offerings. On the day that these photos were taken the choices included stewed green beans, and their preparation is one which I rather enjoy...


stewed green beans

Now, as much as I enjoy the farrouj, etc., at Mataam Al-Mataam, the hummous and the pita bread likely provide even greater cause for my repeat business...


hummous

The hummous is almost identical to the version which my mother learned to make while we were living in the Gulf. And, as for the bread, well, it's the same brand of bread that my family's Assyrian Christian friends prefer for table, so, it too, has a special place in my heart.*

Mataam Al-Mataam
3200 W. Lawrence (at Kedzie)
773.463.0600
Open 24hrs.

E.M.

* From Madeline Bakery in Skokie.

Erik M. wrote:* From Madeline Bakery in Skokie.

You know, I drive by there all the time on the way to Marketplace on Oakton - they never seem to have any baked goods in the cases, so I was wondering what they offer - now I'm gonna have to stop!

I want to bump this thread to shed some deserved light on one of my favorite restaurants in Rogers Park. The restaurant has been empty frequently when I've passed recently, so I'm on a "save this restaurant" kick. Mr. X and I frequently order from Big Buns & Pita when the urge to cook eludes us or we don't want Mexican food. BB&P offers great food at very reasonable prices. One of the kebob dinners is enough food for two or three meals for me. (Mr. X might get two meals out of one dinner if we're lucky. ) I love their two lamb shank preparations, although I don't order them often enough. I have yet to try the cornish hen, but there are good reports upthread. The other night, I was sated with an order of lentil soup along with hummus and shawerma.

If you haven't been to Big Buns & Pita ever or lately, I urge you to go. Pick up a six-pack of interesting beer or bottle of wine from the Rogers Park Fine Wines up the street and enjoy yourself!

Big Buns and Pita
6649 N Clark
773-262-2000

Rogers Park Fine Wines & Spirits
6733. N. Clark

We were there Friday at lunch and are glad to report that there was a reasonable amount of traffic (including take out orders), though hardly as much as the restaurant deserves. They have put a few new items on the menu, notably an Assyrian biryani, made to order. We found out about it after we had ordered our meals (a cornish hen and a lamb shank, which also provided Satruday lunch!), but really want to try. I agree that it would be a catatrophe if Big Buns folded.

Last weekend I had a very nice meal at Big Buns and Pita.

From what I could recall, they've spruced up the settings a little more; I don't recall tablecloths at all and now the tables are set up a little bit--not quite to the level of Masouleh two doors down, but probably feeling a little bit of gravitation in that direction.

We started with excellent thick turkish coffee. To eat, we ordered the perennially delicious cornish hens and the lamb curry which was new to me and very tasty. (We were definitely sopping sauce from the plate to the end.) These dinners were served with salad, yellow lentil soup, and pickled vegetables and radishes. The lentil soup was excellent (although unfortunately they haven't picked up on the light dash of yogurt on top that Masouleh does) as were the pickles.

Not realizing that the dinners were coming with "all the trimmins," we also ordered a lahmim beajin ("pizza") and "big buns homestyle potatoes," which are disc-cut, lightly battered fried potatoes (and which are awesome). It was a bountiful spread and definitely accounted for two meals that day, but it was all very well done.

My nephew and I stopped at Big Buns and Pita for lunch yesterday, and much to my shock, the name had changed. It is now called "Sahara Kabob", although they still use the Big Buns logo. Other than the name, the restaurant remains basically unchanged. The owners are the same, and the food is still inexpensive and good. In fact, the sandwiches we ate yesterday were particularly delicious. The thin pita was fresh and the vegetables were crisp. The meat was tasty and tender. I ordered my sandwich with Torshi on it (spicy pickled cabbage), which added a nice hot and sour tang to the shawerma. My nephew said his chicken kebab sandwich suited his (often picky) tastes perfectly, and is now his favorite to-go food. The menu was essentially the same, except for the addition of some interesting (and cheap) Assyrian daily specials. For instance, today's special is Assyrian Kepta, which are large meatballs cooked in a red sauce. Tommorow is Assyrian style lamb curry and on Saturday they serve Kibbeh Labenia, which is meat and onion stuffed balls of cracked wheat cooked in a yogurt sauce.

Sahara Kabob, fka Big Buns and Pita, has been a regular stop for Mr. X and me, but we hadn't been for a couple of months. Saturday night was an opportunity to rectify that with a very nice dinner. We started our meal with an order of kibbe, which had great flavor and texture. I love the lentil soup at Sahara and it did not disappoint. I'm glad that soup season is coming up so I have more reason to have their soup. I tried the cornish hen for the first time and really enjoyed it. I thought the skin had great flavor. Given the size of a cornish hen, there just wasn't enough of it. Mr. X had the chicken curry, a dish he returns to. (I think it borders on too sweet, but I tend to like a little more kick in my curries.)

As d4v3 noted, there are few changes to the menu with the new name. The interior of the resturant has been softened with lighting, curtains and table covers. There is a new awning in the front. One subtle menu difference is a choice of soup or salad with an entree, whereas both used to be included. The menus also now include several menu options and pricing for catering. I continue to believe this restaurant offers some great food at a great value. I'm glad it is within walking distance.

Now that it is fall, Sahara Kabob is making Doukua again. Doukua is a very hearty Assyrian soup made of meaty lamb broth and barley thickened with a dried yogurt powder. The version I had there yesterday also contained turnips. The sour flavor of the yogurt cuts the fattiness of the lamb broth. While it is probably not for everybody, it has become one of my favorite autumn/winter soups. Sahara Big Buns is the only place I know that makes it (I would like to try other versions). The Armenians have a similar dish.

I had a very enjoyable lunch at Sahara Kabob yesterday. We started with Hummus & Shawirma [sic] and a few pieces of their great falafel.

Sahara Kabob Hummus & Shawirma


Sahara Kabob Falafel


We were off to a good start. Next up was their Lahmim Beajin which was deliciously topped, but fell flat in the crust dept. Both G Wiv and I were willing to bet that the crust was Pillsbury refrigerator pastry, having a very sweet and non-crispy texture. Our waitress, Larsa, who is the daughter of the owner insisted that they make the crust from scratch in the kitchen. In fact, she said, they make everything except for the pita in house. House made or not, the crust of the Lahmim Beajin was a disappointment compared to everything else we had.

Larsa, Daughter of the Owner


Sahara Kabob Lahmim Beajin


To round out the meal, we got a kefta kabob plate, which was pretty good, but not charred as much as I would have liked.

Sahara Kabob Kefta Kabob Plate


While Sahara Kabob isn't my favorite restaurant of its type in the city, it's a strong addition to a neighborhood that has relatively few Middle Eastern offerings. They offer some unique dishes not commonly seen elsewhere. It's warm, friendly and the family that runs it cares deeply about the food and making sure their customers are happy.

did anyone ask about the name change?

gp60004 wrote:did anyone ask about the name change?

Yes. Larsa (the daughter, not the restaurant) said they changed the name because they were trying to shed the image of a fast food joint and felt Sahara Café better fit in with the vibe they are trying to create. A small Big Buns & Pita logo is still at the top of the menu, so they are at least paying a homage to their roots.