After eating somewhere new and exotic, I like to toss around the names of the foods I ate, as though I’m an expert. I did this following my first meal at the wonderfully named Kabob-ster, a newly opened restaurant on Gunbarrel Road that serves delicious Middle Eastern food.
I used my Facebook page as my bragging grounds: “Ate lunch at Kabob-ster. Enjoyed made-from-scratch Middle Eastern food, including: Tandoor bread; Falafel, a crunchy vegetarian thing; and Kufta, a savory combination of lamb and beef. I highly recommend the place.”
My friends didn’t buy it. They knew I didn’t know the difference between Baba Ghanouj and a Big Mac. And here I was, trying to sound like the Gordon Ramsay of the Shawarma set. I took a few swipes for that, but I didn’t care. Lunch was great!
Kabob-ster is one of those places you’ll miss if you’re not looking for it. Located in a small strip mall near the intersection of Brainerd Road and Gunbarrel, it’s adorable sign caught my attention on the right just after I had turned toward Hamilton Place. Being hungry, and always on the prowl for new places to eat, I hit my brakes and pulled in.
Inside, Kabob-ster is bright and colorful, with sleek red tables and green chairs accommodating diners, and bands of red and yellow paint dressing up the walls. A few Middle Eastern-themed paintings provide a nice accent to the otherwise sparse décor. My first impression: “Wow, this place is clean.”
At Kabob-ster, you order at the counter and sit down, and then someone brings your food to you. You fetch your own drinks from a soda fountain, and you don’t have to leave a tip because you don’t have a server, per se. But given the quality of the food at Kabob-ster, you’d think you were eating at a 5-star establishment.
Familiar to most people will be the chicken, beef tenderloin, and veggie kabobs, available on plates or in wraps. Thanks to the post credits scene in “The Avengers,” many people also know about Shawarma; at Kabob-ster, Shawarma refers to grilled chicken or beef wraps topped with pickles, tomatoes, lettuce and an olive oil-garlic spread. Gyros are also on the menu. Common appetizers like hummus and spring rolls are on hand as well, as are a variety of salads.
If you’re dragging along any picky eaters, especially of the young variety, you can keep the whining to a minimum with an order of cheeseburgers and fries or chicken fingers. Good call on the part of Kabob-ster to offer family-friendly fare.
You won’t have to peruse the menu for long to spot more exotic choices, like the foods I mentioned on Facebook. Thankfully, the staff is ready to gladly answer any questions you have about the food and how it’s prepared.
For now, you’re stuck with me – and all I’m going to do is gush about how good the food was. I’ll start with the Tandoor Flat Bread, which is hand-tossed and baked in a Tandoor oven from India and topped with sesame and black seeds. It’s soft, warm, and instantly addictive. Although I’m not a hummus person, I did try some of Kabob-ster freshly-made hummus on a piece of Tandoor bread, and was nearly won over.
I asked Lamont, the chef, what Falafel is, and he was gracious enough to tell me while clenching back laughter at my woefully bad pronunciation. Imagine several kinds of fresh vegetables ground down and baked together so the results resemble a crunchy crab cake. Lamont offered me one along with some of Kabob-ster’s house-made Tahini sauce, which is made from sour cream, yogurt and spices – and wow! I loved the taste AND the crunch. An order of five Falafels as an appetizer or in a wrap contains about 30 grams of plant protein, said Lamont.
I also wondered out loud about the Kufta, which Lamont said is a seasoned blend of lamb and beef.
Confident I’d learned enough to place an order, I chose the Kabob-ster Feast, which comes with three kabob skewers (beef tenderloin, Kufta and chicken) served with three sides (hummus, basmati rice and a Greek salad) and Tandoor bread. And “feast” I did.
The beef tenderloin was remarkably tender and wonderfully savory thanks to the marinade in which Lamont had placed it for several hours prior to cooking. Also crazy tasty, and chewy, was the Kufta. The chicken was seasoned nicely, but was a little dry. As I ate, I planned my strategy for my next visit: more Kufta!
I also pored over the menu and picked some new foods to try during my second go-around: The Burek, a pita stuffed with cheese and spinach, will get the nod, but I’m still debating the Baba Ghanouj, which is grilled eggplant blended with Tahini and lemon juice.
Whether you love meat, or are a vegetarian, Kabob-ster offers a variety of exciting foods to experience, all of which are prepared long and slow in the kitchen, which is located just behind the cash register and the smiling cashier.
I might not have become an expert on Middle Eastern foods during my first visit to Kabob-ster, but I certainly became a fan. Not only does the restaurant bring something unique to Chattanooga, it serves cuisine good enough to make you a regular. Try it for lunch or dinner someday.