All About The Shawarma

I’ve enjoyed meals at several Middle Eastern restaurants since I have been working in the Dearborn area and never really had a bad experience. However, after a while, every place almost has similar flavors. So being surround by a sea of Middle Eastern cuisine, how do you find that “one place” that sets itself apart? One such place is on Warren, Ave.

Since I have been working in the area, there is still one place that has been recommended to me several times, but I have never made it there. Today was the day though, because I was in a mood for a Shawarma and Tuhamas has a reputation of having some of the best Shawarmas in the area; I needed to experience myself if they lived up to this claim.

If you drive through certain areas in Dearborn, you are going to find a Middle Eastern restaurant or market at just about every corner; Warren Ave is one of these areas. So when going to Tuhamas, you have to be very careful, as it is really easy to miss; I didn’t even see a sign.

As soon as I walked in, I realized that Tuhamas was definitely not known for their ambiance and environment. The place is definitely outdated and very small; it seats no more than 15 people and the only obstacle blocking the kitchen is a counter. But you quickly come to realize that ambiance doesn’t matter so much as soon as you see and smell the stacks of seasoned meat and chicken sitting on their rotating spits in the kitchen. For a foodie and meat lover, it’s a great site to see.

The menu board was filled with many great items, such as, shish kafta, shish tawook, and shish kabob made to go in a sandwich or pita wrap.  If you really want to be adventurous, you can order a chicken liver or lamb tongue pita. I was not adventurous today, so I order exactly what I came there for and that was a meat Shawarma, especially seeing the juicy season meat rotating on the spit.

As I have mentioned previously, this place is definitely small and it was packed; so I had to make my order to go. I took my meat Shawarma back to my desk at the office and began to dig right into it. Before I go into my overall thoughts, let me first explain what a Shawarma is. A Shawarma is essentially an alternating stack of season meat (beef or lamb) or seasoned chicken with strips of fat that sit on a rotating spit and is roasting all day. Shavings are cut off the blocks of meat or chicken for serving. A Shawarma is usually served in a rolled pita mixed with onion, tomato, parsley, pickled turnips, cabbage, and is topped with a tahini or tom (garlic mayo).

So now that you know what a Shawarma is, did Tuhama’s meat Shawarma live up to its street cred? Yes it did, it was by far the best Shawarma I have had, which is saying a lot since there are so many great places in Dearborn to find one. The meat was perfectly seasoned and was very juicy. The parsley provided a fresh herbal flavor, while the pickled turnips and onion provided that necessary crunch. I believe that Tuhama’s used both tahini and toum sauce, as I could taste both the garlic from the toum and the sesame from the tahini. For $3.75, this was by far one of the best food purchases I’ve made since working in Dearborn; my only regret was waiting six years to finally try this place out.

I definitely recommend you to try out Tuhama’s if you find yourself in the Dearborn area. You should definitely order the meat or chicken Shawarma; and if you are feeling adventurous enough, try out the lamb tongue or chicken liver. If you do try out the lamb tongue, let me know what your thoughts were.

No Substitute For the Real Thing

Today I was in the mood for something substantial, something greasy, something fatty, and something cheesy. I knew that Noah’s Deli in Dearborn would have a wide variety of what I needed. I’ve been to Noah’s a few times before while working in Dearborn for the past 6 years and was always satisfied.

Noah’s Deli has been serving up great sandwiches and diner food in East Dearborn since 1977. The corner spot deli is a fairly small building where patrons sit at a u-shaped table while your order is prepared right in the middle. If you come early during the lunch hour, you can watch the ingredients being switched out with fresher items. It's a great sight because you know you are getting quality.

Noah’s is really known for their Hot Corn Beef and Reuben sandwiches, I’ve had both and thoroughly enjoyed them. Today, I was craving for something a little different; I wanted something fatty, greasy, and cheesy; so why not Noah’s take on a classic Philly Cheesesteak? It seemed like it had all of the right ingredients; grilled steak, onions, peppers, and cheese all on a grilled sub bun.  Was it as good as it sounded in writing? Did it live up to a true Philly Cheesesteak?

The short answer is no. First, I felt that they skimped out on the meat and cheese, the whole essence of a Cheesesteak. Second, I knew I was taking a gamble with Noah’s using Swiss Cheese instead of Provolone or Cheez Whiz. Lastly the sub bun was hard at the ends and was pretty bland.

I took my first bite, and while the flavors were pretty decent, I could not help but feel disappointed. Where was all of the fat and grease? The steak was pretty dry and the flavors felt really underpowered because of the filling to bun ratio; the bun was really bland as well. Then the cheese, there was simply not enough of hot melted cheese and the Swiss just had a less of a sharp punch than the Provolone or Cheez Wiz would have had. While I ate the whole sandwich, I felt more disappointed after each bite.

After I finished, I started thinking that in some cases there is no substitute for the real thing; and in this case no version of a Philly Cheesesteak, besides the real deal from Philly, can really do the original any justice. I should have gone with a sandwich I knew Noah’s could execute perfectly. So the next time I see a famous regional sandwich or dish served as an establishment’s “version”, I might think twice about ordering it.

What are your thoughts? Is there no substitute for the real thing?