Al Sultan, Glasgow
Hey, Foodwala’s… Did you know there are 120 different types of kebabs in the world, if you were to draw a Kebab map you will get kebabs from Portugal in the West to the old Russian “Stans” in the East and as far south as Singapore.
You can even get kebabs called Chislic in the heart of Hillbilly South Dakota, brought over by Russians fleeing Messrs Lenin and Stalin.
If you overlay the Ottoman and Byzantine empire maps and our Kebab map you will see a near perfect symmetry.
Anyway, Legend has it that the king of kebabs, the Adana kebab was first created as a peace offering, the Ottoman emperor Suleiman the Magnificent was at war with the Arab king Mutawakill III and as a condition of the Arab surrender the Arab king’s daughter was to wed Suleiman’s son.
The princess and the crown Sultan prince had one thing in common…they were both passionate Foodwalas and the Adana Kebab was born.
Our legendary quest for the best Adana kebab brought us to the epically names Al Sultan near the Glasgow Central Mosque.
The Foodwala family kicked off the proceedings with a trio of Humous, Humous Shwarma, Humous Felafel and Sumac Humous…. can you guess which is which?
The humous was smooth and tangy with the correct balance of tahini, garlic, and olive oil.
The Adana Kebab arrived and I could hardly contain my excitement, I confirmed beforehand that the kebab was indeed hand minced with lean lamb mince and white lamb fat, however, it was not lamb tail fat as it should be if it was 100% authentic and yes it was grilled on an Ocabasi grill.
The Adana kebab was indeed created by a master as the kebab was moist and tender with meaty chili kick and furthermore, it was not greasy as the master chef had got the mince to fat ratio spot on.
The Persian Koobideh Kebab was next on our kebab journey, The soldiers of great foodwala Cyrus the great used to enjoy this kebab after a victorious battle and used the swords of their vanquished opponents to cook the kebabs over red-hot black rocks.
Our trilogy of kebabs was brought to an end bt this sublime Shish Taouk with sauted onion and peppers, the chicken was grilled on point without drying it out and the sauted vegetables give a welcome rest bite from the meaty marathon.
The Fatoush Salad was not as good as the ones we have previously had in Edgware Road in London, the Pomegranate molasses dressing was not sweet and tangy and the lettuce was bruised and not as fresh as one would have liked.
We definitely enjoyed the trio of kebabs, the restaurant was full of Arab families, which is always a good sign and the service was little inexperienced however the fabulous kebabs were not overshadowed in any way.
Halal – Yes
Food –8 out of 10
Atmosphere – 7 out of 10
service – 5 out of 10
Cleanliness – 5 out of 10
Total score – 25 out of 40