Tag: merchantcity

October 5 2020

Shawarma King, Glasgow

Food, LEVENT, MEZZE alfiefoodwala, arabic, BBQ, chicken, comfort food, emirates, fast food, glasgow, gourmet, grill, mediterranean, merchantcity, middleeastern, rustic 0

Hey, Foodwala’s boys and girls…hope you are all safe and well.

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Not so long ago I had to go to Beirut on Business, everyone I spoke to told me stories of how dangerous Beirut was, the civil war, the bombings, the kidnappings, and the list went on.

So the day came for my trip and I was anxious, to say the least, as I boarded my Emirates flight from Dubai, the Business Class section was empty, this felt even more ominous.

We landed in Rafiq Hariri International Airport I saw an SUV with armed guards, this did not bode well.

While I was collecting my luggage the electricity cut out and for a few minutes, we stood in pitch darkness waiting for the old decrepit generators to kick in.

The airport staff looked really shifty, they sat drinking tea and observed us coldly, honestly, it was like the most cliched Hollywood Middle Eastern movie.

When I cleared customs I was in the arrivals lounge and a guy approached me in tight ripped jeans and a T-shirt that struggled to hold his ample belly and asked if I needed a taxi, the word taxi was used in its loosest term, old battered Mercedes cars from the 1970s were de rigour, and then the drivers started to fight amongst themselves as who would take the fare.

This got me more and more anxious, I chose the least bashed up a taxi with the oldest driver, if I had to make a run for it at least I could outrun an old guy rather a than a young fit driver.

The airport road was lined by shanty towns, makeshift housing with bullet holes and scars from the years-old civil war, the brickwork was scorched with fire and I started to regret the whole endeavor.

We entered a road tunnel with every other tube light shot out and there was literally no light at the end of the tunnel

But when we exited the tunnel, it was as if we had been teleported back to Dubai, there were smart new buildings everywhere, the roads were spotless and the verges were immaculate.

The driver dropped me off at an area called Mar Micheal, the shops were like Bond Street, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Lora Piana, Armani etc

I was staying a the Four Seasons at Zeituna Bay and that was like a page out of Archtuicetural Digest. There were hips bars and boutiques everywhere and the local Lebanese were dressed as if they were fashion photoshoot.

The point to my story was If I had taken Beirut at my initial impression, I would have turned back and missed this amazing cosmopolitan and fun city.

This is exactly what Shawarma King is like, it is located outside the old Barras Market under an old railway bridge, in a hole in the wall, its easy to drive past it.

I went there with Mokee and Shai Foodwala’s, I was not expecting great things but I moved past me misgivings.

There are only two old tables and chairs so we ordered and we fashioned a table by putting a table cloth on the boot of my car

First up we went for the Falafal and Hummus, this was served with hot Lavash bread fresh from the tandoor like oven, The falafals were crispy on the outside and pillow soft in the inside, and the Hummus was lovely and creamy and with just enough viscosoty to make it delicious.

The Turkish Kebab was a hybrid Adana kebab, it was smokey and spicy, absulutely delicious with the fresh bread

and onions sprinkled with harissa, such delisiousness from humbleness

We decided to go off menu and ask for Hummus with burnt ends shawarma, what a combination, the burnt ends of lamb Shawarma were juicy and intence and combined with the creamy hummus it was a master stroke

The Chicken Shawarma was what i can only descibe as delicious, the chicken was well seasoned and parts were nice and crispy and parts were soft and juicy, served on the nan like bread and what a combination, the juices of the chicken soaked into the bread and what a flavour bomb!!

We decided to take the lamb Shawarma with rice, and yet again it did not disapoint, the lamb Shawarma was burnt and crispy in parts and soft in others, again absulutely deloicious.

In Conclusion

The Shawarma King was delicious, each elemant was fresh and made with true passion.

The Shawarma was simple yet delicious , the Turkish/Adana Kebab was spot on the Kebab was not mined but chopped finely and was a perfect consistency.

The Service was perfunctory, neither excellent nor poor, it was just functional and friendly.

We fashioned the boot of the Mercedes as a table and Glasgow evening was perfect, the chill was just decending and standing and eating the delicious Shawarma as amazing.

The Star of the Meal?

TheTurkish/Adana Kebab and the chicken and lamb shawarma were definately stars

The miss of the Meal?

I would be pedantic if i was to choose.

Honorable Mention

So how did Shawarma peers?

It definately held its own against Allo Beirut in Dubai, Pita Shawarma in Baku Azerbijan and SUD in Mar Micheal Beirut

Halal Rating

The Chicken, Beef, and Lamb is confirmed 100% Halal

NO Alcohol is served on the Premises

NO Pork is served on the Premises

100% impartial Guarantee

Alfie Foodwala visits all restaurants anonymously and pays for the bill like any other customer, Alfie Foodwala does not except free meals in return for meals

All reviews are the personal opinion of Alfie Foodwala based on his 30-year experience as a restauranteur.

September 3 2019

Turkyie, Glasgow

Food, LEVENT, MEZZE alfiefoodwala, arabic, BBQ, business, citycentre, comfort food, gourmet, grill, LEVENT, mediterranean, merchantcity, middleeastern, rustic 0

97/99 Candleriggs,
Merchant City,
Glasgow, G1 1NP

Hey Foodwalas… Welcome to another tale of Alfie Foodwala

One of my most favorite cities in the world is Istanbul…the place is absolutely captivating, I love sitting on the balcony of the Four Seasons hotel in Sultanahmet, which incidentally was a prison and watching the ships politely waiting to cross the Bosphorus and the majestic Blue Mosque on the right with six minarets framing the picture-perfect view of the Bosphorus and the Golden Horn.

I also love the dark clouds who mournfully sit on top of the Bosperous like petulant gargoyles watching the ships slip effortlessly down the strait that divides Europe and Asia.

The gaze then falls on the enigma that is the Hagia Sofia, which charts the history of Istanbul from the godless Romans to the Christian crusaders and then to the Muslim Ottomans. in the distance is the Topkapi Palace where the Ottomans ruled their empire and equally contributed to the advancement of the trilogy of arts that is science, cuisine, and calligraphy.

The Old city of Istanbul feels like a time machine into the past and the feeling you get touching walls that are two thousand years old is truly humbling.

One the other hand I also love the juxstopition, across the Galata Bridge you abruptly enter the modern Istanbul, and Istanbul where Giorgio Armani boutiques rub shoulders with Lora Piana and Ferraris cruise the boulevards of Nisantasi and the fine young things sit in cafes and you could think you were in Paris or Milan.

The thing that connects the two opposing worlds together is the cuisine of Turkey, which amalgamates in Istanbul, the Kebabs of Adana and the seafood of Bodrum, the donnars of Anatolia with the fruit and nut Baklava of the Trabzonspor. They are all curated in the amazing restaurants of Istanbul, which was beautifully showcased by the great and late Anthony Bourdain.

This week the Foodwala jeeajunt sought out the newly opened Turkiye in the Merchant City.

We kicked off the proceedings with some hot mezze, The Lahmacun was delicious, thin-crust dough topped with seasoned ground lamb, the flavour was subtle yet noticeable.

The prawns in Halab sauce was equally good, fresh prawns were tossed in Halab sauce and sauteed with green peppers and mushrooms, the peppers were not too soft, just right and the sauce had a delicious ambiance about it, I would have happily eaten the prawns with some rice as the main course.

The Haloumi and pan-fried sojouk sausage was also a hit, the salty halloumi was cooked just right so it did not become rubbery while the spicy sojouk sausage countered the salty halloumi…yum

The Turkish Falafel was a little different from its Lebanese counterpart, apart from the sausage shape, the falafel mixture was more smooth, i preferred the Lebanese falafel with its crispy crust and the soft centre.

we loved the hot freshly baked balloon bread, i am sure it has a Turkish name but that is what we called it

The main event was next, The Adana Kebab, this is my favourite kebab the lamb mince was well proportioned with the white lamb fat so it was moist and juicy and also just enough spice as not to overpower the mince, unfortunately, they did not use tail fat in the mixture.

The Chicken cubes were lightly marinated and cooked over the mangal, the chicken could have been slightly more tender and moist, however, it could be just how the chicken fillet was cut.

The Salmon was delicious, it was firm yet flaky and was also lightly marinaded without overpowering and since it was cooked on the mangal it had a slight charcoal taste which was pleasant, the accompanying seafood jus was a nice touch and added another element to the Salmon

In Conclusion…

Turkiye was very pleasant and the food was fresh and well presented, the Adana kebab was well seasoned and cooked on a mangal which is absolutely mandatory.

we were looked after by Kamil and the service was excellent without being intrusive.

The food is authentic as the other two tables in the restaurant were Turkish, a definite sign of a good establishment.

June 25 2018

Italian Kitchen, Glasgow

Food alfiefoodwala, business, citycentre, emirates, food, glasgow, glasgowestend, italianfood, kelvinbridge, merchantcity, rustic 0

Italian KItchen
64 Ingram Street
http://www.italian-kitchen.co.uk

Hey, Foodwala’s… Alfie Foodwala is back with a vengeance after the Ramadhan sabbatical and I have some amazing restaurants lined up in the coming month so stay tuned inshallah.

As you know your Alfie Foodwala has a number of passions other than restaurants and food, Alfie is also passionate about cars! especially vintage post-war European Marques and Restomods.

Alfie Foodwala decided to break bread with fellow petrolheads, Mokee and Goblee Foodwala’s and continue our conversation of whether the Singer Porsche 911 restomod (www.singervehicledesign.com) is better than the Porsche 911 restored by Tuthill Porsche (www.tuthillporsche.com)

As you can see the Singer Porsche is heart-achingly beautiful, the level of artisan craftsmanship is mind-blowing and can only be appreciated by someone with taste and sophistication whereas the Tuthill Porsche is aimed at the everymen.

We can liken the Singer Porsche with the sublime Osteria Francescana restaurant in Modena and voted the worlds best ( www.osteriafrancescana.it) and the Tuthill Porsche as the Locanda Locatelli (www.locandalocatelli.com), both are amazing Italian restaurants but the Osteria in the hands of the Maestro Massimo Bottura is in a different animal.

We arrived at the Italian KItchen on a beautifully sun-drenched Sunday morning and the Merchant City looked like downtown Milan.

We decided to kick off the proceedings with some Chilli and Olive Foccacia and Mozzarella Focaccia

The focaccias were both freshly baked in the wood-fired pizza oven and were light and pillowy soft, the olive oil was infused into the dough giving a delicious rustic flavour.

As you know from previous posts your Alfie Foodwala is a rice fanboy and in opted for the Seafood and Olive Risotto, as you know the Arborio rice is notoriously difficult to master and the moisture content has to be just right to achieve the chalky al dente texture, otherwise, the rice gets mushy and loses its integrity, my risotto was on the dry side and could have done with a wee bit more jus.

The Funghi Tagliatelle was delicious, the foraged mushrooms were suated in slivers of garlic and tossed into the creamy tagliatelle, the homemade tagliatelle was fresh and had a bite to it…just right.

Mokee Foodwala opted for the Spanish, roast pepper and ricotta Tagliatelle which was tossed in the house sugo al pamodoro (tomato sauce), In Italy, every mom and every chef have their own recipe for sugo and some recipes have been handed down over generations and are closely guarded secrets.

Due to Eid, we decided to treat ourselves to some desserts, we firstly opted for the Blueberry Cheesecake, the Blueberry soft cheese filling was delicious, it was creamy yet had a slight blueberry bitterness which gave a nice edge to the sweetness.

Next up was the eponymous Creme Brulee, it is the hardest simplest dessert to get wrong, the custard can me too lumpy or too runny, this one was good but not as good as the Crema Caravan in the Arches.

In Conclusion, The Italian KItchen was certainly competent, it had all the elements in the right place and the service was attentive, however, it lacked the Je ne ce quoi and charisma that an owner-operator provides, like in the La Lanterna in Kelvinbridge or Eusebis in the West end.

Alas the Chicken and Lamb are not Halal and white wine is used extensively however the dished are cooked fresh so the wine can be left out if requested.