Al Farooj at Deira City Centre (UAE, Dubai)

We went back to Deira City Centre again for lunch as we could not find any other eateries nearby for lunch. 

Al Farooj is an international fast casual restaurant chain started by an Arabic family in 1994. The chain specialises in serving Shawarma using their own secret bend herbs and spices prepared in Arabic, Mexican, Italian and Lebanese recipes. Today, it has 40 outlets in United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Kuwait, Libya and France.

Arabian Shawarma 19 AED (S$6.51) & Shawarma Wrap 16 AED (S$5.48)

I ordered Arabian Shawarma 19 AED (S$6.51) while the partner ordered Shawarma Wrap 16 AED (S$5.48). We waited 20 minutes at the counter for our food. So much for being a fast casual restaurant especially since there was no crowd.

We both ordered Shawarma as Al Farooj was famous for it. The Shawema is a fast food commonly consisted of a pita bread sandwich with meat and various toppings in it. 

Shawarma Wrap 16 AED (S$5.48)

The partner's Shawarma Wrap was served with fries and a soft drink. 

Shawarma Wrap 16 AED (S$5.48)

Personally, I felt that there were too much mayonnaise in the Shawarma Wrap. So much so that it masked the flavour of the spices and meat. In addition, the pita bread was too chewy. 

Arabian Shawarma 19 AED (S$6.51) 

Arabian Shawarma 19 AED (S$6.51) 

The Arabian Shawarma fared better. This time there were less mayonnaise. The fragrance and tenderness of the chicken left an impression; well seasoned and grilled chicken meat! The wrap was crispier too. Oddly, the lettuce were replaced with fries coated with mayonnaise which made it soggy. There were fries given as sides.

Many have said that this was an authentic place for Shawarma. But I am not too sure how true this is since they have fries. This is because I associate fries with western culture/cuisine. In addition, having fries in a Shawarma made me doubt the authenticity. Just my 2 cents.

Having said that, anyone knows where Sultan Kebab (Peace Centre) has shifted to?

Al Farooj at Deira City Centre (UAE, Dubai)

Food Court
Deira City Centre

Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Website
Location

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Galerie Kebab (France, Paris)

We were still at Galeries Lafayette when it was dinner time. We decided to head back to the same street and try Galerie Kebab. 

Galerie Kebab is located along Rue Joubert; less than 5 minutes away from Galeries Lafayette. It is located just directly opposite Croque Saveur. Galerie Kebab is a restaurant specialising in Middle Eastern cuisine, to be more specific, Turkish cuisine. 

It is a small restaurant with limited sitting capacity with simple and no frills decoration. Ironically, their kitchen size took up a quarter of the total restaurant size. If they had made the kitchen smaller, they could sit even more customers.   

The food took a very long time to be served. As I was hungry, I decided to pop by the kitchen to see if I could find out the reason. Well, the meat skeers were cooked only upon order. I guess we Singaporeans are too used to our fast-paced lifestyle. I really should take things slow. Feels good to know that the food was freshly cooked, not heated up or cooked a second time. 

The staff were all Middle Easterns, not Europeans. They were friendly and always with a smile.

A quick look at the menu.

Luckily besides French, the menu had English translation at the bottom! Yeah! This makes it so much easier to decide what to order.

Thé Turc (Turkish Tea) 1 € (S$1.6)

We were not keen on ordering any drinks until we saw 'Thé Turc' which is in French, when translated to English, it means 'Turkish Tea'. We had no idea how Turkish Tea would tasted like. Hence we decided to order this.

The Turkish Tea was served in a very small cup. The height of the cup was almost the same as the packet of sugar you see in this photo. As for the taste, well... it tasted exactly like English Breakfast Tea! 

Brochettes De Poulet (Chicken Skeers) 9 € (S$14.1)

The partner ordered the Brochettes De Poulet (Chicken Skeers) which was served with salad, fries, wheat and chicken meat on metal skewers. This was well worth the wait. The chicken chunks on the metal skewers were cooked to perfection. So tender and juicy on the inside. On the outside, the it was crisp with some parts charred that provided a different texture and also a smokey fragrance. Heavenly! The wheat and fries complemented perfectly and were delish. Not oily too!

Do be careful as the metal skewers are hot.

Brochettes D'Agneau (Lambs' Skeers) 11 € (S$17.2)

I ordered the Brochettes D'Agneau (Lambs' Skeers) which was also served with salad, fries, wheat. The lamb was also cooked just right. The lamb skeers compared to the chicken skeers was slightly tougher. Nevertheless, the chef grasped the cooking time perfectly. Moreover, it was well marinated. What a great meal! 

Bread

The bread was served after we were halfway through our mains. It was hard and tough to chew. By then, we were too full and left the bread untouched.

Although the service tended to be on the slower end, the staff were friendly. Overall, the mains were well executed and it was an enjoyable meal.

Next post on Europe will be on Pierre Herme!

Galerie Kebab (France, Paris) 

8 Rue Joubert
75009 Paris 9
Île-de-France, France
Tel: +01 48 74 13 09
Opening Hours: Mon to Sat 11am - 1030pm
Location

The locations are as follows:

A - Pierre Herme in Galeries Lafayette

B - Croque Saveur & Galerie Kebab
Blue area shows Galeries Lafayette

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