The Fast and Delicious: Prince of Persian
28 February, 2009
onLast year alone, I think I went to at least seven different places specializing in shawarma and other Persian food (and ate at a few of them quite regularly), so yeah, you could say I am the shawarma market. One place I keep going back to is Ababu.
Still, the prices are reasonable, and since it’s the kind of place where people come in for a quick bite then leave (no beer served, so no tambays), service is pretty snappy. I normally get the shawarma plate–it’s a P99 meal with a mountain of buttered rice, slivers of roasted beef, chopped-up tomatoes and onions, corn, and a fried egg for good measure–served in two minutes flat. And it comes with bottomless drinks!
When I’m at Ababu for a proper meal (rather than a midnight snack), I normally order a side of keema…
…and the Ababu version is probably the oiliest you could find! Strangely, it doesn’t taste as oily as it looks. Really! But if you want to soak up the excess grease, you could always order extra buttered rice…
Sure, there are other more popular—and, I’ll admit, better—Persian places (like that huge kebab resto along West Ave.) but I seem to go back to Ababu again and again. B and I even celebrated the day of hearts there! (No overpriced meal in a paper-heart-festooned setting for us. Although the Ababu blackboard did have the words “I crush you” scribbled on it.) I love that it’s unpretentious and accessible, and the food always hits the spot. And fast!
Ababu Persian Kitchen
Xavierville Ave., Quezon City
(Beside the old Meat Shop)
Tel. (02) 436-0000
LABELS: ababu, Manila, Mariko, Restaurants
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comments
Post a commentMARCH 3, 2009 12:31 PM
gourmandtales said...
ahh.. comfort food.. hehe
MARCH 3, 2009 4:16 PM
Mariko said...
Indeed! I'm hankering for it right now.
MARCH 18, 2009 3:12 AM
wysgal said...
That buttered rice reminds me of the "STAR RICE" they used to feature in the Star Margarine ads. That was awesome.