Friday, August 8, 2008

Halal Food - Beaver and Broadway






No sign, no menu, just a string of blinking blue lights-in-a tube. The lady in front of me asked for hot sauce and white sauce - the chef doused her chicken, then honked a little bicycle horn right over the dish.. "and it's done!" he proclaimed. Then he military-marched over to his van, saluting his customers the whole time and kicking his legs straight out in front, grabbed a bag of sliced onions and marched back to his station. He has the usual spiced chicken and lamb, and offers a choice of spicy rice and plain yellow rice. I spotted two small pyrex bowls on a burner shelf and asked what was in them - one was lamb meatballs in a spicy tomato sauce and one held fava beans, also in a spicy tomato sauce (i think this is foul?). He recommended the meatballs which he said he made himself that morning, with spicy rice, white sauce and hot sauce. I didn't get a horn honked over mine- maybe that's only for the regulars? The pillowy, mild meatballs were definitely enhanced by the hot sauce - not too much flavor on their own, maybe owing to a lot of filler, but all in all a satisfying, tasty lunch. Later I tried the chicken and rice, and found it to be much better than all the competition. The chicken is marinated longer, with a stronger spice mix, the white sauce is tangier, the vegetables are fresher - and the chef sprinkles every dish with love, or a horn honk.

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