When utmost passion and love is put into something, the result explodes fireworks and leaves the world spell bound. and one such place is this QSR which claims to be the King of Shawarma. Located in the ever happening Baani Square, the place is very relatively Lilliputian but the jaunty yellow interiors liven you up almost instantly. The yellow is carefully balanced by the white tables and the live kitchen where you can see all the magic happen. LUB LUB Lebanese is mentored by Master Chef Ashish Singh and the menu has been carefully curated keeping it very crisp and yet drool worthy.
Over an animated chat with one of the owners Mr. Kumar Gaurav, who walked us through their journey of coming up with this Lebanese place. The highlights here are the fresh ingredients and refreshing, subtle flavours. The breads are baked every day and are never carried over to the second day – they either discard the pita or make pita chips out of it. They use fresh vegetables and authentic Lebanese herbs and spices and the meats too are freshly marinated everyday and are never carried on to the next day. They also plan on introducing whole wheat and multi-grain versions of the pita very soon.
We started our meal with a chicken shawarma platter and a lamb shawarma and their signature drink – TWISAD.
The platter comes with grilled chicken, warm, fresh pita, hummus, tzatziki, green salsa and a fresh salad. The food leaves you mesmerized – the pita was fresh, straight out of the oven and very soft.
The dips are all bracing and very fresh. The hummus with its delectable smooth texture, drizzled over with olive oil was obviously the hot favourite, but I quite like the tzatziki as well. The cool and creamy yoghurt and cucumber dip went very well with the warm pita.
Coming to the chicken, juicy, tender, extremely well marinated and grilled to perfection, topped with herbed hummus, this was perfection in its prime!
And top all of this with an energizing salad – crisp vegetables tossed with greens and especially procured Lebanese herbs – the salad is not to be missed!
The lamb shawarma is one of their best preparations and rightly so. Soft, warm, freshly baked pita lined with lettuce and onions that add a definite crunch to the roll, the juicy meat, lined with hummus. The lamb too was very well marinated and was very savory. The size of the roll is humongous and makes for a complete meal for one. The shawarma could have had a little more dressing, not that it was dry, the lamb was self-sufficient and very palatable but a little more oozing hummus wouldn’t hurt anyone 😛
Their signature drink – TWISAD – is a real thirst-quencher, one sip and you are instantly rejuvenated. Lemon, mint, peach and apricot all mixed together made for very distinct and unique drink.
Next, we tried their vegetarian delicacy – falafel with an array of dips and salad. The crisp kebabs with minced chickpeas and a slight ginger flavour were scrumptious. The falafel was a bit dry for my taste but try them with one of the dips and you have a winner. The harissa and spicy are one of the hottest dips they offer if you your food prefer your food extra-hot. The garlic hummus too was a brilliant concoction.
Since I was head over heels in love with their side salad, we also got our hands of the vegetable fattoush salad. Crispy vegetables, marinade, Lebanese spices and crunchy pita chips breaking the monotony of the vegetables. A truly refreshing preparation!
I can’t wait to go back and try their chicken and lamb hummus. Recommendations? You absolutely cannot miss anything on their menu – subtle, extra-ordinary flavors and oh so exhilarating!
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