It’s a testament to the quantity and quality of Middle Eastern grill houses on Cardiff’s City Road that we’re often slow to visit the latest openings.
Why would we take a punt on somewhere new when we’re guaranteed a killer kebab at one of our old favourites? (Saray is our pick of the bunch in case you’re asking).
However, whilst feeling a little ropey on a Sunday lunchtime, we were drawn towards the gleaming new décor of Syriana Grill House.
One of the newest additions to the street, Syriana opened its doors three months ago on the former site of Lilo Express.
For followers of Cardiff kebab lore, Lilo was one of City Road’s OG grill houses and one of our favourite spots when it first opened over ten years ago. Unfortunately, their shameful demise bore parallels to Disney’s Ratatouille for all the wrong reasons.
Syriana has certainly given the place an overhaul as the glitzy dining room’s gold, bronze and silver flourishes give off the vibes of a luxury Las Vegas casino.
Most importantly, as soon as you cross the threshold, a healthy pair of shawarma and fridgeful of fresh kebabs are a very good omen.
Syriana’s menu sees cold and hot mezze rub shoulders with charcoal grilled meats and slow-cooked dishes like lamb mandi, okra stew and dawood basha (meatballs with tomato sauce).
It’s always great to see freshly squeezed juices and smoothies on offer, and Syriana’s fine selection includes strawberry, lemon mint and watermelon. A Story Brooke smoothie (£4.50) was an ice cold, thick and not too sweet combination of strawberry, raspberry, mango and apple.
A bowl of thick hummus (£4.50) was generously drizzled with oil, dusted with paprika and studded with soft chickpeas.
It was a lovely dip and even better served with a pair of complimentary hot and crisp pillowy bread pockets, which were different to any other carb offering that we’ve encountered on City Road.
Whilst we were warned by the friendly waiter that there was going to be a fifteen-minute wait for our main dishes as there was only one chef in the kitchen (that seemed pretty quick to us anyway), they ended up sat on the pass and so arrived less than piping hot.
Despite this, both of our main dishes were very good.
Impeccably tender, juicy and well-seasoned lamb and chicken shish were the stars of a mixed grill (£15.95). Minced lamb halabi kebabs were nicely flecked with parsley and pepper but were a touch on the bouncy side.
A massive mound of buttery, vermicelli flecked rice was bang on and I was a big fan of the battered onion garnish. Which savoury dishes wouldn’t be improved by a smattering of battered onions?
Pieces of shocking pink pickled turnip, charred peppers and tomatoes, and a pokey pepper paste topped flatbread were lovely extra flourishes. But, an advertised salad accompaniment was conspicuous by its absence.
Lamb shawarma was undoubtedly the highlight of a plate of mixed shawarma (£12). The shavings of spit-roasted sheep were addictively caramelised in places. In contrast, pallid pieces of chicken shawarma were commendably tender but lacked both seasoning and crispness.
Overall, we had a very tasty lunch at Syriana Grill House, and I’d gladly eat another of their kebabs anytime. Despite the strength of the competition on City Road, it's a fine grill house in its own right.
The Details:
Address - Syriana Grill House, 72 City Road, Roath, Cardiff CF24 3DD
Web - syrianagrillhouse.com
Telephone - 0292045 0089
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