This tiny, family run shop makes me love trying all that pops up in New York. Screw those restaurant giants and give me the humble proprietors of Gazala Place. Gazala came recommended by a Jewish friend who swears the burekas are identical to food carts in Israel. I head over during lunch and much to my dismay, Gazala did not make her famous, fresh burekas that day. However, she does make the Druze saag pita every single day. Druze pita isn't the fluffy, doughy bread you are accustomed to, rather a tortilla texture mobbed with wheat grains.
This round we got houmus, home salad and chicken and kafta sandwiches. To the amateur houmus eater, one would think Tribe or Sabra would taste close to the 'real' spread. Although, I do give a shout-out to Sabra! It's creamy delicious and always in my fridge. The way houmus is supposed to taste is grounded chickpeas sitting around a pool of oil and lemon or spices. It's foreign-tasting particularly when you are used to grocery store bought houmus. The home (Israeli) salad is nothing more than tomatoes, lettuce, cucumber, parsley, scallions drenched in olive oil and lemon juice. Soggier than most I've had, it was tart, yet tasty and every last bit eaten.
A friends mother makes kafta for shabbat every week, so I had to see how this sized up. I had never had anything like it and when I tasted hers, immediately wanted the recipe. Kafta is ground meat rolled with parsley, onion and spices, which doesn't sound like much, but when made properly, the taste can be extraordinary.
(sorry, couldn't wait to eat)I had hers with rice and Gazala's in a pita form. Ordering kafta or chicken in the pita sandwich, the actual meat gets lost. At a glance, the pita looks large, but to actually taste the meat, I suggest ordering the platters and save the pita for the spreads. The chicken equally as juicy and equally lost in the pita. If you want to spend a mere $5.50 for a sandwich, then that's the way to go, but for $13.95 (yes, a steep jump), you get more meat, a starch and home salad.
Next time, gotta catch Gazala on a bureka day and order a variety of appetizers. The way the kitchen spices, babaganush, labanee and lamb are next on the list.
Block out the better chunk of an hour for lunch. It will be worth it, but the service is a little on the slow side.
Gazala Place 709 9th Avenue between 48th & 49th (212) 245-0709
http://gazalaplace.com/
I am now your loyal follower. One of these days, come and see me at www.samwich365.com. I'd be honored to have you as a visitor/friend or best of all, follower. Keri (a.k.a. Sam)
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