Coincidence is something I love! I discovered this Kabob place by a coincidence last year while i was WALKING happily south on Dixie road in the cold watching my steps carefully from tripping on the freezing layers of accumulated snow. I glimpsed the word Kabob on an empty stomach! The result was inhaling a delicious Kabob wrap!!! Luckily it was on lunch so the place was empty except for few tables having a quick lunch before returning to work.

Next time I was able to go there, it was on dinner. I knew how good it was from the huge number of people crammed inside the somewhat spacious restaurant. When i was standing in the long queue (that almost reached the door!) I was considering leaving but NO WAY! I shut myself up by watching the delighted seated folks licking their fingers while finishing off their dish and staring at whatever pictures I can see on the big menu in front of me. On top of that, an important fact about detecting an authentic restaurant is to find customers from the same origin of that cuisine! and that was definitely the case here!

Anyway, the menu is specifically for BBQ/Meat lovers. You got the choice of Chicken, Beef, or Lamb. The consequent taste is quite a combination of both Iranian (high-quality meat) and Pakistani (spicy and juicy) grill. Their rice is also great. What I usually do is order a combination of meats with my friends and share the dishes together. Their dinner meal is served with salad, rice, and bread.

Kabob Dinner Meal

The biggest disadvantage about eating there as I mentioned before is interestingly its popularity! It can really get extremely crowded there, that’s why I do take-outs sometimes. But no matter where you wanna have those juicy peaces of kabobs just close your eyes and enjoy the KABOBIC moment as much as you can until the last grain of rice left!!!

Bread

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The logo pretty much says it all: Unique Taste!! In reality, There is nothing like it in the city.. We all grew tired of eating slices of Pizza all the time. It is everywhere.. tastes the same.. looks the same.. served the same way.. We need a change! The definite solution is go and eat Lahmacun at Pizza Pide!!

With a very decent price, you can share with your family and enjoy the flavor of the crispy dough cooked in that huge oven and topped with any kind of flavor you prefer. Well to be authentic, that flavor has to be Meat!! Since Lahmacun is what it’s called (in Arabic: lahm-bi-Ajeen literally meaning Meat with dough) But no worries! If you prefer a meatless pie you can get excellent tastes as well with combining Cheese (Feta and Kashkaval), Spinach and other freshly prepared vegetables.

Pizza Pide menu

Hmm.. to talk about it.. it started to make me hungry!! Good enough that the menu is on the restaurant’s website so you can check it out for yourself and see how those delicious lahmacuns look like!! I personally had my own share of those good meaty delicious stuff as you can tell.

Lahmacun - Turkish Pizza @ Pizza Pide Toronto

Served with fresh pickles, cut tomatoes and onions with a bunch of fresh parsley to snack along. Plus, a recommended drink with this tasty meal would be Ayran. My favorite healthy drink after Milk and water! Made of mixing yoghurt, water, and salt. It is simply an excellent combination and tastes great while served with our special Turkish Pizza!!

Lahmacun and Ayran

To finish off, you can also try a piece of sweet pastry (Baklava) served there too for a price of 1 dollar!

About Lahmacun (Also known in Arabic as: lahm-bi-ajeen, mu-ajjanat):

In Turkey, Syria, Lebanon and some neighboring countries, There exists special restaurants that only specialize in baking these special doughs. You can even bring your own prepared meat at home to them and they’ll make it a delicious pizza for you! Some ready-baked pies are also made freshly out of the oven, stuff that include cheese, spicy chili, meat, spinach, olive, etc… What’s also interesting is that every flavor will have its own special shape. For example, the small spinach pies would have a triangular and closed shape, The spicy-cheese pie will have a round and open shape (’sort of’ similar to pizza) and so on!

3319 Bloor Street West,
Etobicoke, ON M8X1E7
Phone: (416) 236-5693
Website: www.malakrestaurant.com

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This could be one of the most delightful dishes I’ve ever had in my life.. I believe The way Tunisians prepare their Couscous might be a bit different and more delicious.

Simply, the dish has everything! The meat (Lamb), the vegetables (cooked and salad), the carbs (couscous)! So that what makes it consistent containing a high load of nutrition beside its deliciosity! The huge plate is served with a side salad. The couscous is spread all over the plate with its sauce and vegetables (carrots, turnips, potatoes, peppers), then on top comes the famous lamb shank. The couscous tastes a bit spicy with a great touch of steamy meat sauce, the vegetables were passionately cooked along with the tender lamb meat that would melt in your mouth.

Tunisian Couscous

A brief overview about Couscous:

Couscous is very famous in the countries of the Arabic Maghreb (North Africa) which are Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria and Libya. It is also widely a known dish in other countries like Syria, Turkey, France. Couscous is made from Semolina (wheat) and the process of making it isn’t easy!

Traditionally, North Africans use a steamer called a kiskas in Arabic or couscoussière in French. The base is a tall metal pot shaped rather like an oil jar in which the meat and vegetables are cooked in a stew. On top of the base a steamer sits where the couscous is cooked, absorbing the flavors from the stew. The lid to the steamer has holes around its edge so that steam can escape.

The Steamer used for cooking Couscous

As a last word, what made me crave this special dish more was the way it was prepared. After I heard from my Tunisian friend its detailed preparation story, it made me appreciate the efforts put into cooking my meal (Not like a quick subway sandwich that takes 30 seconds to get it done and probably eaten!!). I also hope one day I will get the chance to be able to taste the real authentic Couscous at its place of birth!

About Malak Restaurant:

Malak Restaurant opened in August 2008. It only offers the great Couscous meal only for dinner on Friday’s and Saturday’s. But that’s not only it! There also got some great thing to try like special Mediterranean appetizers, I recommend: Garlic Potatoes, Houriya (special Tunisian spicy dip), Hummus, Kibbeh (Fried bulgur meat balls stuff with ground beef), Fattouch salad, and Filos (similar to spring rolls but Mediterranean style). Beside appetizers, there are also very good dishes like BBQ grills (chicken and beef), Tajine Malsouka (Puff Pastry stuffed with chicken and mushrooms on top, picture below), and some other good stuff too.

Tajine Malsouka