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Saturday, 13 July 2013 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Arabian Knights (AK) really is a place to stop by (or order in) if anyone is in the mood for some authentic Arabian ‘akil’ (food).
Born out of two people’s extensive travel across Middle East and North Africa and their passion for food, Arabian Knights will complete one year of service on 13 August, exactly a month from today. And what a year it has been. For the owners – Naqqash Jaleel and Tareq Al Khalil – it’s been a rollercoaster ride of learning with ups and downs and many challenges. But there are no regrets and only more and more plans to make AK even better in the coming year.
In an email interview with the Weekend FT as both live and work abroad and keep tabs on the local business through the local management, their families and social media, the duo admitted that even though both wanted to do their own thing, shawarmas were far from their plans.
The AK story
Having met in Dubai eight years ago, the duo has always spoken about starting their own venture. “And here we are in Sri Lanka,” they wrote. “We always wanted to do our own thing, however selling shawarma wasn’t part of the plan! Our backgrounds are in airlines, travel and IT. Both travel and IT are complex businesses; our goal was to do something operationally simplistic that can be scaled up. Of course the grass is always greener on the other side and we have come to the stark realisation that nothing is simple and success never comes so easily.”
Starting AK in Colombo was about spotting an opportunity at the right time in the right market and exploiting their inherent strengths and friendship. The idea was to test out the concept for one year and see how the market responds and scale appropriately.
So why shawarma? “We wanted to specialise in shawarmas due to its extreme popularity and universal appeal.” Having noticed that Sri Lanka didn’t have very good quality shawarmas and Arabic food outlet, and with the market on the up after the war, they decided to take the plunge and set up shop here.
What’s so special about Arabian food?
For them Arabian food is healthy, flavourful, not extremely spicy (unlike what a lot of the local market likes) and something you really love once you develop a taste for it. Even though it is difficult to generalise what exactly must go in to Arabian food, the duo noted that they like to stick to the fundamentals: “Extremely fresh, high quality ingredients, standard generations-old preparation techniques and unique recipes combine together to create that special appeal.”
Speaking of completing a year, they said: “During our first year of operations the concept was mainly to revolve around the authentic Syrian shawarma. We absolutely loved it during our travels and we had no doubt a well prepared, authentic Syrian shawarma can absolutely blow you away. So the menu revolved around variants of the shawarma, some very fresh juices/cocktails and traditional Arabic starters and salads.”
The dishes are all original and authentic. However some of the recipes, spice mixes and marinates are all unique to Arabian Knights and currently remain closely guarded secrets.
Favourites and plans
Their most popular dish so far is the spicy Syriana chicken shawarma. “This is an all-time favourite with many hundreds of rave reviews. Apart from that we also have great demand for our hummus, Mandi rice which originates from Yemen and our ever popular Arabic grill dishes.”
The duo has their own favourites: “The authentic Syriana shawarma is something we would kill for. But it’s a real art to get the spice, the meat, the toasting level and sauces all well balanced. When it comes together very well, it can be absolutely divine. We also love the Mandi rice, if you have developed a taste for it, you can just go on eating!”
The menu is reviewed twice a year.
In their first year, their main focus was take-away. During the coming year they will be looking at a proper dine-in facility. The duo added: “We are also exploring various other options and collaborations to take AK on to the next level.”
The business of food
Having already taken steps to build a dine-in space for AK lovers, a small room-of-sorts has been set up right next to the original AK take-away outlet down Marine Drive. With about six or seven small tables set in, it’s a comfortable place to sit, chat and devour.
We started with falafel, fattoush salad, hummus and Damasco fries. Falafel, known as the most popular Arabic street food, was fresh and crunchy, and delicious. Heart shaped, this is made from ground chickpeas we are told and is most popularly known as the ‘Arabic vadey’. The famous Arabic dish hummus was seasoned with olive oil and was delicious. We are told that AK is one of the best places in town to get authentic hummus. Then there was the fries – different to the usual fries or even chips, these are thicker, though still crispy and is served tahini dip, garlic sauce and ‘red sauce.’
The red sauce they serve should ideally be sold separately in jars. It is as spicy as a sauce could get and has a unique taste, special to AK. This could be consumed with anything – the falafel, the bread, shawarmas, kebabs – just anything. The recipe is a secret they said, but it is certainly a secret worth marketing.
No way did any of the above prepare us for what came next – some of their mains. Having picked a few of their fast moving items, we were presented with three types of shawarmas – the Dubai style chicken shawarma, Mexicana chicken shawarma and spicy Syriana chicken shawarma. While all three were exceptional, our favourite by far was the last. If you are not a spicy food lover, you’ll hate it because whether or not you choose to dip it in the red hot sauce, this shawarma is on fire! We had tears running down our cheeks, but it was so good, we had to finish it. It is easily one of Colombo’s best dishes.
Their chicken kebab served with Arabic bread and yummy dips as well as the sheesh tawouk, a dish of grilled chicken cubes served with Arabic bread and moammarrah (bread with a sort of chillie paste in the middle) are also delicious. The authentic and traditional Yemeni rice, Mandi, was unique and had its own distinct taste – a definite must try. If you are stuffed, or fired up, it is best to ask for a polo mint lemonade or an orange-strawberry juice. Fresh and refreshing, they cool you down almost instantly. The former is one of AK’s signature drinks. For a more Arabian taste, you could also pick laban, an Arabian drink made from yoghurt – it is tasty and filling, a bit like lassi. AK also has their layer drink – mix fruit, strawberry and avocado, which is more like a smoothie.
In our opinion, everyone should try AK. If not dine-in, pre order and pick it up later or get them to deliver to your doorstep. Open from 12 noon to 11 p.m., AK is undoubtedly one of the best new eateries in town.
