Shawarma Tokyo

[Jarrell Campbell]

Chickenshawarma is one of those foods that's become iconic across the world. It's typically the halal option in almost every country. I've been to many - thankfully- myself and seen first hand that you can get chicken shawarma practically every where. Even in the busy streets of Tokyo, Japan or the scenic canals of Venice, Italy. It is incredible the scope this dish has. Not surprising though, because it's so delicious and easy to grab and go.

So I thought to myself, why don't I make this? It's usually a dish we buy outside and rarely ever make at home. The process seems intimidating, but it's actually really easy to make and the taste pay off is huge. I let my chicken marinate for 3 days before preparing, but you can have it marinate in as little as an hour. I also make mine as a standing shawarma. I don't think it tastes quite as good sauteed in a pan or as it's intended to taste.

Carnitas Los Cuaos is serving Michocan-style carnitas in East L.A., available in tacos with a pickled jalapeno, in tortas, and by the pound, with cuts like cuero, costillas, and buche. The business calls its product the "best carnitas in L.A. and its surroundings."

Oaxacan-style Asadero Perron is setting up on Vermont Avenue in Hollywood, serving a simple menu of charcoal-grilled, butterflied pollo asado and the occasional appearance of ribs. The business' tagline echos a familiar sentiment in these parts: "La vida es un riesgo carnal, no fracases antes del intento,date una oprtunidad" (Life is a risk, dog, don't fail before trying, take a chance").

On the heels of last week's news that there's an Egyptian feteer specialist in OC, we're happy to stumble upon Amir Edward's The Original Hawowoshi food truck, which derives from his backyard pop-up of the same name. Here you'll find feteer with toppings like basturma, cheese, and sujuk sausage, along with traditional and spicy hawawshi, the Egyptian specialty of pita stuffed with minced meat, peppers, onions, and herbs. Open Tues through Sun.

Munchurya Mediterranean is a new Turkish-owned shawarma truck posting up in Venice every day. The bright orange truck's menu include chicken shawarma, kofte, and beef kabob, available in wraps or with pita, along with bowls with your choice of meat and the option of fries. There's also baklava for dessert and the yogurt-based ayran to drink.

Parmizza is now open in Culver City with chef Martin Heierling in command of a concept that unites the Italian phenomenon of pizza with the Italian-American phenomenon of parmigiana-ing stuff. Antipasti include octopus carpaccio, rigatoni a la vodka, and tuna tartare bites on crispy cauliflower. Parmizzas, described by press reps as "a crispy, golden brown schnitzel base of chicken, veal, pork or cauliflower, embellished with classic or whimsical pizza toppings," include 'The Uber' with golden chicken, bacon, parmesan crisps, an egg served sunny side up, black pepper, and pecorino, and the 'Hot Handsome Devil' with spiced pork, mozzarella, ricotta, jalapeo, garlic, and onion.

Tokyo Fried Chicken, which serves one of our favorite fried chickens in L.A., has opened a new location in Downtown L.A. Its Monterey Park location is currently, temporarily closed, so go check it out in DTLA.

Diwali will also be celebrated at chef Sujan Sarkar's Baar Baar in Downtown L.A. this Sunday, with a five-course dinner priced at $75 and bookable on OpenTable. In addition, Fullerton's Michelin-recognized Khan Saab will offer Diwali specialties this Saturday and Sunday, including a deconstructed samosa chaat, mushroom korma, and North Indian hara bara kabob.

I returned for a revisit about 5 months later and tried their Lamb Donair ($7.99 for the regular size with a can of pop) and it did not disappoint. I made sure to add the pickled red turnip and it gave the wrap a nice tart crunch to the bite. The amount of seasoned lamb was generous and it was an overall good shawarma.

I had a hankering for shawarma so I ordered the Chicken Platter ($11.90) which included a fresh garden salad, an ample serving of rice, and chicken that was freshly sliced off of the spit and finished on the grill. This was topped off with tzatziki and hot sauce. Originally, they forgot to give me hummus with my meal but gave me a container of hummus after they realized the mistake.

I came back the following month to try their Lamb Donair ($7.50). Unlike their chicken, which you can see warming on the rotating spit, the lamb is pre-cooked and refrigerated. They throw the pieces on the grill to reheat it before placing it in the pita.

What impressed me right off the bat was the sheer size of the thing! It was an enormous beast of a kebab that made even me struggle with my dinner a couple of hours later. It was my first kebab to contain chips. The jury is still out on that one as it all depends on the quality of the chip. The main thing that kept this at the bottom of the top 5 was the mayonnaise and ketchup instead of hot sauce. Come on Russia, what were you thinking?

Our runner up single handedly saved the reputation is kebabs, shawarmas and lavishes all across Kazakhstan. After weeks of ketchup-soaked cold greasy chips-butties-posing-as-kebabs that had me sworn off of kebabs forever I found Perfect Doner in the Caspian city of Aktau. Perfect may be overstating a touch but it certainly was pretty bloody good. Large, hot, plenty of good quality meat, and the chips were served on the outside. Well done, Kazakhstan, you got there in the end.

The co-star of NBC's Parks and Recreation and the upcoming heist comedy 30 Minutes or Less is our kind of comedian. Which is to say he understands that making movies and touring the world doing stand-up is really about one thing: the food. He's a guy who's as comfortable tweeting about his encounters with an enchilada on a flight to Chicago (not good) as he is describing to us the otoro at Tokyo's Sushi Sawada ("sweet and charred, like a burnt marshmallow"). In other words, he's the perfect subject for our first Back of the Napkin Q&A.

Can you guys do all my interviews? Why has no one asked me questions like this before? Truth be told, I prefer tacos, but for burritos, I would call it the Odyssey. It would be divided into halves. The first half would be crispy carnitas, the second half would be carne asada. For the carnitas, I'm imagining it in the style of Alegria on Sunset in Los Angeles. Inside, I'd go tomatoes, greens, onions, cilantro, Jack cheese, rice, and black beans. I would keep crme frache and salsas on the side for dipping. And you ready? I'm gonna go with four salsa flavors: traditional, peach, pineapple, and mango.

The hamachi tostada is a staple that's always around and a must-try. Carrot and avocado salad. Getting the salads at Animal is key: (1) They are delicious, and (2) having a few of those in your meal keeps you from feeling destroyed by having too much of the heavy stuff. Like the foie gras with biscuit and maple-sausage gravy. A must-have every trip. One of my top bites of 2011.

There was a food event in NYC called Le Grande Fooding last fall, and a restaurant called Seersucker served up a mean fried chicken that was the best I've had in a long, long time. Other than that, I can't find any that I consistently like as much as what I get in South Carolina (where I'm from).

Personally, other than Kogi, I'm actually kind of sick of seeing the food trucks. It seems like a majority of them are just coasting on the quirkiness of being a food truck and having a Twitter page, etc., without having any good food to back it up. I'm sure some are good, but I just haven't had a chance to try one. I'd love to see a good burger truck. I just had this burger at Commodore in Brooklyn and it was so good, I'd love to see a truck with that burger.

I also love a good chicken shawarma. I studied abroad in London when I was in college and the chicken shawarma there (particularly at Ranoush Juice) just blows any other shawarma I've had out of the water. The best I've found in NYC and L.A. is Zankou Chicken in L.A. and Karam in NYC. So my dream would be for Ranoush Juice to open a truck in L.A.

Holy shit. I would have this combo as a dish; it was my favorite Southern meal as a kid. The Lil' Ziz' plate: Chicken drumettes, biscuits, baked mac and cheese, rice, and gravy. This lady who used to take care of me as a kid (shout-out to Mrs. Beaulah!) used to fry up drumettes for me and I'd take 'em down by the dozen. I never see them anywhere. I also can't find mac and cheese I really like. My preference is obviously baked style, but with a little crispiness up top. I don't care for the breadcrumbs and I don't like it too cheesy or creamy in the noodles. I think Mrs. Beaulah does a layer of cheddar on top and bottom and just mixes the noodles with evaporated milk and maybe an egg? Whatever she does, it's delicious. The best mac and cheese I've had at a restaurant was at Zingerman's in Ann Arbor. Goddamn, that was good.

Hands down, Sushi Sawada. You walk in and it's a sushi bar with seven seats. Very minimal and very quiet. You sit down and Sawada, this strong, bald Japanese man who looks like a temple of calmness and precision, starts putting pieces of sushi in front of you on the bar. You pick it up with your fingers and eat it. From the hands of one of the top sushi masters in the world to your hands, right to your mouth. I feel like the meal changed me.

The golden-brown heads of cauliflower in the cauliflower shawarma gave a satisfying crackle as I bit into them. Mango sauce saturated the pita and shreds of pickled red onion asserted a moderate acidity. At the first bite of the sandwich, I was taken aback by the creamy, velvety hummus in the flatbread. The cauliflower shawarma performed a melody of textures, harmonizing with the hummus and pita.

Though the cauliflower shawarma was a delightful experience, the same could not be said for its chicken counterpart. When I dove into the chicken shawarma bowl, I found that though the chicken was decently savory, it was considerably stringy and dry as well. However, every other aspect of the bowl collectively redeemed the dish. The mini salad, consisting of diced cucumbers and tomatoes, provided a refreshing respite from the other relatively rich foods. In addition, the pickled red cabbage brought another facet of sharp contrast. To top it all off, the tahini and garlic sauce tied the bow with their respective nutty and pungent savors.

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