Trying to expand my Afghani food experiences, me and my sister decided to stop by Kabab Paradise.
For our appetizers, we chose the Bolani and Kadoo Qorma.
Kabab Paradise's version of both dishes were nice and worthy of ordering again.
The Bolani's skin was crisp and really fried nicely, and inside was a nice roughly chopped filling of potato, onions, and other spices.
The Kadoo Qorma was the better of the two appetizers.
The light seasoning allowed the pumpkin's flavor to really stand out, offering a fresh and light taste with each bite. We both enjoyed this dish a lot.
We both really liked the starter salad served with the entrees which was really fresh and had some some different vegetables like arugula and sliced tomato.
The side sauces provided, typical of most Afghan restaurants, were the green cilantro sauce and the ever famous Afghan "white" sauce.
Kabab Paradise's green sauce was a little watery compared to other Afghan restaurants I've tried, but the flavor was both herbaceous and had a pleasant light sweetness.
However, the "white" sauce was pedestrian, leaning way more to the taste of mayonnaise (rich and a tad sweet) compared to the more sour taste of yogurt.
I ordered the Sultani Kebab (a combo of Beef Kufta and Lamb Shish) entree and it was solid.
The Beef Kufta was good, well seasoned with a noticeably good cumin and parsley flavor. My knock on it was it was a bit dry.
Lamb Shish cubes were also a bit dry and tough, but as with the Kufta; the flavor was very good with nice seasoning.
What made this entree really enjoyable was the Afghani rice (Kabuli Pulao) which was excellent. The rice was cooked to a nice texture (with just a bit of bite), had a nice flavor of light spices, and the carrot & raisin combo really added a hint of sweetness.
My sister chose the Chicken Chapli entree and it was very good.
Immediately, she was pleased with the large size of the two Chapli patties; each occupying nearly 75% of the plate's area.
The Chapli was seasoned aggressively, and being Chicken, the extra level of spice was welcomed. She shared a good sized piece of the Chapli with me, and I could taste fresh cumin and turmeric.
She also shared the same positive opinions on the Afghani rice.
I have to mention the bread served by Kabab Paradise.
Bread in Afghani culture is a big deal, and Kabab Paradise's bread was pretty good. Though not the best Afghani bread I've eaten, what made the bread so addicting was the small packets of butter supplied in the bread basket. Both me and my sister could not stop eating the bread after applying a generous amount of the butter.
I give Kabab Paradise a solid 3.5, so averaging up it's 4 stars for me. read more