Having heard good things about Tarek's, I've had it in my list of places to hit up for a while now,…read morebut only recently stopped by for a late lunch. The location is befitting that of a lunch joint, and I like that they're sticking it to the likes of Subway which is next door in this little strip mall on Robie Street.
It's a pretty casual spot with the main counter and open kitchen running the length of the back of the restaurant. Mismatched chairs and tables sit somewhere in the 30s, mostly at two-person tables for the lunch crowd. After surveying the menu above the counter, pictures and prices included, I inquired about the "half and half" plate I had read about online and saw above me. It came highly recommended and came with two proteins, beef and their chicken shawarma. It wasn't cheap for lunch at nearly $14, but the one being made in front of me for someone else looked hefty and well worth so I went with it, grabbing an iced tea from the cooler to have while I waited.
With there only being a trickle of other customers at this point, my order was soon called out and I went back up to grab it and upon seeing it knew that my first meal of the day would keep me full for a while. It was loaded with strips of shredded beef and onions, the chicken was surprisingly hunks of meat instead of shaved pieces of meat, curry rice, salad, pita,hummus and tzatziki.
The shawarma was a different take than I'm used to but it was definitely good, being tender and moist and with a light flavour from the marinade. The beef wasn't quite as good unfortunately, and although it had great browning and a big garlicky hit, some bits were over cooked and a bit chewy.
The salad was like a Lebanese version of a garden salad with big pieces of tomato, cucumber, celery, green pepper, onion, pickled beets and lettuce, with a moderate dose of parsley and a light dressing. Everything was fresh and crispy, even the lettuce for being well out of season, and the dressing added a nice bit of zip to it.
While it wasn't ground breaking, the curry rice was a vibrant yellow and had a enjoyable curry flavour, minus the spice typically associated with curried dishes.
I really enjoyed the tzatziki, which had a noticeable cucumber flavour to it, which is a refreshing contrast to the blander store-bought versions I'm used to. The hummus wasn't as much up my alley as it wasn't as smooth as I like my hummus to be, but it did carry on the garlic-heavy theme of this place, which I didn't mind.
Paying (in cash, as you must) on my way out, I thoroughly enjoyed my meal and found myself wishing that other places in the city had meals like this one.