The Kebab Shop takes the "o" out of kabob but puts flavor in your mouth

My coworkers have an annual tradition called "Lunch Week". The week between Christmas and New Years is known as Lunch Week because the office is mostly empty, the managers are all on vacation, and the poor souls who stay behind to work like to take extended lunch breaks in order to visit new and interesting restaurants that might normally be out of range for a one-hour break. Even though lunch week doesn't technically start until next week, this year we started early. The first spot we hit up was The Kebab Shop downtown on the corner of 9th and Market. This is one of our favorite places for lunch and we'll drive a long way to get it.

Most people think of grilled meat on a stick when they hear the word "kabob". However, this isn't your standard kabob. The Kebab Shop serves Turkish döner kebabs which are popular all over Europe. Kebab shops in Germany are akin to our taco shops here in San Diego. Aside from being spelled differently, a döner kebab is more like what we think of as a gyro. The lamb döner kebab has the same style of seasoned meat that is cooked slowly on a rotisserie. However, the difference between a gyro and a döner kebab is the bread. Döner kebabs are wrapped in a thin, warm crispy flatbread that resembles a tortilla. (I am reminded of that SNL skit for Taco Town... If you don't know what I'm talking about, you can watch it on Hulu.com.) They serve it with lettuce, tomato, onion, cucumber and a delicious garlic yogurt sauce. They have both spicy and regular lamb döner kebabs, and I've tried both. I prefer to order the regular and then ask for a side of spicy sauce. That way I can spice it just the way I like it. They have a variety of sides such as tabouli, caprese salad, Greek salad, hummus and French fries. But unless you're really hungry, a kebab will probably fill you up all by itself. I can't recommend this place highly enough. I tell people about it every chance I get, but to really appreciate it, you just have to try it yourself.

The Kebab Shop - Downtown
30 9th Avenue
San Diego, CA 92101
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Phone: (619) 525-0055