Pita Bell Kabab

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Good morning,

After a brief period spent at a friend’s cottage this weekend, I felt a little refreshed communing with nature.

The horseflies were out in force and picking them off one by one has always given me a certain amount of pleasure since one of these beasts put a hole in my leg when I was ten. Yeah, I hold a grudge.

My trip to cottage country also provided me with the opportunity to find a new food product which is featured today, and I made a visit to a new Middle Eastern restaurant along Bank St.

Settle in with your favourite iced brew and let’s begin.

Ralf Joneikies, food and drink editor. [email protected]

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MIDDLE EASTERN

From meat to salad, Pita Bell Kabab has you covered

Pita Bell Kabab opened their second location recently in the spot once occupied by Azra Turkish Cuisine. 

I’d favourably reviewed Azra little more than a year ago but it was never able to recover after its owner Canpolat Sahin was charged with sexual assault in October of 2024.

I’m happy to report that Pita Bell Kabab has quickly won a large audience, as on each occasion the place was packed. Certainly, the food is very good but it may just be hostess Fatima’s generous and welcoming smile that has people streaming through the doors.

Falafel at Pita Bell is a little different than the usual, coming instead in the form of oblong bars rather than balls. I ordered six for $10, but you can have these as part of a platter or in a sandwich. They were a little more dense than others around town but the seasoning was very nice and they were moist enough.

Kubbat Halab are a shape you might recognize resembling kibbeh. Kibbeh are egg-shaped croquettes of cinnamon-scented minced beef surrounded by deep-fried bulgur wheat.

Kubbat Halab croquettes by contrast, have a similar beef filling but are surrounded by rice flour and then fried. Perfect for the gluten-free folks in your life.

They do a broad range of platters that are combinations of various grilled kebabs, pita bread, rice, hummus, toum (whipped garlic sauce) and salad. It’s a substantial portion with prices hovering at around $22. For those a little older with smaller appetites, I would suggest this is enough to feed two people.

I was interested in trying both the beef and chicken kabab platters and Fatima suggested that I could have the beef with both a minced and beef tenderloin kabab with the same arrangement for the chicken. 

The minced beef was mildly seasoned with a lovely grilled beef taste and while the tenderloin was equally delicious and marinated through, some cubes of beef were a wee bit firm while others melted on the tongue.

The chicken skewers were not seasoned with the same recipe as the beef and the minced chicken was bright and fresh with a hint of citrus. Perhaps courtesy of sumac?Fatima was right however and it was the Shish Taouk (marinated chicken breast) that took the taste prize in the chicken run-off.

Contrary to expectations, the breast meat was moist and flavoured through with garlic, herbs and the tang of yogurt.

I need to make a special mention here of the salad dressing. Fatima mentioned that “We’re very famous for it”, and you’ll get no argument from me. It’s one of the most memorable things I’ve eaten in a year.

There’s no getting the recipe of course, but I think I detected parsley, coriander, lemon juice, garlic, onion, ground cashews (?) all blended into an emulsified paste. It was wondrous and on my next visit I ordered a tub of it to take home.

You’ll want to eat it with a spoon but it does work well in salads.

Next was a more innovative take on kabab named Beyti Sarma. It’s named after a restaurateur in Istanbul,  Beyti Güler, who created this dish in 1961.

Here, coarsely ground lamb is grilled kabab style and then rolled in a lavash or saj flatbread, cut into slices and then topped with deeply flavoured tomato sauce and yogurt. 

Pita Bell also does us a favour by adding grilled tomatoes and one long green pepper. A simple but deliciously sweet addition.

It was very nice and worth ordering if you’re considering a visit. What made it stand out however was both the coarser grind of the meat and that all-encompassing grill flavour. That’s a grill that’s seen plenty of activity and with how pronounced the flavour was, that became a seasoning in and of itself.

Apart from the food and lovely hospitality, tradition is also respected here as Pita Bell provides a prayer room for the observant.

As mentioned, Pita Bell Kabab appears to be always busy at lunch and dinner but Fatima did tell me they have a lull between 2 and 5 pm. If you’d like to try them for dinner, making a reservation seems advisable and just note that it’s a lively room with both plenty of positive energy and conversation.

FOOD FINDS

Les Pinkies

On the way up to Quebec cottage country this past weekend, I made my usual stop at the IGA in Cantley. It’s a must-visit to stock up on a range of interesting foods and they have one of the finest selections of Quebec beer you’re likely to find anywhere. 

It’s also where I found a new and rather whimsical food called Les Pinkies. This is a mild pink onion produced in Quebec.

Having been raised in a culture that uses onions in almost everything, I have a fondness for anything in the allium family.

I’ve tried this onion raw and they may well be milder than both Walla Walla or Vidalia onions. Without giving it a second thought, you can easily slice these into a salad or add them raw to any sandwich. 

I’ve not yet seen them here in Ottawa but they are available at Metro, IGA and Sobey’s stores in Quebec.

Chuck and Hughes condiments

Chuck Hughes is a celebrated Montreal-based chef with a long list of Food Network shows and cookbooks in his wake. No surprise that he’s also branched out into branded food products. It’s just the way with celebrity chefs.

His mustard coleslaw just won an award for best product of 2025 at the inaugural Chatelaine Pantry Awards.

I can’t help but agree. I first had his mustard coleslaw last year, and now it’s a regular item in my fridge. It’s a must-have on hamburgers, hot dogs or grilled sausages.

My recent purchase was his mild antipasto. It’s loaded with finely chopped and marinated bits of cauliflower, eggplant, green tomatoes, capers, fennel etc. As I prefer my antipasto with tuna, I added my favourite Rio Mare to the mix. A nice combination.

These products are vegan, gluten-free and some are labelled kosher. I would wish for one adjustment to the recipes and that is: remove the seed oils or at least offer versions that have light olive oil or avocado oil. I have a link under Quick Bites below on the hazards of seed oils.

QUICK BITES

• Elgin St. favourite G Burger is now moving to Wellington St. W. [Ottawa Citizen]

• ByWard restaurant Dark Fork, where diners eat in the dark, now offers patrons a chance to dine on their patio. But you have to sign for your meal. [Globe and Mail]

• Brit talk show host Graham Norton is brilliant at what he does and this restaurant menu segment is a favourite. Very funny. 

• Seed oils, it’s generally agreed, are not healthy for the human body and here’s a balanced article that gives some sobering thoughts. [Cleveland Clinic]

MEMBERS-ONLY

Two new spots on the Pizza Safari

We visit two new spots for the Pizza Safari, one of our members-only series where we explore smaller pizza spots around the city.

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