O’Berlinois
As I have previously recounted, Berliners have now embraced döner kebab as their favourite meal. This tasty dish has overtaken currywurst and fried veal liver.
What is Berliner kebab?
In Berlin, the traditional kebab consists of carefully spit-roasted meat, Greek feta cheese and, above all, a whole host of fresh vegetables – eggplants, zucchinis, peppers, red and white cabbage, red onions – topped with lots of fresh herbs such as parsley, mint and coriander.
And when it comes to sauces, yoghurt-based sauces (often with herbs), garlic sauce, cocktail sauce and red hot sauce (with chili-peppers) are the most common.
Unfortunately, doner kebab in France is usually sad and uninspiring by comparison.
Fortunately, I have discovered an excellent German kebab restaurant in Paris. “O’Berlinois” can be found at 165 avenue Victor Hugo, 75116 Paris (old Victor would turn in his grave if he knew). Another branch of O’Berlinois is at 3 Avenue emile cossonneau, Noisy-le-grand 93160.
Every story has a beginning, and O’Berlinois’s story began in 1980 when Louis arrived in Germany from his native Turkey (the home of doner kebab). A shrewd businessman, he ends up developing successful businesses in France. But he misses the “Berlin kebab”, and laments the poor quality of French kebabs.
This haunts him, so friends join him in this dream: to rediscover the taste of real, fresh kebabs with beef, chosen from the best breeds from carefully selected producers. This is how O’Berlinois was born, with its unique taste, that of marinated meat prepared “in-house”.
Being a traditionalist, I always opt for the O’Berlinois sandwich, which costs only 11.90 euros. It is filled with fresh vegetables, grilled meat, grilled eggplant, mixed salad, red cabbage, white cabbage, carrot, corn, feta, pomegranate sauce, white sauce and fried onion.
But there is a range of other sandwiches like truffle, kofte, chicken, lamb and falafels. Other options include “bowls” of tuna, falafel, kebab, or chicken. For starters, you can order mercimek corbasi, a Turkish lentil soup with vegetables.
For a light dessert, I opt for a small bottle of Turkish yoghurt, which is salty and crisp.
In Paris, there is no need to spend a fortune to eat well. But you need to know your way around and discover treasures like O’Berlinois!