mikahaziq: Halal Restaurant at Arab Street Singapore : Shahrazad Middle Eastern Restaurant

Halal Restaurant @ Arab Street; Shahrazad (Middle Eastern Cuisine)

*Dear Readers, the last time I went to Arab Street (June 2014) this place was under renovation, it is unclear to me whether the restaurant has ceased its operations or the restaurant is renovating*

The first time I tried eating at Shahrazaad was when it was still called Pyramid. Understandably so, since the owner is from Egypt. At that point in time, I was still working at KeyPoint which is within 5 minutes walk to Arab Street so lunch and dinner dates with husband was always around that area J

We have tried Sufi (back when it was at its original location) , Nabins, A small tucked away Moroccan Café (don’t know if its even still there) Amirah’s Grill (which has now ceased operations) AlaTurka and Fika among others. Have always wanted to try Café Le Caire but hubby say the food was so-so.

4 years on and a lot has changed and I have not been eating at Arab Street for ages, rather KL is the new eating area for me. But, last month the girlfriends decided to do a get together and so we decided on Shahrazaad since it has an attic which can be booked for private gatherings. The seating is on the floor with cushions and low tables so the kids can sleep on the cushions if they are tired and run around without disturbing others when they have warmed up to each other ( Be sure to call them up in advance so that they can prepare the room nicely for you). There is even a cable TV and if I am not mistaken a DVD player. Waah.. perfect to eat in peace while the kids play on their own! The girlfriends were having so much fun catching up that we didn’t take any pictures!

Since the food during the gathering was delicious just as I remembered 4 years back, I decided to come again with hubby last sunday, after him insisting on buying “Nutribullet” from OG (tried that yesterday, oh my.. that is worth another post!)

This time around we ordered:

Arabic bread @ Shahrazad; Arab Street

Arabic Bread – nice, soft and authentic, not factory-made yeah. But a bit burnt this time round.

Halal Food @ Arab Street Singapore : Hummus @ Shahrazad Restaurant

Hummus – delicious as always but the somehow the gathering with the girlfriends one tasted better. Generous with the chickpeas, not too much lemon juice but this time round the lemon juice was not mixed properly so I swirled it around first before dipping for good measure

Falafel @ Shahrazad Restaurant; Arab Street

Falafel!! I was swooning over this during the girlfriends gathering so I must have it again! But this time around it came slightly darker, you can see it from the picture. Still, if you are lucky and get the ones like I got previously, you will be coming back again just for it. That is for sure. This just brings back memories of Egypt..

Halal Food @ Arab Street ; Cheese Pide @ Shahrazad

Cheese pide for the kids.. Ok I think pide is more of a Turkish dish? The pide on the menu is for minced meat and cheese pide but since my kids don’t really favour minced meat, we requested specially for cheese pide only. (Yes, we like to make special requests whenever we eat at restaurants, you will be surprised, most of the time restaurants are very accommodative). The pide must have been delicious because the kids finished it up before mummy can even taste it.

Halal Restaurant @ Arab Street - Iskender Lamb @ Shahrazad

Iskender lamb for the man, sliced tender lamb on top of shredded Arabic bread with tomato-based gravy slathered all over the lamb served with a side of greek-style yoghurt and grilled green chili and tomato.

I find the dish a bit too tomato-ish but that most probably is due to my Asian spicy sambal preference hehe.. hubby didn’t quite favour the sourness of greek style yoghurt. Maybe we should have requested the yoghurt to be changed to tahini instead. I find that the grilled chili and tomato were not grilled long enough.

Grilled Charcoal Chicken @ Shahrazad Restaurant; Arab St

I ordered grilled charcoal chicken with rice and grilled tomato and chilli with iceberg lettuce. I like this dish very much. The grilled chicken brings back memories. The meat is juicy inside and nicely grilled outside, the rice is fluffy and kind of remind me of chicken rice a bit. I kind of regretted finishing up the falafel, bread and tahini earlier else I would have shredded the chicken and stuff it in the bread together with falafel, the lettuce and tahini! Perfect sandwich!

Kunafa @ Shahrazad Restaurant ; Arab St

Last came our dessert "Kunafa", I have never tried this dessert while in Egypt previously but one of my girlfriends ordered it during the last gathering and I am hooked! Crispy vermicelli-like dessert with warm sweet milk errm ok maybe that description doesn't sound so nice BUT the dessert is nice and you should give it a try.

It was a very satisfying dinner with hubby and kids at Sharazad. All the food really reminded me of Egypt.. truly authentic middle eastern food though consistency of food quality still needs some attention. If you are lucky, you will get fantastic food that will make you want to return again, but if not, you will still get above average dishes.

Somehow or rather I always feel that the entrance to Shahrazad is easily overlooked. Though the new signage and entrance decor did help increase visibility. It's by a small lane and just beside Ambrosia. Here is a picture of its entrance: