Kabab Express

The Patel Brothers strip mall was pretty dumpy for a long time but it has recently gone through a nice update and refresh... They needed it fast because of all the new developments going up all around this area. There's no way in hell they would have been able to compete with all the new and shiny shops that have popped up within a stone's throw away. The strip malls' refresh is now cleaner and more welcoming to the roundeyes who may have been scared to check out one of the many eateries up in this piece... Maybe that's why they all go to Zyka because it's non-threatening with it's cafeteria style service. Zyka is ok for what it is but sometimes you get a bad case of the shits... I'm talking about endless wiping. I like most of the eateries in this mall but you also have to pick and choose your battle to avoid the Hershey squirts... Ok, you got Marsala, Chinese Dhaba, Thali, Bhaji Pav, Chat Patti, Gokul Sweets, Royal Sweets and Tava Bistro is the fancy pants Indian joint but I'm still partial to the semi-fast food joints that pump out pretty damn decent Indian street grub on the cheap. The goddamn vada pavs are addictive at most of these joints. I like that Tava Bistro have fresh lamb brains, too, which are pretty damn tasty. But the new kid on the block in this strip mall is the Kabab Express, they have been around for about half a year and it looks like they are doing a pretty good job at staying in business... That's a good sign that the food doesn't suck that much. Time to put them to the test and see if the iron pouch can stomach what they are slinging or else I'll be needing endless TP and baby wipes.
The joint is not big by any means but there's enough seating and tables for a pretty decent crowd. It was pretty quiet when I went in on a Friday night. Checked out the cleanliness of the joint and it was pretty clean overall... Ok, I'm game to order some kibble up in this piece. Let's take a gander...

Chicken 65, boneless meat marinated with ginger, garlic, eggs & other spices and Battered and Fried. This is not the deep fried crusty version and it was better for it. It was almost wet... I think they flash fried and then sauced it, but the "sauce" stuck on the pieces very well and they tasted fucking awesome... I don't think I want to eat the old boring version after this. It was also a huge portion and not chintzy like most of the other Indo-Pak joints. I also like the curry leaves with cilantro and the lime wedge gives it that little extra sumtin' sumtin'. Great start so far... But I ain't holding my breath either.

Vegetable Biryani, vegetable and soya chunks cooked with special seasoning with basmati rice. I just overloaded on chicken 65 and didn't want any meat on here so I got the veggie biryani which I actually prefer because you get to taste the true biryani without any meat distractions. It was also another huge portion and I fucking loved it as well... It was flavorful with a hint of spiciness and the soya chunks give it that little texture beside just all rice. What the fuck is going on up in this piece? How the fuck is the pouch not shitting on them before they make me shit myself... It's like fucking Bizarro World in here. Next!

Lamb Sheekh Kabab with basmati rice and salad. Supposedly, available only on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. It's a nice looking plate but how can you not laugh at the two dong kababs... I was thinking they're gonna come out the other end looking exactly the same way it went in. Talk about recycling and sustainability. The lamb was not gamey at all, it was full of spices and seasoned spot on... It was plastic fork tender and you could break it apart with ease. The rice looked like a biryani but it wasn't seasoned like the biryani, it's more plain tasting but the basmati rice was still very colorful. The raw sliced onions paired well with the lamb and the vibrant side salad gave it more color to the overall plate. I was gonna just get the regular beef sheekh kabab (next time) but I'm glad I went with the lamb instead... It was very good. It may look like two giant turds but even Mr. Hanky will love this. Jesus, how are they 3 for 3 right now? Baffling... Next...

Butter Chicken. The classic dish that all the roundeyes adore and love because it's non-threatening and not super spicy either. The big chunks of yogurt spiced marinated chicken were seasoned well but they were not cooked in the buttery curry gravy... They just added it into the gravy. Yet it still worked out nicely. Mix it in with the basmati rice and it's a nice little pouch filler. It was pretty tasty overall but this prolly won't come up again until I have sampled a few of their other dishes first.

Basmati Rice. Simple, fresh and colorful... Perfect to soak up all the butter chicken juice.

Plain Naan. This also came with the butter chicken which was nice. I liked how it was flatter than most naans with charred pops of blisters randomly. It was hot, easily tearable, had a nice chew to it and soaked up the butter curry gravy brilliantly. The butter chicken dish was basically a full meal for a normal person... But the pouch is not normal are we? I need more and more to fill the void that is my pouch. Ghee, that sounds kinda pathetic... I know what I'll be doing tonight. It involves crying, self loathing, sleeping, loneliness... And farting endlessly in the dark. But that can wait til later... Let's try one more thing before I cane myself.

Garlic Naan. If it's on the menu, the pouch gotta order it... Every joint does their own version of the garlic naan. There's more shitty versions than good ones so finding a Indo joint that makes a decent one is quite challenging... This version was pretty damn good. It was flat and covered in garlic paste and bits all over. The bottom was golden brown and crispy. This garlic naan is a keeper.

This little family run Indo-Pak joint was a pleasant surprise... The food was well prepared, freshly made and most importantly not greasy as fuck. The ingredients and execution was spot-on on this visit. Nothing I sampled had a misstep in taste, temp or proper portion size... It could be a little bit more spicy on certain dishes but it was totally acceptable. It's obvious that I like this place and I will definitely be coming back here to sample all their other goodies on the menu... Except for the fucking mango lassi. That shit still gives me nightmares with Mirza at Panahar forcing his mango lassi on me relentlessly. No, I don't want to drink your thick ass, dick stirred lassi, bro. 

1711 Church St.
Decatur, GA 30033