Previous SlideNext Slide

At Kababi – a 26-seat kabab house on an industrial thoroughfare in Sunshine – owner Hamed Allahyari has bottled his memories of similar 100-year-old establishments back home in Iran. But the menu is an original mix of Melbourne and Persian influences.

Skewers of lamb and chicken are cooked with tomatoes and green chilli over a charcoal flat grill. For vegetarian diners, there are chargrilled king brown mushrooms, chosen for their meaty texture. All are either served in lavash wraps or on plates with barberry-flecked rice, salad, and the dried shallot and yoghurt dip called mast-o musir.

There are also refreshing iced teas and cordials made with sour cherry, willow flower and other botanicals. For dessert, there’s bastani sonnati – Persian saffron and pistachio ice-cream – made in-house.

The kabab joint also doubles as Allahyari’s other venture, Persian cafe SalamaTea. It operates as Cafe Sunshine & SalamaTea by day, and Kababi by night.