Habibi has been open for about 4 weeks now.
After the old shawarma place here closed, I was a bit surprised that this place would open as another shawarma joint, but I was thinking:
"Hey..maybe they can make it work!".
I don't think that anymore.
I am giving Habibi 6 months max.
I went there yesterday to pick up a chicken shawarma for lunch and I was disappointed.
The place is a hole in the wall and looks run-down.
They have basically no interior to speak of - 2 lonely plastic tables and a total of 4 chairs in the back. Plus a fridge for drinks.
After seeing their brandnew red store sign outside, I had expected more.
As for the food:
They serve the typical shawarma fare, but also offer a few more "exotic" options like shrimp or tuna shawarma .
I stuck with the chicken shawarma since I felt that was a safe bet.
Well, it was not totally horrible, but it wasn't great either.
The chicken was sparse.
I found a wilted lettuce piece inside.
The tahini sauce - I am still not sure if I was really able to locate it.
At least it was fairly cheap.
The price for a chicken shawarma is $4.29 plus tax which comes out under $5.
The other shawarmas are around the same price range.
But following Ali Baba's idea of having a daily specials, they offer a different shawarma or sandwich each day for a reduced price, so you have the option to save some money.
If I am really hungry, I might come back to try the falafel sandwich one day.
But other than that I won't be back.