Philly Grill & Kabob House Offers Strange Combo

Philly Grill & Kabob House
318 Archibald Yell Boulevard
Fayetteville
2 1/2 stars

We were flummoxed by the name: Philly Grill & Kabob House. Seemed like a strange combination, but we were feeling brave so we wandered in for some yankee/Mediterranean cuisine.

The building is small, but it’s bright, clean and interesting in its multicultural decor. Two large mirrors on one wall give the illusion of a much larger interior. From the looks of things, the building appears to have once been a Pizza Hut that spawned a larger offspring next door.

We started off with Cokes, tea and appetizers. We had to try the hummus and bread ($3). This wasn’t the best hummus in town, and something didn’t seem quite right with the pita bread. It was a bit too moist, for one thing, and it was served cold.

Another appetizer we split among the three of us was fried zucchini ($2), which wasn’t bad but wasn’t anything to brag about either. One diner at our table bit into his zucchini stick and it slipped out of its fried batter like a snake out of its skin. Still clinched between his teeth, the hot green zucchini flopped against his lower lip until he could wrestle it to the plate. It woke him up, though.

For the main course, one diner at our table had classic gyros sandwich ($3.59) with beef, lamb, tomato, onion, lettuce and tzatziki sauce. He said the gyro was delicious and was as good as others he’s had in Northwest Arkansas.t

Another diner ordered the Philly steak and cheese ($4) to try the American fare. The sandwich comes with the standard beef and cheese, and a choice of additional ingredients such as onions, peppers, mushrooms, lettuce, tomato, pickles and choice of nine dressings. Our diner ordered it with onions and A-1 sauce.

The meat was lean and salty, and the hoagie bun was so-so — just fine for an Arkansas version of the Philadelphia icon. But he was disappointed with the tiny amount of cheese. Proof that the restaurant should narrow its focus back to its Greek or Mediterranean niche, he said.

The other diner ordered the Friday special, “Zereshk Polo,” ($6) which was a rice dish topped with barberries and chicken. It was served with a cucumber salad that seemed more like sauce than a salad. The chicken, although a peculiar bright yellow, was tender and spiced just right. The berries were tangy and certainly piqued this diner’s interest.

“I would order this again,” the female diner said.

The wait staff wasn’t exactly lickitysplit with the drink refills, but they eventually got around to us.

Overall, we weren’t too impressed with the appetizers, but a three out of three entrees were a hit.