Cheap Eats - Sabri serves kebabs that throb with heat

I typically associate kebabs with Middle Eastern food, so I was surprised to discover that Sabri is a Pakistani restaurant. And it turns out there’s quite a bit more to the menu than kababs, though they are the specialty. The sweet, helpful girl behind the counter gave us a quick primer in the flavors and spices of Pakistani cuisine, even offering an explanation of the subtle differences between naan (puffy flatbread baked in a tandoori oven) and paratha (pancake-like flatbread baked on a griddle).

I’m Burning Up: Bits of chili and herbs laced a mouth-searing kebab of ground beef, and quick dunks in its accompanying tamarind sauce only seemed to intensify the burning sensation. When I tasted the sauce on its own, I realized why — it was just as spicy as the kebab. I stuck a finger in another sauce, this one flecked with cilantro, to test it. Sure enough, it had heat, too. The kebabs could also be eaten as wraps, rolled up in paratha with onions and raita.

Turn Down the Heat: Not everything on Sabri’s menu will knock your block off like the kebabs. The mellowest dish we tried was chicken in a curried chickpea sauce. Rings of fresh green chili studded the amber sauce, but the subtle heat didn’t overpower the earthy flavors. Another option for the meek of palate is biryani, a fragrant but mild rice dish served with pieces of tender bone-in chicken. The dish is beautiful to look at, its confetti-like rice grains ranging in color from white to yellow to bright orange.

Share and Share Alike: Portions here are fairly small; it makes sense to order several dishes and pass them around. Chicken tikka, a grilled chicken breast served with a wedge of lemon and a thatch of sliced onions, gave good smoky flavor. We couldn’t resist a little deep-fried action, so we ordered Chicken 65, a fun dish that consists of fried chunks of white-meat chicken tinged with a shocking shade of red from a spicy marinade.

Dinner and a Movie: Sabri was once a Captain D’s, but the owners have given the space a new lease on life. The orange-and-blue color scheme creates a lively atmosphere. Vibrant tangerine walls compete for attention with diner-style chairs covered in sparkly blue vinyl. A harlequin pattern decorates the booths that ring the dining room.

The centerpiece, hung in the middle of the back wall, is the giant flat-screen TV. It’s not meant to provide background noise, oh no. It’s meant to provide your entertainment for the evening. They’ve got the TV tuned to a Bollywood channel, and if you can ignore all those campy dance numbers and swirling saris, you’re a better person than me. I was mesmerized.