A Taste of Iran in Tsuchiura | Ali’s Kebabs
One of the big changes in New Zealand over the last twenty or thirty years has been the increasing diversity in restaurants and eating and drinking choices in general. I remember interviewing Mike Moore (this guy, not this Mike Moore) when I was living in Wellington and hearing how when he first moved to Wellington as a young politician, Wellington had a grand total of two restaurants that served wine.
Today in New Zealand there is a huge variety of food as well as wine and alcohol available, and indeed some of the worlds greatest wines are produced in the land of the long white cloud. Immigration has played a large part in this, as have the significant number of refugees that New Zealand opens its’ doors to. So from the standard Italian and Indian fare to Malaysian and Somali restaurants, through to my favourite – Lebanese – New Zealand offers some great gastronomic experiences. I heard a news report recently that Maori cooking is undergoing a resurgence – a delight I am yet to explore.
Lebanese food has always been a favourite – and I must admit to being a died in the wool, one-eyed humus and felafel fan. So when I read about the existance of an Iranian restaurant in the Tsukuba / Tsuchiura area I was over the moon. And then some.
They have felafel on the menu, and it is really, really delicious. When it is available. We have been there 4 times now and Ali’s Kebab’s has a batting average of .250. Having been there with a couple of meat eaters (yes, they do still exist) the carnivore options are varied and apparently delicious. We always seem to end up having pizza when we go there. Old school Japanese pizza. And if you have been in Japan for a while then you will know what I mean by that. I know the main target market for the restaurant are Japanese people, more specifically Ibaraki citizens, and that is why the chili sauce is about as hot as my jokes, and why MTV seems to be incessantly blaring from the very nice flat screen TV they have installed on one wall.
That aside Ali’s Kebab is a nice place to visit, with great, friendly service and I would highly recommend it, especially if you are, or have Muslim friends to entertain as the restaurant serves Øلال (halal) food (yes, they do serve alcohol, but this place is about as one gets in Japan).
If you want directions here is a map (in Japanese unfortunately) which is one page on Ali’s Kebabs website.
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