Offering: Large Doner Kebab
Establishment: Best Kebab House, Leith
Date and time: various times over 2017
Price: £6.50
Seating: 3 high rise chairs
Over the years many working-class areas the length and
breadth of the country have become home to certain kind of urbanite, providing
of course that area had more than a bookie and a pub. What’s more, these areas are usually not as homogenous as the more exclusive parts of the city;
oftentimes, containing a variety of people of different creeds and colours making up this melting pot reflecting in the diversity of choice
available for shoppers and kebab conquerors alike. Leith is one such area.
Gentrified almost beyond recognition, in Leith Walk it was common place to see drunken,
obnoxious good-time boys on the first day of British Summertime proclaiming
their own greatness with gleeful gusto and rank self-awareness; the rancid
junkie in his casual stupor or indeed a charming character, ‘Buzz'
known for his transcendental aerosol gas intake, who would make friends with any of
the aforementioned with the ease and similar objective of a Salamander Street
operative extracting coin from said inebriate.
Whilst these inhabitants still exist in Leith today, there has been a rapid intake of the English hipster crowd, accelerated though perhaps not sparked by the emergence of student flats for Edinburgh University residents in the Shrub Hill area of Leith Walk. It is now more common to see sheepskin coats, thick rimmed glasses with Apple laptops in hand than Buzz or his sympathisers exiting one of the nearby pubs. Slowly but surely, the historical characters have either died off or moved further towards the Foot of the Walk to nearby Junction Street where pubs are still cheap and stabbings unreported.
Whilst these inhabitants still exist in Leith today, there has been a rapid intake of the English hipster crowd, accelerated though perhaps not sparked by the emergence of student flats for Edinburgh University residents in the Shrub Hill area of Leith Walk. It is now more common to see sheepskin coats, thick rimmed glasses with Apple laptops in hand than Buzz or his sympathisers exiting one of the nearby pubs. Slowly but surely, the historical characters have either died off or moved further towards the Foot of the Walk to nearby Junction Street where pubs are still cheap and stabbings unreported.
One thing that’s not changed over the decades though is that
Best Kebab House is still regarded as a Leith institution. We’ve previously spoken about the bad blood that once existed between them and the owners of Original
Best Kebab House and sadly, after much controversy, the OBKH lost its operating license due to a number of violations though mainly thanks to operating after 1AM – a practice it was not entitled to. It’s a shame really. The chilli sauce
was in a different league – it genuinely lived up to its
name whereas the more common establishments serve a glamorised tomato
ketchup.
Some years ago, before the conflict, Best Kebab House used to operate from the now defunct Express Best Kebab (or something, God knows what it was called but it lasted around two months and was quite frankly sub-par) and previously OBKH. Back when it was a united entity, it truly was the best kebab in Leith. Utterly unrivaled on this end of Princes' Street, the closest kebab by proximity was Leith Walk Kebab and Pizza House across the road from Pilrig Street, once adorned with Coca Cola signs and unquestionably not worth the effort. At Elm Row, there is a place that's had more names than Buzz has had aerosol cans, it was half decent when it was known as Chillies though for the last ten or so years it's been known as Olympos.
The Best Kebab House of 2005 was the pinnacle of doner achievement in Edinburgh. The sauce was identical to OBKH, the famous potatoes had the most delicious thick coating, one would forget chips existed. Best Kebab House in 2017, whilst not living up to those lofty standards - the product still packs punch. The chilli sauce, though delightfully textured tastes more common, quite sweet and has a runny viscosity, it is still a handy companion to curly doner slithers. The meat, with its smoother spaced touch gives the impression of being slightly cheaper than the OBKH fare and thus less chewy, it also doesn't taste tremendously well seasoned.
With prevalent red lettuce and the timeless salad sauce, the kebab does a lot of things right. The pita bread, despite being unremarkable is sturdy and carries its contents proud. The accompanying tatties are still a draw, with salad sauce and pickled cabbage they are a devourer's delight however they're a shadow of themselves. Previously, the coating of the most delectable fried chicken had been sealed upon a roast potato whereas now, its as if some of the batter from lesser chicken once shared a tray with the potato. The kebabbery is such a clean place and the seating area, whilst small is spotless, I often have no problems parking myself here for 15 or so minutes though at times, it can be busy and you might be tempted by the fried chicken across the road.
Despite the changes in Leith Walk, despite the change in ownership of Best Kebab House, its new recipes and its ever changing clientele - I can't blame the hipsters for diminishing the quality of the beloved kebab sold here. It's still worth a visit, serves a mean doner and with an original side dish that you simply won't get elsewhere in Edinburgh. Whilst the hipsters might have chased away the beloved Arthur Willaims, who was rumoured to be alienated by the hummus in the chilled aisles of Scotmid, it would seem that Best Kebab House will always remain in some form or another.
The meat, with its smoother spaced touch gives the impression of being slightly cheaper than the OBKH fare and thus less chewy, it also doesn't taste tremendously well seasoned.
Some years ago, before the conflict, Best Kebab House used to operate from the now defunct Express Best Kebab (or something, God knows what it was called but it lasted around two months and was quite frankly sub-par) and previously OBKH. Back when it was a united entity, it truly was the best kebab in Leith. Utterly unrivaled on this end of Princes' Street, the closest kebab by proximity was Leith Walk Kebab and Pizza House across the road from Pilrig Street, once adorned with Coca Cola signs and unquestionably not worth the effort. At Elm Row, there is a place that's had more names than Buzz has had aerosol cans, it was half decent when it was known as Chillies though for the last ten or so years it's been known as Olympos.
The Best Kebab House of 2005 was the pinnacle of doner achievement in Edinburgh. The sauce was identical to OBKH, the famous potatoes had the most delicious thick coating, one would forget chips existed. Best Kebab House in 2017, whilst not living up to those lofty standards - the product still packs punch. The chilli sauce, though delightfully textured tastes more common, quite sweet and has a runny viscosity, it is still a handy companion to curly doner slithers. The meat, with its smoother spaced touch gives the impression of being slightly cheaper than the OBKH fare and thus less chewy, it also doesn't taste tremendously well seasoned.
With prevalent red lettuce and the timeless salad sauce, the kebab does a lot of things right. The pita bread, despite being unremarkable is sturdy and carries its contents proud. The accompanying tatties are still a draw, with salad sauce and pickled cabbage they are a devourer's delight however they're a shadow of themselves. Previously, the coating of the most delectable fried chicken had been sealed upon a roast potato whereas now, its as if some of the batter from lesser chicken once shared a tray with the potato. The kebabbery is such a clean place and the seating area, whilst small is spotless, I often have no problems parking myself here for 15 or so minutes though at times, it can be busy and you might be tempted by the fried chicken across the road.
Despite the changes in Leith Walk, despite the change in ownership of Best Kebab House, its new recipes and its ever changing clientele - I can't blame the hipsters for diminishing the quality of the beloved kebab sold here. It's still worth a visit, serves a mean doner and with an original side dish that you simply won't get elsewhere in Edinburgh. Whilst the hipsters might have chased away the beloved Arthur Willaims, who was rumoured to be alienated by the hummus in the chilled aisles of Scotmid, it would seem that Best Kebab House will always remain in some form or another.
