This week, I had the task of reviewing a favorite restaurant of many students in Troy, Ali Baba. It is well known amongst the students who live north of campus as being moderately priced, delicious, and for offering the best Mediterranean food in the region.
Previous Poly reviews have failed to mention some of the local favorites most popular at Ali Baba and I felt an obligation to remedy this embarrassing oversight, the most important of which being its gyro. A Baba’s gyro is somewhat different from what you’ll get at a Greek restaurant, but in my opinion it is way more delicious. It’s filled with well-seasoned gyro meat, onion salad, and Baba’s yogurt sauce. It is wrapped in fresh-from-the-oven lavash bread, and can be made spicy upon request. It is downright heavenly.
The gyro is so darn good that I had to threaten my roommate with physical harm to get him to try something different when we went to review Baba this past weekend. He finally settled on the beyti sarma kabob, which has tantalizing chunks of grilled lamb and veal meat wrapped in their bread and then smothered with yogurt and tomato sauces. Although he liked it, he retorted that the gyro still couldn’t be beaten.
I finally ordered one of Ali Baba’s gourmet pizzas, and oh man, was I happy that I did. I tried the chicken curry pizza, which came with yellow curry sauce, chunks of chicken, cheese, and roasted peppers. It was a bit on the greasy side from the curry sauce, but it was lick-the-plate delicious.
One of the niceties of Ali Baba is the menu design. Deciphering what each item contains and how it is cooked can be quite a hassle when eating foreign cuisine, especially for an uncultured swine like yours truly. Ali Baba brilliantly places pictures of each dish, appetizer, and even dessert above the name and description of every item on the menu. While ordering your lunch or dinner, you know exactly what and how much you’re getting.
I’ve been going to Ali Baba for a couple of years now. I have tried most of its menu and have yet to find anything disappointing. Local favorites include the chicken iskender, the adana kabob, the urfa kabob, the beyti sarma kabob and of course the divine gyro. Chicken iskender has chicken smothered in the yogurt and tomato sauces, and adana kabob has grilled ground veal and lamb meat and some of Baba’s sides, while the urfa kabob is the same thing but smothered in hot sauce. The baklava is pretty good as well.
Over the years, I’ve found Ali Baba serves two functions very well. The first is, of course, that of a restaurant. The atmosphere inside is warm, inviting, and filled with both the glow of its fiery oven and the aromas of Mediterranean spices. The service can be slow sometimes, but the food always makes up for it. The other thing Ali Baba excels at is speedy takeout. This is perfect for a quick lunch between classes because gyros are ready to pick up 10-15 minutes after they’re ordered and are both filling and inexpensive.
In terms of location, Ali Baba cannot be beat. It is only three and a half blocks north of the Union on 15th Street and on the left side of the street. They’re open until 11 pm on weekdays and are available for takeout by calling 273-1170. If you live on campus, walk the 5-10 minutes out to Ali Baba this weekend and give it a try because you won’t be disappointed.
