Look, I’m not here to waste your time. Elbasha on Sukhumvit 26 is the Middle Eastern restaurant Bangkok needed, and honestly after eating there, it’s safe to say this place has set a new bar. No joke.
First Things First — The Mezza
We started with the Oriental Cold Mezza and look, I wasn’t expecting much from a starter spread, but then it arrived and… okay. Two types of fresh bread, hummus, mutabal, fattoush, Arabic salad, and grape leaves, all looking great and tasting even better. The bread was stupidly fresh. The hummus was smooth and rich. The mutabal had that deep smoky flavour that tells you right away that someone in that kitchen actually knows their stuff. And the veggies were crisp and bright. No sad wilted salad situation going on here.
Then they brought out the Muhammara, which is a roasted red pepper hummus, and okay I wasn’t ready for that one. Sweet, smoky, with a little heat at the end. If you love hummus, try both and see which one wins for you because they are both genuinely great in totally different ways.
Now I have to give the bread its own moment because it deserves it. The homemade pita at Elbasha was stupidly fresh, soft, and warm, and it made everything on that mezza spread taste even better. The kind of bread that makes you realise how much bad bread you’ve been tolerating everywhere else. I may have gone a little overboard with the dipping. Zero regrets.
The Grill Section is Not Playing Around
The Mixed Grill came with four kebab skewers and I’ll be honest, I took one bite and had to take a second to appreciate it. Juicy, charred perfectly, well seasoned all the way through. Then came the shawarma plate with fries and this is where things got really good. The meat was real tender and juicy, properly spiced, and the fries were crispy and hot. Not an afterthought side dish, they held their own. And to wash it all down we had the Kawa tea, which was warm, fragrant, and the perfect thing to sip between all that incredible food. A nice little touch that rounded the whole experience out nicely.
The Chicken Mandy and Lamb Shank
Okay so this is where I go all in. The Chicken Mandi was tender, flavourful, and cooked with that slow roasted depth that you just can’t fake. And then came the Mandi Lamb Shank and no joke, this thing stopped the whole table. Fall-off-the-bone, melt-in-your-mouth, slow-cooked to perfection. Mandi is a traditional slow cooking method and whoever is running that kitchen at Elbasha has completely mastered it. The meat was so tender and full of flavour that it was honestly the highlight of an already outstanding meal. Best lamb shank I’ve had in Bangkok. I said what I said.
The Shawarmas
I eat shawarma pretty much everywhere I go. Some places nail it, some places… not so much. Elbasha nails it. The beef shawarma and chicken shawarma were both real tender and juicy, properly spiced and not drowning in sauce to cover anything up. What you taste is just really good meat, done right. We also had the hummus topped with shawarma meat, both the beef and chicken versions, and if you haven’t tried warm spiced shawarma meat piled on top of silky hummus before, that needs to change the next time you’re here. And if you can’t decide between beef and chicken, the Mix Shawarma Platter exists for exactly that reason. We finished with more tea and some baklava. Sweet, flaky, perfectly sticky. A classic done right. No complaints.
Can We Talk About the Dough Burger For a Second?! 🤯
So I wasn’t sure what to expect with this one. A dough burger? Okay, sure. But then it showed up and no joke, it completely caught me off guard in the best way.
It’s a burger patty with fillings baked inside traditional Arabic dough. The whole thing comes out golden and when you bite into it you get this really unique combination of flavours and textures that you just don’t find anywhere else. Pillowy soft on the inside, slightly crisp on the outside, and packed with flavour all the way through. You can get it with chicken, beef, or a few other options too. It looks like nothing else on any menu in this city and it tastes even better than it looks.
Honestly this dish alone is worth the visit. Everything else is just a really, really delicious bonus.
Bottom Line
Elbasha is the real deal. Great mezza, great shawarma, a grill section that means business, and one of the most creative dishes I’ve come across in Bangkok in a long time. The meat was tender and juicy across the board, the vegetables were fresh, the bread was fresh, and every single dish felt like it was made with actual care.
If you’re near Sukhumvit 26, go. Order the Dough Burger. You can thank me later. And if that location isn’t closest to you, Elbasha has multiple locations around Bangkok so find your nearest one and make it happen. The lamb shank is waiting. 🙌
With love and gratitude,
FauZia & Zam
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