El Jannah – Granville, Sydney
*Editors Note: I may or may not have been doing the funky chicken dance during the writeup of this post*
A wise man once said “I am waiting for chicken to approach me to do a commercial… and I’ll do it for free chicken!” and like this guy I love my chicken; especially when it is fresh off the charcoal grill and smells just absolutely tantalizing. How much do I love my chicken? According to Google maps a simple 30km trip is nothing for some crispy and smokey chicken. This chicken craving brought about by posts and tweets of El Jannah chicken and garlic sauce meant a spontaneous trip for Santa, Timofei and myself.
I had not realized how many chicken shops I have been missing out on South St as we made our way to the restaurant but then as soon as we entered the premises, we realized that this was the place to try. We were too hungry to take the food home before digging in so Here Comes the Food.
Whole Charcoal Chicken ($21) comes with garlic sauce, pickles and bread; I think the guy was giving me a greasy :S
The prices were quite a increase from take away to eat in but considering it comes with garlic sauce, pickles and bread it was probably worth it. The bread came nicely packaged in plastic and were slightly warm when we dug into them. The delicious smokey aroma of the chicken, along with the tender fall-off-the-bone meat justified why this place is a popular one. The other tables filled up quickly behind us but I did not notice until we had finished our meal. I was lucky enough to score the thigh piece where the meat is at its’ best and when wrapped up in the bread with the sauces it was absolute heaven.
Hommos ($5.50)
I am a big fan of hommos so I was smearing it in big dollops all over the bread and eating it as is or with juicy shreds of chicken. I found the green pickles went nicely in the wraps or as is but the pink ones were a bit too salty for my liking.
Garlic Sauce; Tabbouli ($5.50); Falafel ($1.50)
I had high expectations of the garlic sauce after hearing and reading about it but also from my previous trip to Jasmin. I was not disappointed at all, in fact I was in absolute bliss with each bite. I did not care that I would end up offending anyone I talked to later on because the sauce was THAT good, smooth and creamy with a palatable garlickyness without stinging. It matches the chicken perfectly but was also good enough when just dipping bread into it. The tabbouli had a refreshing tinge of sourness which went perfectly in a wrap with the chicken and sauces. The falafels were fried to a beautiful crisp on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. They were nice and flavoursome but I had hoped they would be a bit more garlicky which was easily solved by dipping into the garlic sauce.
This is how Santa rolls…. his wrap
To be honest I think Jasmin was just a touch better than El Jannah but this place is still very reasonable and I will definitely swing by for more.
El Jannah
4-6 South St
Granville
Ph: (02) 9637 0977
FFichiban
March 3rd, 2010 at 2:39 am
your post literally made my mouth water! reading food blogs this late is a bad idea coz i’m hungry! but it definitely looks like it was worth the trip =D
March 3rd, 2010 at 3:06 am
oh gawd how good is the garlic sauce! that stuff is made of angels tears of happiness..
March 3rd, 2010 at 8:56 am
this place still on my wish list to try. possibly the most blogged chicken place in chicken besides tan viet in cabra perhaps
March 3rd, 2010 at 10:28 am
That’s one delicious lookin’ charcoal chicken!
March 3rd, 2010 at 10:58 am
is the funky chicken just the chicken dance?
March 3rd, 2010 at 9:48 pm
I so want to try El Jannah just from seeing & hearing so much about it recently. Nothing beats a bit of charcoal chicken & garlic sauce & breads &……
March 3rd, 2010 at 10:32 pm
Jacq – Hee hee thx, then my job is done
Chocolatesuze – Omg soo truuee and then blessed by the pope!
Simon Food Favourites – Ooh I have to head to cabra sometime then hee hee
D – Yeah bro lets go sometime!
Fiona – It sure is ^^! but with extra funk!
Betty – Mmmm I want mores too! Their garlic sauce *drools*
March 4th, 2010 at 8:33 pm
i love el jannah! i go at least once a month. eat in is def so much better, cant be bothered waiting to take the chicken home! however i dont like the pickles, so always ask for tomatos and lettuce as alternatives and theyre happy to exchange!
April 3rd, 2010 at 10:59 pm
Enough already with promoting this place – we dont want all of suburbia to crash Granville – but judging by the crouds that already come & the number of chooks they cook – they are ready. I’ve never had a BBQ chook like this mob produce. The garlic sauce/butter or whatever it is just tops it off superbly. The place is often 4-5 deep waiting for service on a weekend night, but the service turn them over as best they can.
I just wish they would get a bigger venue – with maybe a drive through.
At about $10 for a chook – you cant go wrong.