We had a nice big crowd and some very nice food, some of which I know folks will be coming back for in short order.
Saima's Grill is inside Turmeric Cash & Carry (formerly Lotus Market), just off to the left. This is as spartan a Mom & Pop operation as they come. A bunch of plain tables, counter service, and a few family members running the show in the back.
Interestingly, this was originally going to be a Bundoo Khan, an extremely popular international Pakistani BBQ chain which has recently been popping up in the United States. But it sounds like there's now some kind of a family squabble (having nothing to do with the folks who run Saima's Grill), so they opened as an independent joint, no doubt utilizing some (all?) of the Bundoo Khan recipes.
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A quick note: If you search online, the hours are all over the map. I managed to find FOUR different opening times listed, two on their own website. So FWIW, these are the hours posted in the store as of 15-Sep-23. Anyway...
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We led off with a couple of starters, which is probably a good idea when you're ordering half the menu from such a tiny crew. Expect a variety of BBQ and other dishes to take their time coming out the kitchen.
The samosas were pretty much standard issue. A little crisp on the outside, nicely spiced mellow veg on the inside, and a chutney (a touch murky) to add some pep. The dhal vada are interesting, mostly because nobody at the table ever would have guessed that they were made with lentils. If you cut those fellows apart, the interior is a clean white color with a spongy texture. Most of the flavor is coming from the yogurt (quite tart) and the spices thereon, one of which is the one I can never remember which has a serious pungent funk to it.
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Here's where the good stuff really started to roll. It's been a long time since I had a beef nihari this good in Phoenix. Perhaps a little light on the beef itself (shank), and I personally prefer a heavier hand with the fresh aromatics like ginger and chiles, but the base dish here is unimpeachable. That's a damn tasty pot of liquefied meat. This one is leaning more towards the mellower end of the spectrum — more gravy than spice — but it has plenty of life. I'm super happy to find another good beef nihari fix in town.
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The Kadhai Chicken was even better. I couldn't even hope to identify everything in here, but it was a fabulous blend of fresh and dried spice, notably with a heavy hit of really developed, deep, intense tomato flavor — almost a little like tomato paste.
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And yet, I think it's probably safe to say that the White Karahi Chicken Handi was the consensus favorite for the day. It was creamy and rich, heavy on garlic, ginger and green chile, and plenty of dried spice like coriander, cumin and who knows what else what. But that balance of fresh and dried spice along with a hefty hit of butter and cream really hit the spot. Killer dish here.
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This is a Pakistani BBQ, and the BBQ is ostensibly the star, though I get the sense that this platter (the Family BBQ Platter) was a little divisive. Count me in the pro camp, though I fully understand why it's off-putting to some.
For chicken, the top right is the Chicken Bihari Boti, and the bottom left is the Chicken Malai Boti. The Bihari has a nice bit of fiery spice, but I'm always going to be partial to all of the fresh green chiles and herbs in Chicken Malai Boti. I personally love the flavors at work here, and I dig the contrast between crispy char and super tender meat, but that tender meat is where I think it loses some people. It is REALLY tender. Like, weirdly so for an American palate. They're clearly introducing either papaya or some kind of meat tenderizer to achieve the effect.
But the chicken is nowhere close to the Beef Gola Kabob, which are the four big, oval lumps at the top and bottom of the photo. Here's where my lack of knowledge about Pakistani BBQ has me at a bit of a loss. These are like giant egg-shaped kabobs. (Duck eggs? Bigger.) And there's a little bit of crisp to that exterior surface, but once you get past it, that's a big lump of meat paste. And when I first tried it back in January, I found it a little difficult to wrap my head around it as well. I found myself enjoying it a LOT more this time, knowing what was coming. But I have no frame of reference to be able to say whether this texture is typical or unusually soft. I believe it was Mrs. Lunchbox who pointed out that it has a texture you'd more often associate with organ meat, and I think that's an apt comparison. I like it, but I think I might've been the only one at the table who did. YMMV.
Running down the middle is the Beef Bihari Kabob, and I find myself less predisposed to enjoying the soft texture in sliced meat like this. But still, quite tasty. (And also fairly hot... all of this!) The Seekh Kabobs — those tubular ones you see that were pressed around the skewers — are probably the best to start with if you have textural concerns. These, I think, were beautifully seasoned. Packed with fresh herbs and allium. really nice.
Killer naan, BTW. Nice crisp on the undercarriage, tender and fluffy on top.
I really enjoy this place and I look forward to getting back. I think it was more of a mixed bag for the rest of the crew, but I'll let them speak for themselves.
Saima's Grill
480-300-5627
2043 S. Alma School Road
Mesa, AZ 85210