Sherman's Food Adventures: Gulberg Tandoor & Donair

Gulberg Tandoor & Donair

I often wonder why some restaurants do not get it. Why do they charge ridiculous prices for very little food. Yes, food quality is a consideration; however, you really want to go away feeling satisfied and full. And honestly, I'm not even talking about fine dining. That's another topic altogether. I had a discussion with Milhouse the other day and he explained that all he wants is not to be hungry after a meal. He's not looking to be stuffed; rather, just no longing for more. It brings me back to the Filet-O-Fish meal example. If I have to go get a Filet-O-Fish meal after I have already eaten, then I have not been satisfied. Today, I went to a place that truly personifies good portions, good quality and reasonable prices. That, my friends, is the winning formula for success. Again, for those who are confusing my rant with finer establishments, particularly in prime locations (ie. downtown), I am not referring them here.

On a recommendation from KDee, I travelled a fair distance to the Kwantlan College campus in Surrey. Across the street is Gulberg Tandoor & Donair. You might be asking why I drove so far to get a donair. Honestly, I was asking myself the same question. To my surprise, this was not a regular donair shop. Rather, the restaurant itself was quite spacious and the menu had more items than I expected. Yes, donairs were on the menu; but there was quite the variety. On the outside of the building, it advertises souvlaki and there is actually a picture of a burger on the awning. This is one diverse place. Multiculturalism at work here.

Since I was short on time, I had to get the items to go. I ordered the Chicken Tikka, which includes a chicken leg and salad. This was a tremendous deal at $3.99. I also ordered the large Chicken Donair for $5.99. It wasn't until I got back that I realized there was so much food for under $10.00. The donair was massive, packed with enough chicken for 2 donairs. Moreover, there were plenty of fresh tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce shoehorned into the donair. What I did next made it hard for me to eat the donair - I opened it up in the middle to take a picture. Oh well, the sacrifices I make for pictures! The one thing I can say about the donair is freshness. You could tell the ingredients were good quality and fresh. That would be the same for the chicken tikka. The salad was essentially the same tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce from the donair. The chicken was tender and flavourful without being salty.

The reason for all this talk of freshness is that Gulberg is not only a restaurant, it's a market right next door. Therefore, all their produce and meats are sourced in-house. I'm sure this also helps lower the cost as well. I really wish restaurants would clue in that volume can be a money-maker; rather than charging more in the hopes of taking in more profit. Moreover, this way, the food stays fresh since the turnover is high. Ultimately, Gulberg qualifies as another hidden gem where you can find good, fresh eats at very reasonable prices.

The Good:
- Inexpensive
- Food is both plentiful and good
- Everything is fresh

The Bad:
- Identity problem, what kind of restaurant is this?

Business Hours:
11:00am - 9:00pm (7 days a week)

Gulberg Tandoor & Donair on Urbanspoon

10 comments:

KimHo said...

If they provide so much food in this economy (and good food on top of that!), I wonder how they would even break even... Good post!

Oh, you lost me in the Filet-o-Fish again... XD

Sherman Chan said...

I wonder about that too; but I guess if they are supplying themselves with all the raw materials, I guess that must help. I'm sure the rent is probably reasonable too. Haha... Filet-O-Fish...

Anonymous said...

Hey Sherman,

I just wanted to know if you knew that Gulberg Tandoor & Donair only serves Halal meat?

Sherman Chan said...

Actually I did, the owner told me when I ate there. I guess I should've mentioned it in the blog. In fact, the market right next to the restaurant has Halal meat for sale too.

Anonymous said...

Was looking for a donair today and gave it a try, it was good. But Donair affair (10786 148th Street) was slightly better and fresher.

Anonymous said...

This restaurant has partially fallen to the "good reviews effect". They owners have gotten too greedy.

I used to go here every few months as it used to be a great bargain.

They have made "changes" basically making it not worth going here anymore.

Their naan used to be circular and the size of a small or medium pizza, it was awesome! Now it's the typical naan shape and size that other restaurants serve. It's probably half the size it used to be sadly.

Their donairs aren't overfilled anymore even if you pick the large chicken donair. They seem to be more stingy particulary if you are female. They never used to do that before.

The dish you picked the quarter leg tandoori is still the same and a good value.

However their biryani USED to include a quarter leg portion consisting of a leg and a thigh and now it's much less.

On my last visit a few months ago the biryani only included one piece of a thigh portion. I phoned the restaurant to let them know that I was gipped a piece. They said it wasn't common for that to happen someone may have made a mistake.

Fast forward to now and I had their biryani and it was worse. It had the back attached piece of thigh meat that wasn't even a full thigh. It was less than half of a thigh, the bony portion. There were two half-pieces of this included. It's much worse than having just one piece of thigh meat.

Clearly they have picked not to raise their prices but they have greatly reduced the biryani portion. It's now just rice and two pieces of bony half-thigh.

It's quite unfair and underhanded of them.

Also their sauces such as the yogurt mint sauce used to be watery but now it's far too watery. It's diluted so much it's flavourless. There's no point in even having it. Their spicy hot sauce isn't even hot and tastes of ketchup and it's a bit sweet.

Their chicken curry is too boney as well. Although the curry sauce is tasty. The portion is not a good value for the money. Go for the boneless beef nihari instead.

Basically I gave them a couple of chances but I won't be returning. You can't just drastically reduce portion sizes as they did for the biryani and naan. It's unfair to the customer. I used to love coming here for the super-sized naan and meat filled biryani.

Plus it's essentially a self-servecafeteria and not even a proper restaurant. There are much better choices out there than this place.

Also be aware that they will microwave the dishes you order in flimsy plastic or styrofoam containers. These containers are not meant to be microwaved and are carcinogenic. They pre-portion and store all their cooked food in the refrigerator and just bring it out as ordered except for the grilled items which are freshly prepared to order. If you do get these tell them you will reheat it at home to avoid this.

Sherman Chan said...

Thanks for the info. I guess, I'll have to check it out myself before I can confirm or refute what you have stated...

Anonymous said...

We've been going here for months now but we usually get the chicken with rice box and its great. The beef can be a bit dry at times. During Ramadan they have a buffet that starts at 8:30 but haven't tried it yet. There are a lot of restaurants that have ramadan specials around here if, its fun to ask around and see what you can get.

Bukko Boomeranger said...

I concur with Anonymous from March 2010. I stopped in recently on a bike rudeabout through the area because I wanted to do a cheap pizza slice taste-off between a couple of the $1-per-piece places there. The piece I got from Gulberg (doesn't that sound like a Jewish name to you?) was worth about 90¢, but I didn't expect much at that price. The overall vibe I got from the place, looking at all the food they had sitting ready for dispensing directly from the display cases, was pre-made and cheap. The baklava I ordered on a whim was fantastic, though! I wonder whether they make those at the market?

Sherman Chan said...

@BC Yah, I need to do a revisit. Haven't been there in years.

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