JULY 6 • 2023 | 33

pop in a can or bottled water customers pulled 
from an ice-filled cooler. On the day I dined, the 
choices were Shawarma Sandwich, including a quar-
ter-pound of chicken and medium fries; Shawarma 
Plate, with a half-pound of chicken and large fries; 
Kids Meal, a half pita with shawarma and small 
fries, and Sabich, an item not familiar to me. 
Sabich, a pita bread sandwich popular in Israel, is 
filled with fried eggplant, hard-boiled egg, chopped 
salad and two sauces. One is tahini, a creamy, earthy 
paste made from ground sesame seeds. The other, 
Amba, is a tangy mango pickle sauce I learned that 
Iraqi Jewish immigrants brought to Israel. Red zhug, 
a Yemenite hot sauce, is another condiment available 
to spice up pita sandwiches.
A separate board listed Pita Kabob as “Today’s 
Special,
” and I went with that choice for my lunch. I 
took my bag of food to eat at a table on Aish’s cov-
ered, secluded patio. The sandwich had an enticing 
smell and tasted even better. The beef-lamb kabob 
was nestled in a puffy pita pouch along with tiny 
diced pickles, tomato, red onion and a couple strips 
of fried eggplant. The sandwich dressing was tahini, 
but it was suggested that I should also try some in a 
small cup for dipping my fries. That was a first for 
me — using tahini as well as ketchup for fries. I used 
both condiments and actually thought the tahini 
tasted better. By the way, the steak fries offered here 
come perfectly golden and are not an afterthought.
Next time, as good as my pita meal was, I’m eager 
to try the sabich and shawarma. Abramov said he’ll 
be adding falafel, a hummus plate and more vegan 
and vegetarian options in the coming weeks. Salads 
and dips will be available on Thursdays. He also 
plans to offer a creamy, coconut-based milk pudding 
called Malabi. Israelis like this traditional Middle 
Eastern dessert.
It appears that chicken shawarma is already the 
big attraction here. I encountered Yeshiva University 
student Adam Siegel of New York, spending his 
summer in Oak Park. Siegel told me he was eager 
to place his first order at the TAIM truck he’
d just 
heard about because “I’m a shawarma fanatic.
” 
And then there’s David Snider of Oak Park, who 
posted on Facebook, “This was easily the best sha-
warma I’ve had in Michigan by, frankly, quite a wide 
margin. I will be a repeat customer.
” 
When I reached him, Snider told me he went 
back to eat at TAIM several times during the truck’s 
first weeks.
TAIM’s operating hours on Sunday through 
Thursday are noon-7 p.m., “or until the food runs 
out,
” Abramov said. Don’t let that happen to you! He 
recommended arriving no later than the 5 o’
clock 
hour to avoid disappointment at dinnertime. 

FROM TOP 
TO BOTTOM: 
The Aish logo 
plaque can be 
seen beyond 
the back of 
the food truck. 
Owner Dennis 
Abramov, left, 
and employee 
Rami Habouri 
inside the 
truck. “Today’s 
Special” was 
Pita Kabob 
on June 5, 
2023. Dennis 
Abramov in his 
TAIM Middle 
Eastern Street 
Food truck 
with a slab of 
shawarma.

PHOTO COURTESY AARON TOBIN

