100 Favorite Dishes: Döner kabob from Shondiz

Lori Midson

Years ago, when I was a college student in London, I'd spend the majority of my mornings, noons and nights at a local pub knocking back cloudy pints of Scrumpy before staggering off in search of the nearest curry house or 24-hour kabob shop illuminated by blinding fluorescent bulbs, the air redolent with the smoke and char of flesh.

It was there, in England, where I first sank my chops into a döner kabob, a Middle Eastern snack-food staple, similar to gyros and typically made with razor-thin spiced lamb shavings, that originated in Turkey and has since inched its way across the globe. But the döner kabob took its time getting to Denver, eventually finding its niche at Shondiz, a cart on the 16th Street Mall that hustles the meat treat in all its glory. The pita sandwich, pressed with tender chicken or beef sliced from a rotating cylinder, is liberally embellished with red onions and tomatoes, paved with yogurt graced with garlic and bolstered by a powerhouse chile sauce that gives it a wallop. It's a flavor-bombed, painterly sandwich that's even better when squiggled with hummus.

Hungry for more? All the dishes in our countdown are linked below:

No. 100: Italian wedding soup from the Squeaky Bean
No. 99: American Classic Burger (and fries) from Tarbell's
No. 98: E's clam linguini from Mangiamo Pronto
No. 97: Queso a la plancha taco from the Pinche Tacos wagon
No. 96: Prosciutto-wrapped jalapeño poppers from Tony's Market
No. 95: Fried chicken from the Pinyon
No. 94: Seafood soup from Farro
No. 93: Posole from The Porker
No. 92: Breakfast Burrito from the Taco Wagon in Lafayette
No. 91: Hummus from Shish Kabob Grill
No. 90: Albondigas meatballs from Solera
No. 89: Lemon-ricotta doughnuts from Olivéa

In late 2009, we embarked on a culinary journey that took us through our favorite dishes in the Mile High City -- one hundred, to be exact -- as a precursor to the Best of Denver issue. Now we're back with round two, counting down (in no particular order) a hundred more of our favorite Denver dishes in a list that, by our imperfect calculations, should be wrapped up by the time the Best of Denver 2011 hits the streets on March 31. In the meantime, if there's a dish you think we need to try, tell us about it in the comments section below, or shoot us an e-mail at lori.midson@westword.com.