Holyland Cuisine

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By JEFF KORBELIK / GZO

Yahya Forhan enjoyed his location on North 27th Street, but he sees potential in his new one.

Forhan, an Iraqi refugee, moved his Middle Eastern restaurant, Holyland Cuisine, about six weeks ago to O Street in downtown Lincoln.

He took over the spot once occupied by Pita Pit on the south side of the street between 13th and 14th streets.

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Owner Yahya Forhan displays an assortment of chicken kabobs, lamb kabobs, falafel, and steamed seasoned rice at Holyland Cuisine Tuesday. Forhan recently moved his restaurant from N. 27th Street to 1311 O Street. (Heidi Hoffman)

Owner Yahya Forhan displays an assortment of chicken kabobs, lamb kabobs, falafel, and steamed seasoned rice at Holyland Cuisine Tuesday. Forhan recently moved his restaurant from N. 27th Street to 1311 O Street. (Heidi Hoffman)

“More traffic,” he said earlier this week from the restaurant, where he begins prepping his foods at 7 a.m. “We’re closer to UNL and the workers downtown.”

Open for lunch and dinner, Holyland Cuisine offers two kinds of entrees: a quick pita sandwich with falafel, kabob meat, chicken tikka, kufta (ground meat) or shawarma (shaved meat) for $4.95 or full-fledged entrees, including shish kabobs, falafel, biryani and more that range in price from $5 to $13.

Soon the restaurant will have another draw. Once Forhan receives permission for outdoor seating, he will feature a variety of flavored hookahs.

“They are a part of our culture,” Forhan said of the smoking devices.

Forhan opened Holyland Cuisine on North 27th Street in 2006. The restaurant quickly became known for its Middle Eastern menu. The food in his new place is just as good.

The space, however, is a work in progress.

His old restaurant featured photos from his homeland as well as painted verses from the Quran on an accent board that ran around the restaurant.

The walls in the downtown restaurant have been painted, but nothing is on them yet. Display cases also sit empty.

And with the long counter at the back of the restaurant, the new place still has the look and feel of the Pita Pit.

Forhan said he plans to put up photos as well as other decorations as his budget allows.

For now, though, it’s about the food, which is pretty scrumptious. My companion and I stopped in for dinner a couple of weeks ago and enjoyed our meals.

Menu items are made fresh, so entrees can take a little a while to come out. If you’re in a hurry, I suggest trying one of the sandwiches, especially during the lunch hour.

We had the hummus ($4.95), a small combo plate ($9.95), which featured kabobs, chicken tikka, rice and more, and the falafel plate ($9.95).

Forhan has some of the best falafel around. In fact, he said a couple from Omaha drive over specifically for it.

Forhan hasn’t printed to-go menus yet; he wants to figure out what will do well in the downtown restaurant. My guess is it will be the sandwiches as well as the many veggie entrees, which are difficult to find at other downtown eateries.

Once he finishes the decor and sets up his outdoor hookah garden, he’ll have a pretty nice alternative/complement to the other restaurants.

Reach Jeff Korbelik at 473-7213 or jkorbelik@journalstar.com.