Neighborhood Eats: Kubeh's dumplings combine Middle Eastern cuisines in Greenwich Village
GREENWICH VILLAGE, Manhattan (WABC) -- In this week's Neighborhood Eats, we're taking you to a spot that blends Middle Eastern cuisines into one comforting and exceptional menu.
If you've never heard of Kubeh before, think of it like a Middle Eastern dumpling.
The restaurant named Kubeh in Greenwich Village is making the household staple accessible to all.
Melanie Shurka is the chef and owner of Kubeh Restaurant.
"Kubeh is a restaurant that highlights cuisines of Kurdistan, Iraq, and Syria within Iranian and Israeli twists because that's where my ancestors are from," she said.
Kubeh is a lesser-known Middle Eastern food.
"Kubeh is specifically a dumpling that has that is just loved all over the Middle East," Shurka said. "People really light up when you mention a dumpling because there is one in every culture and every cuisine, there's some variation."
People really light up when you mention a dumpling because there is one in every culture and every cuisine, there's some variation.Melanie Shurka, Chef and owner
Just like in other cultures, there are multiple ways to prepare them.
I'm a self-taught chef, so it just makes me think of the food of grandmothers and of moms.Melanie Shurka, Chef and owner
"We do a Kurdish Iraqi version that is boiled into a soup. We also do a fried version of it. So it has this shell on the outside and different fillings on the inside," Shurka said. "I'm a self-taught chef, so it just makes me think of the food of grandmothers and of moms. And I cook like that. I still cook like that."
The dough is sticky and can take time to figure out how to roll it just right.
"I did a three-week trip in Israel before opening the restaurant where I spent time with whoever would take me in and show me how to roll Kubeh," Shurka said. "There's even an Arab saying that you should marry a woman that has long fingers so she can roll that Kubeh."
Opening a restaurant that specializes in dumplings is not where Shurka said she thought her life would take her.
"I didn't think that I was going to be the chef. I thought that I would hire someone," she said. "I could spend the like the energy, the analytics like, I could spend in testing recipe days. It doesn't even bother me."
She said she got that from her own mother. Beverages are also a highlight of the restaurant.
"Turkish coffee is also a big thing in Iran and specifically the reading of a Turkish coffee fortune," Shurka said. "The grinds that are left you put, you flip your cup over and we have this cookie, this postcard that has, like a cheat sheet for how to read your Turkish coffee fortune."
They really want to try something new. They want to experience different flavors and they want to learn about it.Melanie Shurka, Chef and owner
Shurka said she loves sharing cuisine and culture with the people of New York.
"They really want to try something new. They want to experience different flavors and they want to learn about it," Shurka said.
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