HOUReview
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Sheba Restaurant
Included In
The Yemeni restaurant Sheba is where you go to eat ridiculously delicious lamb, especially with a big group of people. The unassuming spot is wedged into the back of a strip center in Gulfton and surrounded by many other good restaurants. Although the space is simple, clean, and utilitarian, you will find some of the most deeply comforting roast lamb in the city.
Aside from a few patterned fabric booths, the space is pretty basic. There’s pottery on the walls, the tables are covered in plastic, and the walls are lined with a bunch of framed photographs of Yemen that are basically travel agency posters. More people will be picking up to-go food than dining in. There may or may not be talk radio or music playing, or nothing at all. You can grab sodas from the fridge yourself.
photo credit: Richard Casteel
photo credit: Richard Casteel
photo credit: Richard Casteel
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Once the dishes arrive, dump them on the plastic table covering. Then, shove fistfuls of roast or stewed lamb and saffron rice into your mouth with your hands, because that’s what you’re supposed to do. The meat is cooked so impeccably, and in a way that’s not even meant to impress you. It’s rustic, simple, and delicious. If you rave about the lamb, the folks at Sheba will likely explain, in very plain terms, that’s just how the lamb is meant to be cooked.
Eating at Sheba feels like a universal experience. There’s something very intimate about sharing food and watching your friends or family lick meat jus and rice from their fingers, as they watch you do the same. It makes dinner with a date or even a close group of folks all the more satisfying. Lean into it, and always get lamb.
Food Rundown
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Maeaq Soup
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Baked Fish
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Zurbian Lamb
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Galaba Lamb
photo credit: Richard Casteel