Bistro Sinbad

By Sean Schofield and James Brockenborough

Bistro Sinbad is located on Zschochersche Straße in Plagwitz, Leipzig. Next to the Karl-Heine Kanal, it is, in our opinion, the best place to find döner. It is easily noticeable with its yellow and red sign outside. Walking in, you are immediately hit with the aroma of veal and chicken being slow cooked on a rack. A counter full of lettuce, cabbage, onions, and other vegetables greet you. A smiling face says hello and a menu across the ceiling shows all of the food to choose from. There are no wrong choices, but it is best to choose all of the sauces when asked.

As all great origin stories go, there are multiple perspectives on who or what came first, and the inception of the döner kebab is no different. The döner kebab and all of its variants: The Greek gyros, Arab shawarma, and Mexican al pastor are all adaptations that can be credited back to medieval cuisine in which a, preferably male, servant (spit-boy) would hand crank a wedge of meat on a rotisserie. The rotation of the meat cooks it evenly in its own juices. It wasn’t until the early 19th century Ottoman Empire that the advent of vertical rotisseries would impact the way meat is prepared and served. Vertical rotisserie applies heat directly to the side and is less important to balance the load. This is useful as the meat is shaved off on the side.

The location credited to where this vertical rotisserie was invented is split into two camps of thought. The more popularized understanding is that in the year 1850 a child, Ikender Efendi of Bursa, in what is modern-day Turkey, had the idea to cook the lamb upright in his father’s restaurant. This fact is often post faced with; however, his creation may have been predated as early as 1830 by Hamdi Usta of Kastamonu. It wasn’t until 1945 that modern day döner kebabs were introduced in Istanbul, later spreading to London in 1966 and Berlin in 1970.

Where there may be ambiguity in its origin, there is an untenable statistical certainty that the current adaptation of döner kebabs are a titan in the German food industry producing €3.5 billion annually. During my time in Germany through various exchange partnerships, travel, and study abroad semesters I have contributed more than I’d like to admit to the booming industry. There is a certain charm to the hospitable nature of these corner-shops where one may be greeted in a unique fusion of languages, and silly banter is often promoted.