Review of Sheeba

Photos by Bashair Pasha

Sheeba makes a good culinary experience great with its customer service. Owned by two Yemeni brothers, Mohammed and Ismael Aljahmi, the restaurant has been in business for over nine years. Presently, there are three locations, one in Hamtramck, one on Dix Road and Salina St., and the most recent, which opened last August, is on Michigan Ave. near the former Dearborn City Hall building. “We look forward to [expanding more in the future],” says the older brother and co-owner Mohammed Aljahmi.

According to server Jaafer Albattat “in Hamtramck people sit on the floor, it’s very old school. In [the Dix location] they have seating and low tables, but it is mostly a quick thing where you...order the food and go.” At the newest Michigan Ave location, customers can expect to be seated and served. The dining areas are tastefully decorated, with traditional Yemeni music and decorations. Sheeba boasts a wide variety of authentic Yemeni cuisine. The entrees range from 15 to 21 dollars, and are served with a side of soup, or salad made with a zesty in-house dressing that is only available at their establishment.

We ordered the house favorites: the lamb haneeth, lamb zurbian and fahsah. The soup, a lamb broth served with sliced lemons, was savory and subtly spiced. The dressing on the garden salad gave it a heavy and creamy texture with a zesty aftertaste.

A popular appetizer is the fahsah, a delicious combination of shredded lamb meat and potatoes. Fahsah is served boiling in a clay bowl, and sits on the table for several minutes billowing steam. “It’s great for snapchat,” jokes Albattat. Served with freshly baked bread, the dish looks and tastes great.

The lamb haneeth is roasted for four hours and is incredibly tender and flavorful.

The lamb zurbian mixes marinated pieces of lamb with seasoned basmati rice and scallions, parsley and onions. The dish is also available with chicken in place of lamb.

A wide variety of rich spices engulfs most of the dishes at Sheeba, and a small plate of a spicy salsa known as sahaweq is offered as a side with the entrees.

We ended our meal with the popular Yemeni dessert called sabaya, a sweet dish made from dough. We enjoyed our dessert with a traditional tea, which can be served in two ways: Yemeni tea and Adeni tea. Both are black tea with heavy notes of cardamom, served with or without sugar. Adeni tea is mixed with milk.

Once finished, the waiter provided us with a hot wet towel, leaving us feeling refreshed.

Dearborn is known for its many Middle Eastern restaurants. Sheeba is one of the few traditional Yemeni restaurants. The Aljahmi brothers deliver a unique type of Arabic food, and they do it well.