Maiwand Kabob -- The Kitchen Makes It A Best

Maiwand Kabob's gyro

Sometimes, you need to just put something down for a while so that you get excited when you pick it back up again.

We hadn't been to Maiwand Kabob in maybe a year when they opened their second Columbia location off Route 175.  So the dishes arrived on our tables fresh and almost-new to us -- beautifully flavored, nicely-cooked, and still one of the best meals in Howard County.

Maiwand Kabob is an small Afghan chain that started in the Harper's Choice village center and has expanded to Burtonsville and Hanover.  The kitchen would stand out with just the kabobs, Afghan specials, and an array of sides and vegetables.  But then they drop fresh bread -- right out of the clay oven -- that makes a combination that truly stands out.

This isn't spicy food.  Afghan flavors -- at least at Maiwand Kabob -- are fresh and flavored more with herbs than hot peppers.  Anyone who likes grilled meats, great bread, or vegetables can find something delicious on the menu.  If you're new, start with a kabob, some of the Afghan sides, and one of the best sandwiches in Howard County.

Grilled meats are harder than they sound.  On bad days, I have pulled some sad, dried meat off my grill.  In contrast, Maiwand serves skewer after skewer of marinated chicken, lamb and beef.  At the new joint, Mrs. HowChow got the juicy chunks of white meat chicken, grilled crisp on the outside but moist throughout.

Aushak at Maiwand

We tend to pair one order of chicken with one or two of the dishes that Maiwand calls appetizers.  They each offer unique flavors, and they're perfectly sized to share.  You can't go wrong.  Baked pumpkin comes tender and sweet, topped by just enough ground beef for a rich contrast.  Mantwo are meat-filled dumplings topped with yogurt and mint.  Aushak are ravioli filled with cooked scallions and topped again with the yogurt-mint-meat sauce.

Everything pairs well, and you'll use the tandoori bread to soak up the sauces.  (And, of course, everything can be augmented with a little fried treat like the plate of samosas.  That Afghan variation was one winner during Samosa Week in 2011.)

In the end, Maiwand is a great restaurant because that care and inspiration spread to everything on the plate.  I have bemoaned the pedestrian rice and beans at even Mexican restaurants that I enjoy.  But Maiwand Kabob offers hot bread right out of a clay oven.  It serves long-grained rice with a sheen of oil, raisins and maybe cinnamon.  Not greasy rice.  Talented rice made rich with the absolute minimum mixed in.

The new Maiwand Kabob is in the shopping center with Target and Big Lots just north of Rte 175.  It's a few doors down from the Pier One.  The new spot has counter service like its predecessors, although it's larger and a little classier on the decor.  (Several people also noted that prices seem $2-5 higher on many items.)  It's extremely kid-friendly.  It's not a first date place unless you know you're taking out a food-first, atmosphere-second person, but it's nice enough for dates 3-5 if you think they'll enjoy good food.

And Maiwand is definitely #1 if you're looking for one of the best sandwiches in Howard County.  I love a gyro, but I have aged out of the frozen, greasy sandwiches that most people serve.  Maiwand delivers.  That's sliced, moist meat served with fresh onions, lettuce, and a tangy sauce.  Just the right amount of sauce to compliment the gyro, but not soak through the bread.

Maiwand's gyro brings together everything that they do so well -- high quality meat cooked right, a fresh sauce that gives you flavors that are unique but accessible, and attention even to details like the bread.  Anybody can pull pita bread from a bag.  Maiwand Kabob wants to be better than that.

Check out all the posts about Maiwand Kabob.  And, if you order the gyro, try to skip the fries.  They're fine, but they're the one disappointment and taste right out of a frozen bag.  Next time, I'll beg for a little rice instead.  If you're looking for Afghan but live south of Rte 32, consider Mimi's Kabob in Clarksville.  Another casual place with counter service and a similar menu.

Maiwand Kabob (second Columbia location)
6131 Columbia Crossing Circle
Columbia, MD 21045
(410) 872-0975

NEAR: This is just north of Rte 175 at Dobbin Road.  It's in the shopping center with Target and Big Lots.  It's a few doors down from Pier One.

Is This The New Maiwand Kabob?

I think this is the upcoming Maiwand Kabob

Maiwand Kabob has officially announced their new location off Rte 175, and I assume this is a photo of the interior from this weekend.

This is a bay in the Columbia Crossing shopping center down down from Pier 1.  It's still construction now, but it looks like the footprint of a Maiwand Kabob -- open front, small kitchen in the left back, hallway and bathrooms in the right back.

Anyone know a timetable for the new Maiwand?  This looks a long way off, but I'm patient.  If I'm desperate for a hit, I can hustle to the Harper's Choice original for naan, kabob and mantwo.

Mantwo at Maiwand Kabob

I'm changing my mind and pushing mantwo to the top of the list at one of Howard County's best restaurants -- Maiwand Kabob.

The Columbia restaurant serves Afghan food with counter service and a casual feel.  The kabobs make for good eating, but Maiwand Kabob qualifies as one of the best places around because its kitchen turns out appetizers that are exotic using ingredients accessible to almost anyone.

Pastas, dumpling wrappers, scallions, pumpkin, a little ground meat.  Everyday ingredients go in, and they come out with unique, fresh flavors.

On our most-recent visit, the mantwo edged out the old champion aushak as my favorite plate.  We love the appetizers so much that we tend to order 2-3 appetizers and a single kabob main dish.  You still get grilled meat and Maiwand Kabob's delicious bread, and the $4 appetizers become "small plates" that you'd happily pay double to eat if they were served among white tablecloths and a waitstaff.

Mantwo are basically meat-filled dumplings, but there is nothing basic about the tender wrappers and the yogurt sauce spiked with mint and topped with earthly lentils.  The flavors pop in a way that made it my favorite -- even against the pumpkin and the scallion-filled aushak.  Don't get me wrong: I'd order all three tonight.  But I dug into the mantwo with such enthusiasm that I had make sure that I didn't outstrip my wife and gobble the entire plate for myself.  One of the best dishes at one of the best restaurants.  Definitely an item that you should go out and sample.

Maiwand Kabob isn't fast food.  Orders regularly take 15-20 minutes and 30 on a rough night because they're cooking your kabobs and bread to order.  Go with a plan to wait.  And I recommend that you ask to substitute the salad for a side vegetable.  The salad is fine, but the baked pumpkin at Maiwand Kabob is outstanding.


If you're looking for Afghan but live south of Rte 32, consider Mimi's Kabob in Clarksville.  Another casual place with counter service and a menu similar to Maiwand Kabob's.

Mimi's Kabob Could Be Your Neighborhood Joint

Mimi’s Kabob could be your neighborhood joint if you live in the south county – a real option for quick meals or takeout on Rte 108 in Clarksville.

Mimi’s is the classic ethnic spot in a strip mall, and it stands out because they’re paying attention to the food.  Half the menu is Afghan, similar enough to Maiwand Kabob to qualify as the sincerest form of flattery.  Half is pizza, the result of taking over an existing pizza spot.

So far, we have stayed on the Afghan side of the border, and we keep leaving happy.  Long ago, I started with a lunchtime sandwich, but Mimi’s has become our place when we want something delicious but simple.  A late-lunch mezze of appetizers with Mrs. HowChow’s family.  Grilled kabobs and chicken curry when we wanted dinner, but not the heaviness of burgers or cheesy Mexican.

Most Mimi’s meals are a variation on grilled meat, a vegetable, rice and bread.  You should go for the bread alone.  I may prefer Maiwand’s bread just a touch for its delicious char, but hot bread turns every meal into something special.  At Mimi’s, you can wrap that bread around grilled chicken, lamb or beef, plus variations and specials like the chicken curry, which was a mix of shredded and chunked meat in a tasty sauce.

Afghan food – at least as offered around here – is an accessible cuisine.  The meat is juicy and flavorful, but it’s not spicy.  The pumpkin and other vegetables are interesting enough that I can’t make them at home, but mild enough for someone who doesn’t relish the spices in Indian food.  On our last visit, a couple was serving out three preschool boys from a table with pizza, grilled chicken and rice.

That rice shows the skill that makes Mimi’s stand over most other places.  Even spots that promote interesting entrees often plop tasteless boring side dishes.  For example, the rice and beans at La Palapa Too keep me from going there often.  In contrast, Mimi’s rice is light and tasty.  Somehow, they add a sheen of oil and herbs to make it feel luxorious, but no oily taste and no heaviness.

In the same way, white meat chicken comes out juicy, and the pumpkin side dish is tender and rich.  With the bread and homemade sauces, it’s hard to think of a comparable place for $7-9 a person.  Better yet, it all travels pretty well, which makes Mimi’s nice when you want to get out of the house or when you need to bring dinner home.

If you go to Mimi’s consider asking them to substitute a vegetable side dish for the salad.  I know Maiwand in Columbia will substitute.  The salad is fine, but the pumpkin and other vegetables can be exceptional – and certainly bring more flavor to the plate.

If you are in Clarksville, definitely check out Great Sage for vegetarian food or El Azteca for Mexican.

Mimi's Kabob

12345 Wake Forest Road (Rte 108)

Clarksville, MD 21029

410-531-2000


NEAR:  This is a block south of Rte 32 on Rte 108.  It is a shopping center on the east side of Rte 108, and the entry is from a side street, so you need to turn just south of the shopping center.  This is a great place to stop if you have been shopping at Roots Markets farther north on Rte 108.

Meat As A Condiment

The Afghan restaurants in Howard County shout "kabob" in their name, but their appetizers offer some of the most interesting flavor around.

I love eating at Maiwand Kabob's various locations or Mimi's Kabob in Clarksville. The kabobs are great. But the real draw to me are the appetizers, which I tend to use like mezze by ordering up a single kabob and a couple small dishes like aushak, bowlawni, samosas or pumpkin. Perfect light lunch with my in-laws when we were coming from Larriland and had reservations that night for Woodberry Kitchen.

That is where you get meat as a condiment. Sweet pumpkin baked until tender, then topped with ground beef. Raviolis filled with scallions and sauced with yogurt, then topped with ground beef. Those are delicious little dishes topped with ground beef. I love a good burger, but I have to admit that sharing an aushak gives me all the flavor of a meaty burger with probably half of everything that I don't need in my body -- the cholesterol, the fat, etc. Where else can get this "meat as a condiment" experience?

Maiwand Kabob in Columbia (and elsewhere)

Maiwand Kabob is one of my old favorites, but it has a beautiful new look at its flagship location in Columbia.

The Afghan restaurant sells kabobs and a concise menu of some of Howard County's best food for a large takeout crowd and a small dining room. The Harper's Choice village center has always been a great place for a summer night -- delicious food, then Italian ice at Rita's across the parking lot. But it was a pretty low-end design with paper plates and basic decor.

Now, Maiwand Kabob has been renovated with trendy earth tones. Wood details. New tables and chairs. A cool open kitchen. It is honestly a surprise that they invested so much without the opportunity to expand.

Despite the flash, the food remains the real attraction. The main dishes are grilled meats -- beef, lamb, chicken chunks, chicken versions of a gyro -- and daily specials that offer tastes of Afghan cuisine. The grilled chicken holds its own with the best barbeque around like Kloby's in Laurel. But Maiwand Kabob becomes a great restaurant -- and not just a takeout joint -- because of the appetizers and the bread that deliver delicate flavors that are unique, yet accessible to anyone who likes Indian or Middle Eastern food.

The pumpkin is tender orange flesh served with yogurt and a sprinkle of ground beef. The aushak are ravioli filled with scallions and topped similar to the pumpkin. You can work your way through samosas, bowlawni and any of the other appetizers, and you need to try the tandoori bread. Those crisp and warm loaves are worth the entire visit. Consider ordering an extra if you plan on having leftovers. You can watch them being shaped and baked right behind the counter.

(Update: Also check out the mantwo -- another appetizer where the meat-filled dumplings come with a yogurt sauce spiked with mint and topped with earthly lentils.)

Maiwand Kabob isn't fast food. Call ahead if you want to pick up. Mrs HowChow and I waited more than 30 minutes on a Sunday night. Eventually, I elbowed through the crowd to ask for our appetizers, which the counter folks were happy to give me but hadn't thought to offer on their own.

Maiwand Kabob is part of an expanding local chain. A new one opened near Arundel Mills Mall and the BW Parkway. There are others in Linthicum and in Burtonsville, although the Burtonsville location appears to be owned by someone else.

Click here for my take on kabobs and barbeque in Howard County. If you want kabobs closer to home, consider Parsa Kabob in Elkridge or Mimi's Kabob in Clarksville. Or click for the starting page for my "What I Learned" guide to food in Howard County.

Maiwand Kabob

Harpers Choice Village Center

5467 Harpers Farm Road

Columbia, MD 21044

410-992-7754

http://www.maiwandkabob.net/

NEAR: This is in central Columbia, west of the Columbia Mall. Harpers Choice is between Rte 108 and Cedar Lane / Little Patuxent Parkway. From the south, Cedar Lane connects Rte 32 to Harpers Choice. From Rte 29, Broken Lane runs into Little Patuxent, which runs into Harpers Choice Road. To spot the shopping center, look for a McDonalds up against Harpers Choice Road.

Maiwand Kabob

Arundel Mills Preserve shopping center

7698 Dorchester Boulevard

Hanover, MD 21076

443-755-0461

NEAR: Take the Arundel Mills exit from the BW Parkway. That road only goes east. The Arundel Mills Preserve shopping center is on the left almost immediately. There is a Starbucks in that shopping center.

Mimi's Kabob in Clarksville

One test for a sandwich is what you do when its sauce starts to drip down your leg.

When I say "your leg," of course, I mean "my leg" because Mrs. HowChow wouldn't eat a sandwich that dripped on her leg.  But I stopped at Mimi's Kabob while driving home from errands.  I ordered the chicken kabob, and the sauce started to drip as I munched on the ride home.

The Mimi's Kabob passes the test:  I wiped off my jeans, but then took another bite as I pulled into the neighborhood.  Juicy white-meat chicken.  Crisp, warm tandoori bread.  Vegetables, and a creamy, slightly cheesy sauce that really made a terrific sandwich (and which cleaned up easily).

Mimi's is a casual Afghan restaurant along the lines of Columbia's Maiwand Kabob.  Appetizers like aushuk, bowlani and pumpkin.  A clay oven to create tandoori bread.  A menu that runs through chicken, beef, and lamb kabobs and ends with a few Afghan desserts like rice pudding or custard.  At lunch, there are even pizza and sandwiches.

This is a friendly place.  When I didn't want a soda, they let me swap out the drink for some pumpkin in the lunch special.  The pumpkin was good, although less tender than Maiwand Kabob.  Mimi's actually has more seating that the Columbia Maiwand Kabob.  

If you like kabobs, check out Maiwand Kabob in Columbia or Parsa Kabob in Elkridge.  If you are in Clarksville, definitely check out Great Sage for vegetarian food or El Azteca for Mexican.

Mimi's Kabob

12345 Wake Forest Road (Rte 108)

Clarksville, MD 21029

410-531-2000

NEAR:  This is a block south of Rte 32 on Rte 108.  It is a shopping center on the east side of Rte 108, and the entry is from a side street, so you need to turn just south of the shopping center.  This is a great place to stop if you have been shopping at Roots Markets farther north on Rte 108.

Delicious: Pumpkin at Maiwand Kabob

The appetizers convert Maiwand Kabob from a nice grill shop into a restaurant worth making a pilgrimage.

The samosas are top notch -- an order of six fried pastries filled with potatoes, peas and spices. The bowlawni is an Afghan speciality -- twin pastry shells with different fillings.

But the pumpkin is a dish that I would expect on a white-table cloth rather than in a Columbia shopping center where everything comes on disposable plates. Bright orange pumpkin, firm but tender enough to cut with a (high-quality) plastic spoon. It is sweet enough that it might be pie filing if you closed your eyes. But then, Maiwand Kabob dresses the pumpkin with some yogurt whose tart flavor marries with the sweet vegetable and with a spoonful of ground beef that adds a deeper, slightly spiced flavor.

Between the bread and the pumpkin, every trip to Maiwand Kabob is wonderful. The moistly-grilled meat and the rotating Afghan specialties makes this one of my favorite restaurants anywhere.

(And after dinner, you've got to go to Rita's [for dessert].)

(Update: A new Maiwand Kabob opened in 2009 near Arundel Mills Mall and the BW Parkway. There is also a branch in Burtonsville just off Rte 198.)

Maiwand Kabob

Harpers Choice Village Center

5467 Harpers Farm Road

Columbia, MD 21044

410-992-7754

www.maiwandkabob.net

NEAR: This is in central Columbia, west of the Columbia Mall. Harpers Choice is between Rte 108 and Cedar Lane / Little Patuxent Parkway. From the south, Cedar Lane connects Rte 32 to Harpers Choice. From Rte 29, Broken Lane runs into Little Patuxent, which runs into Harpers Choice Road. To spot the shopping center, look for a McDonalds up against Harpers Choice Road.

Maiwand Kabob

Arundel Mills Preserve shopping center

7698 Dorchester Boulevard

Hanover, MD 21076

443-755-0461

NEAR: Take the Arundel Mills exit from the BW Parkway. That road only goes east. The Arundel Mills Preserve shopping center is on the left almost immediately. There is a Starbucks in that shopping center.

Summer Night: Maiwand Kabob and Rita's

It's summer, so you've got to go to Rita's (and Afghanistan).

The Harper's Choice shopping center is the perfect weeknight escape in the summer. It's the classic Columbia story because we might never have found it except that Mrs. HowChow was humming the Rita's theme song ("You've got to go Rita's, You've got to go to Rita's") and reminiscing about how she had loved the gelati when she was growing up in Philadelphia. Deep in the story, we realized that she was humming the song because she had been hearing it on the radio, then realized that people only pay for ads if they have a store somewhere nearby. We ran to The Google.

Twenty minutes later, we were sitting in Harper's Choice eating gelati -- cherry Italian ice layered with vanilla cream. It's a great scene. Families sitting out. Teenagers checking each other out.

Make this a simple night out. Go to Harper's Choice and start at Maiwand Kabob across the parking lot from the Safeway. Go simple with some kabobs, rice and tandoori bread.  Definitely start with an appetizer like the pumpkin or bowlawni.  The grilled meats are mouth-watering -- beef, lamb, dark-meat chicken tikka kabob, white-meat chicken kabob. On a summer night, you can feast at the outside tables for less than $10 a person, then walk across the parking lot for a cup of Italian ice at Rita's to end the night.

Some time, I'll write up Maiwand Kabob's whole menu, which includes wonderful appetizers like aushak and some complex lamb and chicken specials. It's a take-out joint, but the food is as good as you can find anywhere.

(Another option: Dinner & Rita's in King's Contrivance in southern Columbia. Rita's opened there in the summer of 2008. Have a pizza at Trattoria E Pizzeria Da Enrico, then have Italian ice in the center courtyard. The fountain there is even more pleasant than Harpers Choice.)

(Update 6/8/08: Took my own advice and got caught in Saturday night's monster thunderstorm while sitting in Maiwand Kabob!)

Rita's -- Harpers Choice

5485 Harpers Farm Road

Columbia, MD 21044

410-740-2847

http://www.ritascolumbia.com/

(and just opened in Kings Contrivance, see below)

Maiwand Kabob

5467 Harpers Farm Road

Columbia, MD 21044

410-992-7754

http://www.maiwandkabob.net/

NEAR: This is in central Columbia. Harpers Farm Village Center is on Harpers Farm Road east of Rte 108 and west of Cedar Lane. There is a gas station and a McDonalds right on the road, and the shopping center is behind. Maiwand Kabob is on left with a cleaner. Rita's is on the right in the main shopping area.

Rita's -- King's Contrivance 

8640 Guilford Road Ste B10

Columbia, MD 21046

443-864-5509

NEAR: This is in the shopping center with the new Harris Teeter.  It is south of Rte 32 just east of Rte 29.

For a review of Maiwand Kabob's bigger cousin The Helmand, check out the Baltimore Food and Wine Blog here.

(Update: A new Maiwand Kabob opened in 2009 near Arundel Mills Mall and the BW Parkway.  There is also a branch in Burtonsville just off Rte 198.)

Maiwand Kabob

Arundel Mills Preserve shopping center

7698 Dorchester Boulevard

Hanover, MD 21076

443-755-0461

NEAR:  Take the Arundel Mills exit from the BW Parkway.  That road only goes east.  The Arundel Mills Preserve shopping center is on the left almost immediately.  There is a Starbucks in that shopping center.