Mr. Kabob Xpress

I’m so addicted! Lots of people compare this to chipotle or subway but it is so, so much better! Amazing fresh food that they load up in bowls or wraps. The gyro meat is the best I’ve ever had and the chicken is moist and delicious. I love choosing what I want on my salad and changing it up each time. It is very clean inside and employees are friendly. We have always loved mr kabob in Berkeley; this new concept is even better and closer. Win, win!

This is probably a 2.7, which means I’m unlikely to return to this restaurant.
Atmosphere: Mr. Kabob Xpress has a set-​up that’s more like Chipotle, with an assembly line of kabob topping options (an appealing concept).
Food mission: I was interested in finding a good chicken shawarma wrap in Troy or Berkley. Mr. Kabob Xpress is part of the family that includes Mr. Kabob, and I enjoyed the chicken shawarma pita at Mr. Kabob, so I decided to try Mr. Kabob Xpress.
I had a chicken shawarma pita that included garlic sauce, thin (though tasteless) pickle slices, chopped tomatoes, sliced grilled bell peppers and onions (also flavorless) and grilled chicken shawarma in a pita that has been warmed in a panini press. The grilled chicken somehow tasted like it was lower quality than the chicken at Mr. Kabob. I am unlikely to return to Mr. Kabob Xpress.
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Comparison to related chicken shawarma wraps:
I have tried the chicken shawarma wrap at Grape Leaves Restaurant, Mr. Kabob, La Marsa Cuisine, Cedar Grille, La Saj, Estia Greek Street Food, Lentil Mediterranean Grill, Mr. Kabob Express, and the samoon sandwich 2941 Street Food.
Chicken:
1. The chicken was not sufficiently juicy at Mr. Kabob Express.
2. The chicken in the samoon sandwich had tandori flavorings, while the chicken in La Marsa’s was roasted (with a flavor like a good Thanksgiving turkey). Most of the other venues were more traditional.
Pickles: The pickles at Mr. Kabob Express were not particularly flavorful. The best pickled flavor that I experienced was at 2941 Street Food.
Bread: The pita at Mr. Kabob Express was standard. The best bread (for the wrap) that I experienced was at either 2941 Street Food, or at Estia Greek Street Food.

Assembly line Arabic food like Subway or Chipotle… genius! What took so long for someone to think of this? But unlike Subway, the food is actually good. And unlike Chipotle, I don’t want to kill myself after leaving here because the employees are so awful.
Srsly though, this place is very good. The bowls were generously-​sized, the ingredients seem fresh, and everything is priced well. No complaints at all!

I have been on a mission to find the best shawarma in the area, and the reviews seemed promising but the food was not. «We’re like the Subway of Middle Eastern food,» the workers told me when I walked in. I’m not sure I would use that as the tagline of my restaurant. My chicken shawarma bowl was about as satisfying, so they turned out to be right.
I’m not sure how the chicken is cooked here because it’s just sitting in a pan waiting to be scooped out, but it wasn’t warm, didn’t have any distinct flavor, and was nondescript. The rest of my bowl just kind of blended in. The worker recommended a red wine vinegar sauce and the hot sauce was basically red. It was worth a try, but I’m sure there is better out there.
On a positive note, the filet medallions were cooked fresh on a grill and they tasted pretty good, but not good enough to draw me back.

I came in here due to all the great reviews. I really wanted to like this place because it’s convenient but unfortunately, it just didn’t do it for me. I’ll give it 3 stars because the employees were super friendly but the food was a little bitter, it was strange and kind of disappointing. Probably won’t be back.

Yummy yummy. There are a lot of Mediterranean options in the area with places like Lentil, and Kalamata and while they are all similar in many ways Mr. Kabob is my favorite.
Set up is basically build your own. You can choose a wrap, salad or bowl and your protein and build from there. I opt for chicken shawarma and load it up with hummus, garlic spread, quinoa, lots of veggies and taziki sauce. So damn good! At Mr. Kabob they let you literally put whatever you want on your bowl and as much as you want! There’s no up charge for feta or hummus, you get what you want! Which is awesome, and delicious! So glad to now have two locations in the area!

Because I’m middle eastern I’m super picky about middle eastern food. I had the chicken shawarma made the way they serve it, and WOW. I devoured it in the car like an animal. I couldn’t stop. It was the best chicken shawarma I’ve ever had. So juicy and perfect. A+++++

The Medditerrainian version of Chipotle. Wrap or bowl. Starts with Hummus (I went with the Red Pepper). Then lots of other choices — rice, grilled veggies, beet’s, feta, pickled turnips, cucumber, tomatoes, etc., etc., etc. Several meat choices. Good value, very filling. Décor was an odd mix of nice tile on the floors, nice pendant lamps, but this fake ivy on some wall sections and painted walls that were completely bare. Maybe the artwork hasn’t come in yet.

Recently decided to try this place for lunch as it is close to my office. Quite impressed. Food is very good and competitively priced compared to other fast food casual locations in the area. I am definitely putting this place into my lunch rotation!

What a fun place! Like a chipotle for middle-​eastern food!
I got a chicken shawarma wrap and it was BIG and tasty! Very flavorful ingredients and meat, and super high quality. The service was pleasant and the atmosphere really clean and modern. I’ll definitely be back and highly recommend!

The setup reminds me of Chipotle. You choose your protein, sauce, and toppings. All fresh ingredients. I tried the chicken kabob bowl, with roasted veggies and a crap load of tasty toppings. The chicken was moist and well seasoned. Honestly, this is some of the better Mediterranean food I’ve had. I’m gonna try the beef next.

I have to give this place a 5 based on how good their food is and how friendly their owner/​manager Sam is. It’s very fresh and flavorful. This is a restaurant version of the delish Mr Kabob at 12/​Coolidge at the gas station. I admit I’m not too crazy about the format tho, this going through the line to make it to your own liking. This ‘trend’ is where it’s at these days for better or worse. However, I’ve found a way to work around it and Sam said they are going to perhaps add a traditional sandwich, say maybe a shawarma sandwich for folks that don’t want to ‘think’ about what they want on their sandwich. Their tabouli is EXCELLENT, their hummus is very good along with their shawarma. I’m usually more of a kabob fan but I found theirs less flavorful and not as moist as I like. I’m happy with just getting a container of tabouli, hummus and shawarma. I’m addicted.

Excelent food and customer service ive had in a while. The food was outstanding fresh and decent amount. We stopped by today me and my father while we were at sommer set mall. And all i can say it was our first time and im beyond impressed with food portions and quality. Also i had the pleasure to meet the owner which he welcomed the customers himself and make sure things are going well. Keep it up guys.

What a great concept they have going on here! A choose your own middle eastern sit down or carry out place. The food was amazing and in a great location in Troy. My sister recommended them to me back when they only had their Berkley location and I’m so glad I finally remembered this place. It’s great to be able to pick all your favorite sides/​toppings without having to order extra plates like at other restaurants. Additionally, the cashier with the long hair was so friendly and kept us laughing. Will definitely be back!!!

Gas station food. Never knew this place was in a gas station… interesting. Food is decent. The we opted for the chicken shawerma pita sandwich and I was happy it was grilled down so that made it taste really good.

I love this place! The food is always super fresh, flavorful and healthy. The amount of food that they give you is ridiculous! Literally over 2lbs of food each time I order from them. The chicken kabob is my favorite. It’s tender grilled chicken breast chunks and the chicken shawarma is good too. My other favorite is their fillet… lol as you can see I really like this place! House dressing, hummus, cuc salad are just s few of my favorite toppings
They’re pretty pricy but the coupons they have in the SaveOn mag make it worth it!

I was SOOOO excited to see Mr. Kabob open up near work and can get my chicken shawarma fix. We frequent the location at 12/​Coolidge. They are definitely our favorite in the area. Per my original review of Mr. Kabob, I never thought I’d love gas station food so much. ha!
As others mentioned, I was a little confused on my 1^st visit with the Chipotle approach. I fully expected to go in and order my usual chicken shawarma platter. I asked for a pita however it would normally be made. Staff was a little unsure, but they got it right and it was delicious. I’ve been a few times so far. I think it’s great now that I know what to expect. This seems to be the current trend with a lot of new restaurants.
I really like that you can make it however you’d like. I wish I knew more about Mediterranean food and be a little more adventurous with their options. There are so many great, fresh selections and they all look good. I can get the garlic spread AND hummus on my pita. That right there makes me happy. I think if you’re a vegetarian, this is a great place to go. They do not skimp either. The pitas and salads are really generous.
I love the side of hummus. It’s not just a little 2 oz cup of hummus. They actually put the oil, chopped parsley and pickled radish just like you’d get in the restaurant. It’s such a nice little touch! I always have enough to enjoy for a second day.
Staff is super friendly and they have a good production line going. I think the owner (Sam? LOL) has been up front every time I’ve been there. It’s very clear he’s passionate about his business and making customers happy. I think they’ve had some kinks to work out as with any new business and every experience has been better than the last.
Thanks for coming to Troy, Mr. Kabob!

Soooooooo sad. Our office was stoked about the new Mr Kabob coming to Troy as we drive to the gas station from time to time to get our fix. We’ve been circling the joint since it opened and stopped finally yesterday.
As Will mentioned, they take the Chipotle or Subway approach (the same girl must have helped both of us, this is how she describes the process). I don’t want to «make my own» bowl or wrap, especially when I am going there expecting that the set up is going to be the same as the other Mr. Kabob. There is another place in Sterling Heights that has this approach, but I went in expecting it — here I thought I was going to get my veggie platter with lentil soup and rice. They don’ t even have it as an option. If forced to get a wrap, I would like to have mjudra (although I didn’t want that because I had it for lunch the day before at another establishment). They didn’t have mjudra. The whole thing was just a major bummer. The food is good, but go in with the right attitude otherwise you will be as disappointed as me.

I went here today because the owner sent out an email to my company inviting us all to try a free bowl or wrap — a pretty good deal. I’ve never been to the gas station that has the original Mr. Kabob, but it’s pretty legendary and everyone says the food is really good.
It’s located in the old Halo Burger location, so I was curious to see what they had done with the place as I used to go there often or so. The décor is different but the booths are the same. When you walk in, it’s like an assembly line, as everything is make your own; I kind of wish that there was a fixed menu that you could choose from because I don’t always know what ingredients go best together, as the first reviewer on this page was saying.
I got a wrap with lots of garlic (SO yummy), tomato, pickles, tabbouleh, chicken Shwarma, and house dressing. It would have been $ 8.50 which is a little pricey, but the food was VERY good. You can also choose to do a salad with the same ingredients (just no bread) and they were preparing one that looked good, with pita chips, when I was there.
I think this place just opened last week, and I give it 3.5÷5 stars (rounded up to 4). My only suggestion is that the employees familiarize themselves with the menu a little more, I asked the lady at the front what she would suggest for ingredients and she really didn’t know. The manager or perhaps owner was right in that area and he was able to suggest things that later turned out to be yummy.
I’d come back here when looking for a quick lunch or sandwich/​salad, especially since I work nearby.

First off, the food is super tasty. The reason for 3 stars is because this location takes on an approach similar to a Chipotle or Subway. You walk in and have to build your own Mediterranean entrée or wrap. Having been accustomed to the Berkley location where you order from a menu and receive a wonderful dish, this was quite a surprise.
Some people may like having total control of what goes into their bowl or sandwich, but I would guess that most of us are not fully cognizant of which ingredients pair well when not cooking Mediterranean dishes all the time.
Surprise aside, I was able to put together a shish kabob wrap that was delicious. The unfortunate difficulty was that I asked for a beef shish kabob wrap and my wife asked for a chicken shawarma, despite both being items on the menu we were still required to «build our own» dishes.
Word of advice to the management of this location. Please don’t put your customers in the position of having to self select and even argue with the service staff when attempting to order lunch.
Despite all of this, the food was very tasty and delicious and very much on the level of the Berkley location. I do plan on returning and now knowing the layout, I hope to have a better experience.