Is it possible to fall in love with a flatbread? I did. I was hooked after the first visit to Baladi Manouche. I was in town with the family for some shopping and it was lunchtime (me on the verge of getting “hangry”, so we needed to move fast). The weather was good, so we were looking for a place with a terrace but everything with tables outside was already busy and we obviously didn’t want to wait too long (me getting hangrier now). Then I remembered spotting Baladi from the tram. It’s just off the main shopping streets but definitely still city centre. We ordered Zaatar manouche, a Labneh wrap and a Hummus wrap and we were instantly happy with the amount of choice for our vegetarian family. It’s a small place (with a vibrant graffiti mural) so whilst we waited our 4-year-old enjoyed watching the dough being rolled out and going in the oven. Although you can eat right outside at one of the picnic tables we took our food to the nearby Palace Gardens and we all agreed that this was the best fast-food takeaway we had enjoyed in a long time. It’s a doughy bread (hello comfort food!) filled with fresh ingredients and tasty flavours (hello zaatar!).

This first visit was last year but I’ve been back, you know, to check if it still tasted good and it wasn’t just because I was so hungry. I can confirm that it’s still good. Every single time.