Middle Eastern Food Haven Babajan Has a New City Store to Add to Your Lunchbreak Rotation

The CBD's lunch landscape just scored a major boost with the opening of a second outpost for northside legend Babajan. The Carlton North eatery, launched in 2016, has brought its much-loved Turkish-inspired fare to the top of Little Collins Street.

Just like its sibling, Babajan's new city store is a haven for grab-and-go treats with morning coffees, Middle Eastern lunch eats and pantry goodies. And of course, handmade sweet things also abound.

Chef-owner Kirsty Chiaplias has stuck to her winning formula for this cheery, takeaway-only spot, celebrating generous Middle Eastern flavours across a rotating lineup of fresh, handmade fare.

Cabinets heave with a mix of Babajan classics and exclusive new creations. Flakey boreks are stuffed with combinations like lamb and potato, and spinach and feta, while show-stopping sandwiches hero fillings including confit ocean trout with a green zoug dressing, and roast chicken is studded with pinenuts and preserved lemon.

There's a range of house-made simits (a traditional ring-shaped bread) starring the likes of eggplant aleppo and cheddar, or scrambled egg with pastirma and harissa. And giant bowls showcase each day's selection of sensational salads — maybe a broccoli and zucchini number with zoug and avocado, or a pilaf spiked with braised fenugreek and roast carrot.

Dessert is basically a must, once you lock eyes with treats like Chiaplias' chocolate halva tarts, walnut baklava, and date and white chocolate lamingtons. You can even maximise your lunchbreak by ordering ahead via the Babajan app, which is available via the App Store.

Meanwhile, the shelves are stocked with a tidy curation of signature pantry products, alongside other Middle Eastern classics ranging from condiments and sauces, to spices and pulses.

Find Babajan at Shop 5, 1 Little Collins Street, Melbourne. It's open weekdays from 7am–3pm.

Images: Pete Dillon