Alamir Bakery, Anaheim

Before shopping at Sinbad Ranch market, Tracey and I popped into Alamir Bakery for lunch. The "bakery" part of the name is misleading. Alamir serves Middle Eastern pizza and . . . well, actually that's it. Even for a pizza place, the menu is pretty limited -- mostly, you're choosing among several cheesy pizzas or a several (ground) meaty pizzas. But the crust is wonderful (Al Amir uses a woodburning oven), and the delicate cheese is sooo much better than mozzarella.

Alamir's decor is simple and clean but attractive with some nice Middle Eastern touches. When we were there, the World Cup played on a big TV. Since Alamir uses (already cooked) flatbread as their crusts, our pizzas came out of the oven really quickly.

I preferred Tracey's pizza -- cheese with olive oil and oregano -- to mine. Topped with ground meat, pine nuts and pomegranate, it was a little blah. But that's what I get for ordering what is essentially a hamburger pizza. Next time I'll go for plain cheese.

Al Amir's prices are ridiculous (in a good way). Generous personal pizzas cost less than three dollars each. A can of soda is a dollar.

All in all -- a great spot for a quick, cheap, tasty lunch.

Al Amir Bakery
2281 West Ball Rd., Anaheim, CA 92804, 714-535-0973

http://www.alamirbakery.com/

Sinbad Ranch Market, Anaheim

Last year, my friend Tammi and I stumbled on Sinbad Ranch Market when we tried to go to the much larger Altebayat only to discover that it's closed on Sunday. I still haven't made it to Altebayat, but this Sunday I was happy to make Sinbad Ranch my destination when Tracey and I headed to Anaheim's "Little Gaza" to buy food for Father's Day dinner.

The small store has a friendly neighborhood market feel. They offer Mediterranean cheeses, olives, rices, grains, bottled peppers, fresh flatbreads, and a wide assortment of spices I never saw growing up in New Jersey (and still don't know how to use). But the star of the show is the meat counter. I bought two different kinds of marinated chicken kabob. When I asked the butcher what was in the marinades, he shook his head and said, "It's my mother's recipe," the implication being that his mother was a scary, scary woman and I didn't want to mess with her. Later, my husband, who loves Middle Eastern food, said that one of the chickens tasted like shish tawook and the other like shawarma. I'll take his word for it. In any event, both were a hit. At less than three dollars a pound (pre-cut and smothered in the mysterious -- but not in a bad way -- marinade), they were also a bargain. Tracey bought some ground lamb, and we admired other cuts of lamb as well as some remarkable looking veal and beef (including chili beef and carne asada). All of the meat is halal.

Get This: If you're an eggplant and olive fan, the Jericho caponata ($2.99 for 10 oz.) makes an addictive sandwich spread or dip. Great for entertaining, too.

Not So Much: A lot of the produce looked tired, though I picked up some tiny seedless red grapes that were delicious.

I Could Never Be That Hungry: The deli counter had a nice big tray of goat meat. It looked fresh and juicy ... but it was still goat.

Sinbad Ranch Market

521 S. Brookhurst St., Anaheim, CA 92804, (714)533-3671