Our office moved last fall closer to Sorrento Valley. This is one of the places I discovered this summer with Minion and Matt, my co-worker cohorts. The very first time we tried to visit was during the lunch rush and the place was packed with all of the Qualcomm workers and there was not a spot to sit in Nassaems. We ended up at some generic Mexican place a few doors down where I felt crowded and claustrophobic all at once due to the limited spacing. But I digress… we tried another time, later in the afternoon (around 1PM) and were happy to find it less crowded.
[beef kabob plate / $8.99]
On that first visit, all three of us got kabob plates. I got the beef and the boys both got lamb. It was a very typical Persian dish like I have seen at similar restaurants. The beef kabob was nicely grilled and seasoned and retained a lot of juiciness. The rice was fair, but I’m not a huge fan of rice to begin with (what kind of Asian am I?!) but it was not bad. I had this feeling I would have liked the lamb a bit better…
[cream puff / $2.99]
What was the real draw of this place to me? Dessert, of course! They offered cream puffs and that sounded like a wonderful idea to me. The cream puffs tasted nice and fresh and had a lot of light airiness to them that I enjoyed. There was a good amount of sweet whipped cream inside. I loved that just a few minutes away from the office I could get fresh cream puffs for dessert and this excited more than anything else!
Here we are on a return visit! This time the only available spot was this long cough with this skinny little tables. There are these hanging lights that look like mini candle chandeliers that give it a little bit of a gothic look. Everything is wood and dark colors in here which also lend to that gothic feeling.
I peeked into the bakery case to see my beloved cream puffs (love puffs, the sign says) and to my surprise I saw something new! I’m sure you can see where this is going. But savory stuff first, eh.
[lamb kabob wrap / $7.99]
This time around I got the lamb kabob, but I got it in a wrap instead of as a plate. It’s like a wrapped salad with meat in it. The lamb was really tasty (I liked it better than the beef after all) but I wasn’t as crazy about the sauce used in the wrap. It was a bit on the tangy side and there was a lot of it so it was hard to get away from it. I’d stick with a plate next time or be adventurerous and try one of their stews. (You can see the menu here.)
[lamb kabob plate / $9.99]
Minion and Matt got the lamb kabob plates again!
[latifeh / $3.55]
Minion and I both got the “what is that??” dessert we saw in the case: the latifeh. I tried to look up more information about the latifeh but all I could gather was that it was a “Persian macaron” – everything else was in a language I couldn’t read or videos I couldn’t understand. It looked more like a whoopie pie to me and much larger than a macaron.
It’s got a vanilla flavor and is soft and almost cakey. There’s whipped cream inside and those are pistachios on the outside. After a couple of bites I had managed to push allllllll of the whipped cream out and onto my plate, so I kind of reconstructed it as I went along, dipping pieces back into the sweet cream. I found it a little too soft for my liking but overall the flavor was nice. It was not too sweet and it was fun to try something new! Of the two though, I prefer the cream “love” puff. Minion David preferred the latifeh!
Naseems Bakery and Kabob
10066 Pacific Heights Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92121
(858) 453-3900
I love Persian food and same here, I don’t really care for the rice haha and I’m Asian myself! Yum I love puff pastries especially from Bearded Papa.
My mom always forced me to eat rice so I got sick of it as a kid, haha. I never got to try Bearded Papa! They had one down here but it closed before I had to chance to try it. Boo!
Ooh I’ve been wanting to try out this place, especially after one of my friends RAVED about the cream puffs! It really looks delicious!
Hi Jinxi – I would totally come back for the cream puffs! The other food was good, too… but CREAM PUFFS. Priorities, man. 🙂
Wow, cream puffs! Those look great!
I love the rice they serve at Persian places! It’s so fragrant and light. Not heavy like the rice I grew up eating.
Hi CC – Yes, the cream puffs here are really good! I’m still a little sad I never got to try Beard Papa while it was still down here (maybe I’ll try it up in LA someday). I do prefer the rice as Persian places. I like the non-sticky rice! I always think it’s funny they give you a little thing of butter, too. I believe it’s for the rice but I’ve never used it since buttered rice sounds weird.
I haven’t heard of this place! The kabob plates look generous. I have a hard time deciphering b/w Persian and Mediterranean kabobs for some reason. That wrap looks like it has melted cheese in it – is that the sauce you’re talking about – that orange stuff? Sorrento gets nutzo during lunch hour so I’ll have to check this place out when I get the chance 🙂
Hi Faye – I’m not sure what the difference is either! The wrap does not have cheese, it is just sauce. Yeah, if you go here, definitely go either late or early. Around noon is it PACKED with all of the Qualcomm employees! But you must visit, because, cream puff love!