Dera Pakistani Grill

Remember when I said Middle Eastern cuisine is getting hot? What better example than this crappy strip mall, which housed nothing but Radio Shacks and Things Worse Than Radio Shacks for fifteen years before suddenly finding a foothold thanks to a pair of Indo-​Pak restaurants and a Chinese place. Still no hope for that giant warehouse right behind it that used to be a Pick n Save twenty years ago. Nor that restaurant space nearby that used to be a Sizzler before everyone caught salmonella.
The restaurant didn’t appear to be doing too much business on the weekday I visited. But the proprietor gave me the remote to play around with the TV while he cooked my lunch, which was nice, and I didn’t know Direct TV offered an Arabic package of channels, nor did I realize that you can’t get Al Jazeera English on most cable and satellite subscriptions. So many things learned during my meal!
A half order of the Deluxe Platter rendered it not nearly as deluxe, but much more manageable for my sensible weekday lunch desires. The mixed grill of beef, chicken, and kafta was satisfactorily charred by the grill, and he didn’t go easy on the spice. Hummus was fine, though some more lavash would have been nice.
One thing that definitely wasn’t nice, or at least was uncomfortably different, was the tabouli, which consisted primarily of onion. It was almost neon green, too, and was a little off-​putting.
Still, by my limited knowledge of Milwaukee Middle Eastern food, it wasn’t bad, and certainly not deserving of the complete lack of other customers that either found someplace better (maybe the restaurant kiddie corner in the strip mall) or just haven’t developed a taste for hummus yet. Either way, looks like it’s closed now, so file this one away in the archives.

SCREWED
We went to Dera Grill once and loved the food. On June 10, I bought a Deal Watch coupon, $ 20 worth of food for $ 10, at Dera Grill. Today, June 27, we went back to redeem the coupon. The restaurant has closed. Out of business.
August 6, 2012: Deal Watch contacted everyone who bought the deal. They gave us a code that gives us $ 10 credit. They were fair about it.

They have the best BBQ in Milwaukee. This is my fourth visit in a week. The food is delicious and service is great.

The business changed hands. The bread was better than my last visit, however, the chicken shwarma was okay and they were out of tabouli. There is another restaurant a couple of doors down and they had plenty of tabouli, so I was able to get my tabouli fix. The falafel and hummus were still some of the best that I have ever had. This place is still good and fresh.

Stoped in for a quick lunch buffet, so I’ll write a quick review:
meh.
To elaborate.
The buffet was very limited, but fortunately it was limited to things I would eat. Still new to this Indo-​Paki thing. This was a bit on the hotter side of what I am used to. The place was empty, but the buffet table remained full. About 10 different hot selections to chose from as well as another dozen or so cold items/​salads. Lunch bufet was $ 9.00 including drink. I understand they do a special grilled buffet on the weekends that is quite popular.
Best of all, I didn’t get the McGurgles afterwards, so I will live to try it again.

Serviced sucked, hostess didn’t know the menu so had to look. Food was ok.typical. Not going there again.

I have eaten here six times in as many months. Why? Because it’s delicious. If you like Shah Jeez (and who doesn’t?), then you will love Dera Grill even better. They have a full menu with a great selection of Pakistani food.
Having frequented Casablanca for years, I like the difference in tastes and spices at Dera, because they’re a slight change from the saffron and turmeric.
I have had a number of their chicken dishes, as well as a lovely spinach and potato dish. They also have a nice chickpea dish and very lovely hummus. The place has a large selection of vegetarian options (perhaps not vegan, though, but I could be wrong).
Overall, my only complaint is that the spice can sometimes be overbearing because they don’t really have a «scale» like most other ethnic places have. They just give you a choice of spicy or mild, essentially, which can be dangerous if you’re not used to peppers, which they like a lot.
Overall, I would say that the trip down to the airport is worth it if you like Middle Eastern food and miss places like Abu’s.