Pizza Hut in St Augustine's Parade has long been a staple of the City Centre. Having stood there for over a decade before it suddenly closed down in 2021, it was hard to imagine something else in its place.
But when the replacement was announced, it was impossible to not be excited. Hope Bainbridge and Annie Faulkner had launched Hoba, a kebab pop-up, in 2017 and were getting converting the space into their permanent premises, see the first pictures here.
Hope told Bristol Live that she founded Hoba after working as a private chef in London, with the business inspired by fresh chargrilled kebab places she visited in Berlin. “We want to bring the Berlin cool, minimalistic vibe to our first Hoba site whilst also using local Bristol artists to give it our unique Hoba edge" she said.
READ MORE: The Shakespeare Tavern named as best pub in Bristol by CAMRA
And since their doors opened I've been excited to try them out. I'm well aware of Hoba's rave reviews and I wanted to see for myself what the hype was all about.
I decided a sunny lunch break was the perfect time to sample their goods and took a walk to get a takeaway order. The menu is extensive but obviously expertly crafted. You're not short for choice but it's clear each ingredient is carefully selected.
There are a wide range of meat options, from chicken to beef but the vegan and vegetarian options aren't short either. From roasted cauliflower to jackfruit you'll be spoilt for choice.
I made up my mind that I wanted a chicken kebab but was undecided between the 'Chargrilled Chicken', which was made up of 24 hour marinated chicken thighs in Hoba' signature spices along with crushed peanuts and the 'Squeaky Chicken', which has chargrilled chicken, halloumi garlic harissa yoghurt and crushed peanuts.
I opted for the latter (without the peanuts), with the halloumi and the harissa yoghurt influencing me heavily. I also got a portion of the skin on fries which I was equally excited to try.
It took around 15 minutes for my food to be made, whilst I waited at a sunny spot in the newly renovated restaurants window. I paid £14, which is of course not your typical kebab and chips price but Hoba's kebabs promise to be a cut above your Saturday night local van pick-up.
I made my way back to the office with a spring in my step, ready to dig in. On opening up the goods, my jaw dropped at the sheer size of my kebab, Hoba certainly weren't shy with their fillings.
The skin-on fries were just as impressive on first look. Well seasoned and perfectly crispy. I immediately grabbed one and I wasn't disappointed. It wasn't long before the box was finished - with help from my colleagues who I insisted share the joy.
Next up, was the real star of the show - the kebab. I must admit, I was slightly intimidated by the sheer size of it. "That's not exactly first date food" my colleague mentioned. She wasn't wrong. It was near impossible to keep your face clean but that's a minor worry when your food tastes as good as this kebab did.
The flavours were perfectly matched and the fillings were flawlessly fresh. I've simply got no critiques, from the fries to the harissa mayo - this was excellent food.
Clearly I wasn't the only one craving kebab, as one of my colleagues was also digging into Hoba's goodness. After polishing it off, she said: "that is the best kebab I have had in a LONG time" and I think that sums it up. I'll have to try hard not to become a regular.
