Slavic shawarma, anyone? This Eastern European variant on the classic rolled meat sandwich involves cabbage, cucumbers, and creamy, tangy garlic sauce. It’s one of many ways to enjoy the excellent doner kebab at this new Uptown spot. To best understand all those ways, you should know a bit about the 32-year-old owner, Etibar Maharramli. Born in Azerbaijan, he immigrated to Kharkiv, Ukraine, as a teenager and there built a small chain of Turkish doner restaurants. After the war broke out, he followed so many of his displaced neighbors to Chicago.

Maharramli makes the kind of street food loved by people the world over. Lahmacun flatbread arrives hot and blistered, coated in spiced ground lamb and tomato sauce, and ready to roll around crisp herbs, tomato, and red onion. The restaurant’s namesake dish features a generous portion of sliced beef or chicken heaped with raw veggies and white sauce, all stuffed into a house-baked roll that’s as glossy, bubbly, and springy as great focaccia. What an ideal vehicle for this gushy sandwich. For something grander, share a platter of Iskender kebab: sliced beef in tomato sauce, served with yogurt and a drizzle of spiced butter.

The few tables fill up quickly, but Maharramli plans to expand to the adjacent storefront to accommodate his many new fans, all thrilled that he alighted in Chicago.