Hiba

Despite the local competition, Holborn's stylish new lunch spot is already so popular for takeaway wraps and chips that diners have to break through the queue snaking from the door to the counter. Once settled in a comfortable booth under a large colour photograph of historic Lebanese sites, you can ignore the saps who can't spare time to sit down and eat. Instead, make your own wrap with a generous pile of toasty, tasty shredded chicken shawarma and excellent flatbread.

The lunch plate is a great deal, comprising either said shawarma or a kebab, plus a selection of meze: wonderfully smoky, tahini-rich moutabal, less memorable houmous, refreshingly parsleyed tabouleh and crunchy kibbeh. Topped with a zesty fattoush, slightly stodgy lamb sambousek and fuul medames (broad beans cooked to an earthy, comforting mush), this was a bargain feast for two.

Without the time or space for the graciousness that often distinguishes service at Middle Eastern restaurants, staff coped efficiently with the pressure. From the olives that arrive to stave off initial hunger to the final fresh mint tea or authentically dark, bitter coffee, standards at this sleek, fast-ish food place match those of much pricier Lebanese joints.