Tehran Market

Deep within Santa Monica, this Iranian mom-and-pop market hosts a sizable locals’ crowd on weekend mornings, when a pair of skilled grillmasters churn out freshly made kebabs from 11:30am until they’re sold out in the parking lot. To order, purchase a ticket inside at the cashier, then head outside to hand your receipt to one of the cooks. While the wait for food is considerable (we waited 40 minutes for an extra-large order of assorted meats), the end result is delicious enough to justify, at least for diehard kebab fans—the koobideh here is juicy, with a certain fresh-off-the-grill quality that sit-down restaurants just can’t compete with. While no rice is provided, each tray comes with grilled onions and tomato, plus torshi (pickled vegetables), shirazi salad and flatbread.