In Praise of the Chicken Over Rice Platter

Why do I so often find myself in Shah’s Halal, week after week, 3 AM after 3 AM, spending $13.94 on a pile of chicken and rice? Well you might as well ask Homer why he wrote the Odyssey, or Jesus why he starred in the Bible.

It always starts, as all great ideas do, with a gut feeling. A few neurons fire, a shooting pain radiates from your stomach, and soon enough desire infects every inch of your body. “I’m hungry”. Yes. You skipped lunch to do a reading you didn’t even talk about in your seminar, and now you’re paying the price. Perhaps you even skipped dinner and forgot about the Ivy despite the recent highly acclaimed Yeater mukbang putting it on the map. No matter.

Enter Shah.

He’s made it his mission to help hungry, overworked students and locals alike (you and me!) eat delectable, healthy food that’s ready in minutes. The star of the show is the Chicken Over Rice Platter – and if you want to copy my order – make sure you get onions & peppers, the mixed salad (no lettuce), chickpeas, hummus, extra white sauce, red sauce, and (let me put you on) a dash of green sauce. There is nothing else like it. Sources say that even New York halal carts, of which Shah’s traces its lineage back to, pale in comparison. 

Shah’s is the ultimate utility food. In the summer, the cucumbers will keep you cool; in the winter, the hot, red tandoori chicken melts the snow around you from the inside out. And those sauces! A little may go a long way, but a lot goes way further. Ask for extra sauce. The creamy, rich white sauce balances out the spicy red sauce for an exceedingly delicious bite. The green sauce adds an unexpected but not unappreciated cilantro kick, so if you have the soap gene just leave more for me. 

Despite being in the proximity of one of the world’s greatest universities, late at night our options are limited to waiting in line for a mediocre sandwich at GHeav or hoping UberEats isn’t going to charge incredible delivery fees (spoiler alert: it will). Besides the infectious, siren-call pop music and an aroma that makes me float like Drake smelling a pie, the other sticking point for Shah’s is their prices. While $11.80 for a gyro might seem steep, it is quicker, healthier, and just better tasting than other nearby options. 

This wouldn’t be a nuanced review without highlighting some of the recent controversies of the Shah’s experience. Shah, why did you take the buy one get one free off of UberEats?! Was it me? Did I get it too often? If I had one request, one little petition for Shah, it would be to reinstate the BOGO. It’s an institution, a staple of late-night stumblings-home, a provider of leftovers. Their BOGO feeds families for days at a time. Their BOGO feeds me for a day.

Despite that recent hiccup, the Shah’s halal employees and I have maintained a close relationship. Recently, I (Jerry) discovered that they not only remember my name, but they have begun to wave at me through the window. You tell me, Yeater fans, if that is embarrassing or not.  Regardless of your answer, I will be going back for more chicken over rice. Maybe, if I go enough, they’ll reinstate the BOGO or learn my schedule and start making my orders ahead of time. I wouldn’t put anything past Shah’s Halal.  

I hope you understand, Dear Reader, that Shah’s Halal is the people’s late-night option. If they have no fans, consider me dead. I’d be pleased if this article has inspired you to try it–and no, only trying the chicken sandwich doesn’t count. If there is one thing that I hope for you to take away from this, it’s that the Chicken Over Rice reigns supreme. Get extra sauce. Live a little.