Dukagjini Burektorja – Bronx
Bureks are a common street food item throughout the Balkan countries as well as in Turkey, North Africa, and parts of the Middle East. Dukagjini Burek in the Pelham Gardens section of the Bronx serves up a menu of 3 styles of Albanian Bureks; meat, cheese and spinach. And that’s basically the entire menu! They also serve homemade yogurt and espresso. I had the meat burek, which is thin layers of phyllo dough with a filling of seasoned beef mixed with chopped sauteed onions. One triangular slice was $4, and it was very filling. Think of it as a quick, filling, comfort food. Don’t expect it to dazzle your taste buds, but it would make a great change of pace from a slice of pizza or calzone, and it’s a nice way to sample a very popular street food from Albania, made by Albanians. Ironically, I spent one week in Albania on tour with a band, and I didn’t have a burek! The meals were very planned (The US Embassy in Tiranna sponsored and organized the tour), and there was very little downtime. The Bronx is home to a large population of Albanians, and many of them gravitated to the Italian neighborhoods in The Bronx. In Belmont, Pelham Gardens, and Norwood sections, you can find a strong presence of Albanian restaurants and markets. Dukagjini Burektorja is worth the stop if you’re in the neighborhood (very close to Bronx Zoo, Botanical Gardens, Fordham University). I’ll try the cheese burek and the homemade yogurt next time.
