Kebabs in Iran

On our flight from Tehran to Mashhad, the flight attendant, a nice young woman, started to give me a box lunch. I said “No thank you.” She said “Why don’t you want lunch?” I was a little startled, but I said, “Because I just had a large lunch of salads and kebabs and I’m full.” She persisted, “Where did you eat and what kind of kebabs did you have?” I said, “We ate a mix of different kinds of kebabs: some chicken, some minced lamb, some regular lamb.” “Oh,” she said, “that mix is called Bakhtiyari and it’s very good.” End of conversation.
So kebabs are ubiquitous. And everyone, including flight attendants, has opinions about them. What we discovered is that some are better than others and everyone, including me, develops favorites.

This is the Bakhtiyari mix of kebabs which the flight attendant likes: regular lamb, chicken, and minced lamb, as made in Tabriz.

This kebab featured chicken on one side of the skewer with minced lamb patted onto the chicken on the other side, as made in Hamadan.

This restaurant in Shiraz specialized in minced and regular lamb kebabs.

These lamb chops, from a restaurant in Esfahan, would have been enough for two or three people. I ate all seven. They were so good. French fries often decorate the dishes of kebabs.