Dirt Cheap Eats 2008: Food Factory

Food Factory (8145 Baltimore Ave., College Park; 301-345-8888). This Afghan kebab shop might look like the definition of fast food—bright fluorescent lights, a bus-your-own-table policy, plastic knives and forks—but it possesses the enduring values of slow food. The grilled meats—including bone-in chicken kebabs and minced and spiced beef kebabs ($7.99 each)—are cooked over an open charcoal flame and can take 20 minutes to reach the counter. They’re worth the wait. The moist, charred hunks of marinated chicken will remind you of a great backyard barbecue. Open daily for lunch and dinner.

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