World Kebab Day, Americanized

Today is World Kebab Day, and yes, that’s a thing. While the kebab’s origins are skewered meats over open flames across the Middle East and South Asia, this is what it looks like when it passes through the American fast-food lens.

These are chicken kebab wraps from Wrap Houz here in Palm Springs, photographed exactly as they came, placed on my black background for my “From Bag to Background” series. No stylists, no plates, no garnish—just the food as it is served, textures and all.

I’ve been seeking out not just the big chains but also local fast-casual spots for this project, documenting how global foods are adapted, repackaged, and sold in convenient, handheld forms for quick lunches and late-night takeout.

World Kebab Day might make you think of skewers turning over coals, but here, it’s chicken chunks wrapped in flatbread, ready for a drive-thru or delivery bag. It’s a small glimpse of how food travels—and transforms—while staying familiar in a new context.

If you want to see more of these unstyled fast food photographs, visit my “From Bag to Background” gallery here:
https://www.secondfocus.com/index/G0000wQ3fbeEezF0/I0000nUG8tfk8Gdc

July 11, 2025 | Categories: Uncategorized | Tags: American fast food, chicken wrap, fast food, food culture, Food Photography, from bag to background, global food, handheld food, kebab, kebab wrap, Palm Springs, street food, unstyled food photography, world kebab day, wrap houz | Leave a comment