Sellami’s Cooks French Tacos Until 2am on Brunswick Street

A “French tacos” isn’t really a taco at all. It’s a flour tortilla pressed with fries, meat, melted cheese and sauce, much in the same league as a kebab or halal snack pack. Born in Lyon’s poorer suburbs in the early 2000s as cheap and filling food, the French tacos (which is always pluralised, regardless of quantity) is a fast-food phenomenon led by home-grown French chains with hundreds of locations.

Noah Sellami brought the dish to Melbourne at the end of 2024 with the launch of Sellami’s French Tacos food truck, parking around Braybrook and Derrimut. It’s retired and he’s found a permanent home in Fitzroy with help from siblings Hannah (13), Adam (22), Aisha (24) and Iman Hamaama (26) Sellami.

The kids are of Algerian heritage, a country where French influence still runs deep after 132 years of occupation. Their mother lives in Egypt, but in Melbourne the five share a home, and now a business. The Brunswick Street shop is dedicated to their late father, Boualem, who taught Noah how to cook.

“It’s not just a business,” Iman Hamaama tells Broadsheet. “It’s how we look after one another.”

She says many customers at their original food truck came back not only to eat, but to spend time with Noah. That warmth has carried onto Brunswick Street, where the vibe is welcoming and uncomplicated. The space is anchored by a massive mural depicting an Algerian street. When Broadsheet visits, all five siblings are on hand, their energy and banter filling the room.

The menu is brief, like those at most fast-food businesses. The headline French tacos come with three core fillings: spiced halal beef mince, ras el hanout-marinated chicken and ful, or Egyptian-style fava beans. Each wrap is finished with fries; a gooey bechamel containing mozzarella, American and Laughing Cow cheeses; and garlic, chilli or Algerian-style sauces. Add sujuk sausage, Doritos and even more Laughing Cow cheese if your craving demands.

Crisp chicken tenders are marinated overnight in soda water (for tang) before being spice-battered and fried. Loaded fries started as a dish Noah first made for Hannah. “She loved them so much she insisted they go on the menu,” he says. They’re essentially a naked tacos, with butter-poached prawns on top for extra richness.

To drink, the siblings pour a deep-red hibiscus tea, touched with rose water, a recipe drawn from memory and North African tradition. “Our mum always had hibiscus tea in the fridge,” Aisha says. “In Algeria, and across Africa, everyone makes it differently – this is our version.”

Sellami’s French Tacos
383 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy
0434 797 533

Hours
Daily, 12.30pm–late (about 2am)

instagram.com/sellami_frenchtacos