Shawarma in Toronto: Wrap or Plate, and Three Shops to Try

Somebody in your group will say “shawarma?” at 9 p.m., and you will need an answer before the hunger turns into a debate about wrap versus plate.

What is shawarma, exactly?

Britannica calls shawarma a popular street food in the Middle East that originated in Turkey. It is made of spit-roasted layers of lamb, beef or other meat that are sliced and often wrapped in or served with pita. Cooked on a rotating vertical spit, it essentially bastes itself in its own juices, which gives moist, tender meat. In Syria, Lebanon and Jordan the rolled kebab came to be known in Arabic as shawarma, a loanword from the Turkish word for “turn”. It is similar to Greek gyros, though shawarma is seasoned with more spices and gyros with more herbs.

What usually comes with it?

Britannica says hummus and tahini are commonly included, and that French fries often accompany shawarma. In practice that means every plate is a small buffet: meat, a creamy dip, something pickled, something crisp and bread to scoop it all up. Use the bread like a spoon and the pickles like a reset button. If you are ordering a wrap, ask for the sauce you actually like, because garlic sauce and tahini sauce make very different sandwiches.

Should I order a wrap or a plate?

Order a wrap when you are walking, standing or splitting your attention with a screen. Order a plate when you want to sit, share sauces and eat the sides in any order you like. The three shops below cover both ways of eating it, and Aleppo Kebab offers each on one menu: it lists a chicken shawarma sandwich and a chicken shawarma plate. If you cannot choose, choose the plate, because the leftover bread is a very good second dinner.

Why is Scarborough’s Lawrence Avenue East shawarma country?

A 2017 CBC piece said that if you walk east from Victoria Park Avenue toward Warden Avenue, you will pass Middle Eastern restaurants that specialize in everything from charcoal grilled fish to Syrian spinach pies and every variation of shawarma, Lebanese-style to Iraqi. The same piece noted that, like most immigrants from the Levant, one local family first settled in Scarborough, and its writer called the strip one of the best streets in North America for food from the Levant. That is a 2017 verdict, so treat it as a map and check each shop’s own site before you go. Both Scarborough shops below are on Lawrence Avenue East.

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Aleppo Kebab

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Aleppo Kebab’s Scarborough restaurant is at 2075 Lawrence Avenue East. It describes its food as a blend of Armenian and Syrian flavours. Shawarma is the reason to come, and in our view the plate is the clearest way to see why. The chicken shawarma plate comes with rice or fries, salad, hummus, garlic, spicy bread and grilled vegetables. There is also a Syrian style chicken shawarma plate with fries, garlic, coleslaw and one saj wrap cut into six pieces, and a Lawrence Plate of chicken and beef shawarma with all the sauces. The restaurant says its food is 100% halal. Our pick for the plate-versus-wrap debate, because it answers both.

2

Sumaq Iraqi Charcoal Grill

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Sumaq’s Scarborough restaurant is at 1961 Lawrence Avenue East. The brand says its menu runs from charcoal-grilled Iraqi dishes to shawarma, across three GTA locations. Its Scarborough menu notes that veal shawarma is also called gus by Iraqis, who specialize in red meat shawarma. The same menu says chicken shawarma can come in a wrap, on rice or on fries. Order the veal if you want to taste the Iraqi side of the row, and bring someone to split a plate with.

Is there good shawarma outside Scarborough?

Yes, and one family spot sits in East York. Pape Village is a long way from Lawrence Avenue East, which is the point: shawarma lives in every part of the city.

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Shawarma Frenzy

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Shawarma Frenzy is at 1011 Pape Avenue in East York. It describes itself as a small family-owned restaurant serving Mediterranean food in Pape Village. The site says the restaurant is known for the CBC feature of its marinade, which it calls super-secret. Its signature dishes include a chicken shawarma wrap, a chicken shawarma platter, chicken shawarma poutine and a falafel platter. Our pick for a neighbourhood regular: a wrap on the way home.

How do I order for a group?

Order one wrap or sandwich per person for the first round, then one shared plate for the middle of the table. That way everyone gets a sandwich in their own hands and a taste of the rice, hummus and bread. Grab a seat near a window if the plate arrives after dark, because shawarma looks better with a view.

How do I plan a shawarma night?

Pick the format first, then the shop, then check the shop’s own site for current hours and ordering before you head out. Bring a friend who likes to share, and agree on one sauce to argue about. Scarborough’s Lawrence Avenue East suits a longer sit-down plate, and Pape Avenue suits a wrap on the way home. For more of the same stretch, read our Scarborough restaurants guide, explore the East York hub, browse the full what to eat in Toronto guide, then keep going with best ramen in Toronto when you want broth instead of garlic sauce.

Send this to the friend you would bring, and let them pick wrap or plate.