Recently, a friend of mine messaged me to inform me that the shawarma establishment next to his building was shutting down. Apparently, the land owner thinks it more profitable to force the businesses to close up shop, knock the buildings down, and put up a condo high-rise. Since my friend lives within several paces of my favourite shawarma restaurant in Ottawa, Shawarma Palace, I asked if this was the unfortunate establishment that was going to close. Thinking that I had not read what he wrote, he pointed out, rather indignantly, that all the shops were going out of business. He then added that it was the shawarma place with the "red sign" that was closing. My heart literally broke. Shawarma Palace has some red signage.

Happily, my friend was outright wrong. Though another shawarma restaurant will be closing, Shawarma Palace will continue to serve great food to grateful customers. There are many of us too. I have never seen the establishment with less than 75% of its available seats full. The lineups behind the counter are also long from morning to night. For instance, I once visited Shawarma Palace at 9:00 pm on a dreary and rainy Friday evening. Yet, the lines still extended from the counter down the length of the restaurant.

Shawarma is a Middle Eastern sandwich, composed of shaved lamb, beef, chicken, or combination thereof. It is topped with sauces, tomatoes, peppers, onions, and/or pickles. It is typically served on pita bread with side dishes. Sauces include this wonderful garlic mayonnaise, which I have yet to figure out how to reproduce. Side dishes include tabouli, hummus, salad, fried potatoes, and french fries. Shawarma is related to the Greek gyro and is essentially identical to the Turkish "Döner kebab."

Though a little off topic, during the 1970s, a variation of the Turkish "Döner kebab", called the "Donair" emerged in Halifax, Nova Scotia. A restaurant called "King of Donair" claims to have been the first to serve it in 1973. What sets the maritime donair apart is the characteristic sauce served with it. The sauce consists of 2/3 cup canned evaporated milk, 2/3 cup sugar, 1/4 cup white vinegar, and 1/2 tsp garlic powder. A full recipe can be found here.

That said, the shawarma, gyro, and donair are all prepared the same way. Firstly, marinated strips of meat are piled onto a single skewer, forming a meat column. Animal fat, an onion, and a tomato are commonly placed on top. The meat is then vertical rotisserie roasted. This means that the meat rotates upright around a heat source, be it a wood fire or specialized electric element. The result is evenly cooking and self-basted meat. This is because the meat cooks both in its own juices and the juices from the added fat, onion and tomato.

Having been introduced to Shawarma Palace only 6 months ago, I have found that I literally crave its giant chicken Shawarma platters. They consist of generous amounts of shaved chicken, garlic sauce, hummus, potatoes, rice (white or brown), pickles, and salad. I dare say that no where else serves chicken shawarma this good.

Shawarma Palace achieves the "zen" of shawarma. Firstly, the garlic sauce is outstanding. It is rich, creamy, and garlicy, but not at all sour. Secondly, its side dishes are fresh, well prepared, and properly presented. The hummus is smooth and distinctively nutty from good tahini (sesame paste). It is served with a well of good olive oil and sprinkled with sumac. The potatoes are always crisp, hot, and never starchy. The rice is instant, but fluffy. You have a choice between fresh pickled turnips and/or pickled cucumbers. I never turn down pickled turnips. The salad is made with fresh romaine lettuce and tomatoes. It is conservatively dressed with a Mediterranean-inspired dressing. Ordinarily, this just means that the restaurant serves quality food.

It's the shaved chicken that elevates everything. Shawarma Palace has found a way to balance the cooking time of its meat columns with the rate with which it serves its customers. Every platter or individual shawarma sandwich comes with perfectly juicy and tender meat that is just crusted. The crust comes from the juices running down the giant meat columns and very careful roasting. It adds texture and flavor.

Regarding the platters themselves, they represent very generous helpings of food. One platter, two or three genuine Lebanese pitas, and two canned drinks will run you approxiatly $18.50 with tip and can easily serve two people. If you choose to eat a platter to yourself, you will not want to partake in any meals for the next day or two. Trust me on this one.

According to wikipedia, there are 91 shawarma restuarants in the National Capital Region. Shawarma Palace is easily my favourite. It is quite the trek down from Rideau Center, but it's worth it.

Actually, the friend who introduced me to Shawarma Palace now works in Boston. Everytime he comes back to Ottawa, he makes a pilgrimage to the establishment. Happily, I only live a couple minutes' bus ride from downtown Ottawa.

Particulars:
Shawarma Palace
464 Rideau Street
(613)789-9533



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