Fav Shawarma places in the GTA???
I personally remember the Shawarma place that was just outside College Station (on yonge just slightly north of Ryerson) that offered the 2 shawarma sandwiches for $5 or so.
The shop had a red sign and very tasty food. I loved the chicken shawarma sandwich the most.
^ Recently the place has been taken over by a NEW Shawarma business that just doesn't have the same zing as the previous owners. meh.
So where do you guys all go for your Shawarmas, Falafels and Middle Eastern rice dishes??
In the GTA?
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Unfortunately, the GTA does not boast great shwarma and falafel joints. Having eaten food in Lebanon, I would have to say that the Israeli places in the city are much better than the Lebansese restaurants. I think Me Va Me take out on Steeles is the best by far3. It is just west of Yonge, on the north side, and in the same plaza as Henry's camera. Keep in mind that the take out location is at a different location than the sit down restaurant that is at the corner of steeles and bathurst.
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LaZeez (On Gerrard just west of Gerrard beside Hooker Harvey's )
Clean. A little pricey but really good. Open late. Great falalel and I'm a big meat eater.
Best I've had for a while.›2 Replies -
finelydiced
Oct 23, 2008 01:28 PM
I don't profess to be a huge connoisseur of all things shwarma, but a place close to my abode never seems to let me down...A La Turque, on Church north of Wellesley. I like the fact that whether it's 4PM or well after last call, the veggie options to pile on are always fresh.
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duckdown
Jan 11, 2008 11:00 AM
I need some NEW places in Mississauga/Brampton that ISNT:
Pita Nutsy
Osmow's
Amasi
Montfort's
Vita Pita
Paramount
Nick's Famous PitaAnyone know of any other places?
Cheers
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re: duckdown
My favourite Chicken Shawarma Sandwich (wrap) is in Mississauga. Its called Pita and Grill. Its a small family run place located on Eglington and Dixie. Thick, big, juicy and delicious. Lots of chicken, any topping you desire and very good garlic sauce. I have tried many Shawarma places in search of better (La Zeez, Hannah's, various places in Scarborough and others) to no avail.
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used to go to sarah's on bloor all the time, but then i discovered pita-Q which is also on bloor, at the corner of spadina (next to greg's ice cream...a good pairing!!) their shawarmas are SO yummy and they grill them so they're good and crispy on the outside. plus, their hotsauce is fanTAStic, and so tasty.
Also, when i'm up in the Lawrence and Victoria park area for middle eastern foods, i always grab a sandwich from...well, i don't know the name, but they are in the same plaza-thingy as NASR foods, which is also really a great place for groceries (but not as good as the nearby ARZ foods)
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Pati
Jan 6, 2008 02:43 PM
I think it's called King's Shawarma in the Eaton centre (lower level, Queen St. side) it's pretty good. My boyfriend has tried Shawarma in Europe, and is pretty convinced they're the best around. In fact his mouth is watering w/ the mention of it right now.
He also wants me to mention the potatoes.
He's heading to Farhat's right now to check it out. -
Yummi's, on Yonge, corner of Broadway, 2 blocks North of Eglinton. May be not the very best in town but their pita-lamb shawarma with all the trimmings is quite good.
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re: ziggystardust
mmmmmmmm
Did you know Metro's shawarma chicken has curry mixed into the spicing??? Unique I believe for chicken shawarmas in the GTA.
Thats why the chicken has a slight yellow colouring to it. Mmmmmmmm I know curry the minute it hits my tongue man.
Metro is very good. Hope they last long. They got a bit of competition with I believe 2 other Shawarma places to their east on College...
I think they will do alright, especially since they also operate as a convenience store too...
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re: Mike Tyson
jonnybee
Jan 11, 2008 02:54 PM
Actually, it's not that unique to the GTA Iron Mike. Most of the Israeli shawarma places use some sort of "curry powder" in their preperation (it's that tumeric and/or cumin that really lingers on all day).
Gotta figure the curry flavour is a very very regional thing, as I never taste it in a Lebanese shawarma. On the flip side, I've never tasted cinnamon in an Israeli shawarma, which I'll taste in other middle eastern shawarmas.
I am assuming the curry is a Palestinian creation, as those flavours are rarely used in Eastern/Central European Jewish cooking, Any food anthropologists out there?
BTW, I've had some excellent shawarma sandwiches (Israeli style) recently at Hannah's Shawarma at Bathurst & Carville in Richmondhill. If only they'd let food safety standards go little bit and not keep their salads/dips so cold, though that issue is not unique to Hannah's
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Dr Butcher
Jan 4, 2008 08:42 PM
I prefer Ibrahim across the street from Farhat. More flavour and larger portions in my opinion. They don't have lamb though. Farhat is a little overrated IMO, there are better places a stone's throw away.
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re: idnas
Wahooty
Jan 7, 2008 04:57 PM
I finally got around to trying Ibrahim this weekend, and I have to say that I loved their chicken shawarma. Lots of really good veggies/salads to dress it up, and the sauces were fantastic. However, they don't have lamb, and Farhat's lamb is so ridiculously tasty. So I guess now I have two favorites. :)
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re: Wahooty
I was in the mood for a shawarma tonight and was glad to find this thread because I wasn't sure where to go. I wrote down the names of 3 place that were suggested on Lawrence St and the first one I saw while driving down Lawrence was Nasbi's. I went in to order a chicken shawarma but they were out of chicken for the day. So I continued down the street and found Ibrahim's. I went in and was served by a nice man named Mohammed, and I ordered a chicken sandwich. It was by far the best shawarma I've had in Toronto (originally from Ottawa). All of the ingredients were fresh and flavorful, the sandwich itself was huge, and to top it all off they offer a two for one deal. I was so excited I told Mohammed I would tell everyone about this place, and I couldn't wait to get home to share this experience with all of you!!! I've lived here for two years now have been struggling to find a good shawarma place, although it's not quite the same as home, it was delicious and I will be back for more very soon!!! Thank you fellow hounds!!
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re: jen2202
Dr Butcher
Jan 10, 2008 08:15 PM
I told ya! ;)
I stop by Ibrahim most Tuesday nights on my way home. They're open late and always seem busy whenever I go.
Nothing compares to Shawarma Palace in Ottawa but Ibrahim fills in adequately!
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A bit out of the shawarma circuit, but... Sarah's on Bloor at Brunswick is quite good (I always go for beef, there - beautiful seasoning); I forget the name of the place, but the shawarma at the "food mall" on the north side of Queen W across from City TV is very good but waaaaayy too expensive for the volume; Ghazale, by the Bloor Cinema was once my fave, but is not as good as days of yore. There's a new space, at Yonge and St Joseph, and their beef shawarma was lovely, and, I think, has the mayonaise-y sauce for which Haligonians hanker.
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re: hungry_pangolin
Ghazale has to be the worse I have had in TO...the shaved meat seemed to have been lying around for quiet some time and then they microwaved the Shwarma in front of me,instead of using a panini grill....that did it for me,I mean how can you nuke something like that in front of a customer....and yet people still drool over it,I guess they have never had Shwarma anyplace else...
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Lots of discussion on this topic before....this is only 1 thread.
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/438028›2 Replies-
re: ghetto_scarlem
Here's a vote for Yakamov, a Russian/Israeli/ Middle Eastern hole-in-the wall (though it does have good seating) that I was first tipped off to, if I recall, on Chowhound. It serves up the tastiest chicken shawarma sandwich I've had in Toronto, and I've tried about a dozen or more different places. But if you live downtown, you'll have to travel north to get your teeth into it. It's in a vaguely down-at-the-heels plaza on Wilson Ave., on the south side about a block west of Bathurst St. Juicy, flavorful, with tasty extras to enhance the chicken, it's a quite substantial sandwich compared to many of its competitors. The place is clean, well run and does a busy lunch trade, somewhat less so at dinner. So lunch seems the best time to get it at its freshly-made best. I find it easily beats all the Bloor St. shawarma joints, as well as many of the Lawrence Ave. E. spots, many of which offer skimpy, tasteless (though certainly low-priced) sandwiches on pitas of uncertain quality. Of which the most unpleasant of the downtown bunch is Ghazale on Bloor St., which started out good and cheap, but has since degenerated, offering little more than a stale smell that permeates almost the entire block of Bloor on which it perches.
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re: juno
Chester Eleganté
Jan 4, 2008 09:48 PM
The best shawarma I've had in town was on a particular visit to the aforementioned Yakomoz (sic). All of its elements combine to make it truly standout. I should add though that you do have to get lucky with the timing to get the really good parts of the shawarma in general. And yes, the shawarma at Ghazale is the pits, especially considering its reputation.
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50firstdatesguy
Jan 3, 2008 06:32 PM
Someone will chime in with the proper name.. but the place across the street from Beer Station next to the movie theatre is tops for me. Bathurst/Bloor area, north side.
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re: thatlankyfoody
50firstdatesguy
Jan 4, 2008 04:44 AM
Thats it, thanks thatlankyfoody. Some say quality has gone downhill a little but they're open real late and I've always found their Shwarma to be quite delicious, as recently as the summer/fall.
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