High flavor, fresh ingredients, and made with love. There’s quite a lot that goes into good
shawarma, and we’ve found the places that have the Arabic street food down to a tee.
Windy City’s Naf Naf Grill chain has become so popular that it made a Foursquare top 15 shawarma
list not once but twice. How? Well, they’re in two separate locations and with good reason.
One reviewer described their experience at the other Naf Naf Grill off West Washington St,
and asserted that it offers the best shawarma in the region.
Another reviewer commented on the freshly made pita bread and noted that the shawarma
itself is truly amazing. One cheeky reviewer mentioned that they ate the whole shawarma
and quoted Arnold shawarmaneger to say, "I'll be back." Well, if it's good enough
for someone creating a food-based pun out of a popular action star, then it's got to be good.
Not only is the best kind of shawarma delicious, but it also won't burn through your wallet. Lava
Shawarma, located on the Lower East side of Manhattan Island, offers a perfect tasty and
wallet safe combination. Don’t just take it from us. That looks to be the consensus with
most of their clientele, especially those posting their Yelp reviews. One reviewer
says they go there four times a week and that the shawarma is juicy and delicious each time.
Another reviewer recommends this place if you're in the mood for incredible food at an
affordable price. Considering that shawarma is a classic Middle Eastern street food,
it should at the very least hit those three key factors in good street cuisine:
High flavor, copious servings, and a very filling, satisfying meal. It's a
good thing that Lava Shawarma nails all three key aspects with aplomb.
You've got to be a fairly major smash hit if you're taking first place in Yelp's top place
to eat in the US. Would it also surprise you if Yelp’s first-place winning restaurant is actually
a food truck? That's what happened for Shawarma Guys. They have a total of 503 Yelp reviews,
granting it a 5-star rating. Don’t expect it to be a quick grab though! The truck boasts a
wait time of over an hour for customers to try out their Mediterranean-inspired menu.
“We use Australian wagyu beef. We use a sirloin
and a shoulder mix. Some of the best beef you can use.”
As is the common rule when it comes to food stands of every shape and size,
if you've got a massive line forming, then the food is almost guaranteed to
be really good. Whether you want to pocket wrap shawarma on the go or are in the mood
to sit down and have a full shawarma dinner, Shawarma Guys have got you more than covered.
One reviewer notes that Shawarma Guys offers the best shawarma and falafel they have ever tasted.
What really stands out with Shawarma Guys is the choice of meat, namely, the use of Wagyu beef,
which in case you're unaware, is a Japanese-style beef highly prized for its deep marbling,
meaning more fat within the meat, and thus a truly flavorful shawarma.
While shawarma still seems like it's only just entered the US lexicon for tasty food,
this dish has been local far longer than we realize. Take Marouch,
located on Santa Monica Boulevard in East Hollywood. It's considered one of the oldest
Armenian/Lebanese restaurants in the whole city, as it was established all the way back in 1982.
Still, it remained a part of the Hollywood restaurant scene,
with The Infatuation praising the mezze and the muhammara and referring to the joint as
an "institution." Even though it's part of a Hollywood strip mall, Marouch garners an 8.8
review from The Infatuation, making it the highest-rated shawarma joint in the city.
Though beef isn’t commonly used in shawarma when compared to lamb or chicken, Marouch's pride and
joy is its barbecued beef shawarma that’s made complete with their special in-house marinade.
Remaining on the map for the LA dining scene, in Hollywood no less, is no small feat for Marouch.
It's well-regarded enough to make it on the LA Times list of 101 best restaurants in Los Angeles.
The Arizona Central news website declared Supreme Shawarma the only place where one
can find authentic shawarma, claiming that the restaurant is serving the kind of shawarma only
found on the streets of Dubai or Muscat. Supreme Shawarma is located in a strip mall between Ray
and Rural roads. It focuses heavily on its key dish while also supplying customers with all the
traditional toppings and accouterment, not to mention its own seasoned fries.
In fact, this glowing review of the restaurant has the reviewer going
so far as to say Supreme Shawarma not only has the best shawarma in metro Phoenix but perhaps
the very best along the entire West Coast! Supreme Shawarma's authenticity comes from
its attention to detail and its adherence to traditional specific cooking methods.
“You ever tried shawarma? There’s a shawarma joint
about two blocks from here. I don’t know what it is but I wanna try it.”
In one food blogger's quest to obtain the best shawarma in the entire city of Chicago,
New City writer Rebecca Holland found herself making repeated
trips to Falafel and Grill. It's located on Milwaukee Avenue, and it boasts simple,
no-frills yet always freshly made traditional Middle-Eastern cuisine for hungry Chicagoans.
Holland's article zeroes in on Falafel and Grill's perfectly prepared chicken shawarma,
which is served thinly sliced off the roast so that every single bite has
the charred goodness. It also helps that the shawarma uses just the right
amount of balanced seasoning, which is not too sweet and not too savory.
As for toppings, Falafel and Grill doesn't skimp out as it uses a well-covered spread of toum,
a very garlicky mayonnaise, in its wraps,
along with pickles so perfectly cut that they can easily be eaten with a single bite.
Customers in and outside of Chicago seem to agree with Holland, with the
restaurant earning a majority of 5-star reviews on Yelp by a very wide margin.
Mohammad Hlal immigrated to North America with his wife and children after leaving their home
due to the escalation of the Syrian war. They would eventually find themselves in Paterson,
New Jersey, where Hlal now serves what's arguably been dubbed "The World's Best Shawarma" by NJ.com.
Nour Al-Sham is now considered a modern American success story. Hlal and his
family not only re-established themselves with the restaurant, but they also created
something that’s celebrated and appreciated by their fellow New Jersey residents. They
not only serve good shawarma, they give back to the community by hiring locally.
But, let's get to the real question – how's
the food? According to reviews on Yelp, it's very, very good.
One reviewer writes that this is the best place to get traditional shawarma in New
Jersey and that the food is always fresh, delicious, and never disappoints. Another
reviewer even goes further and asserts that the execution of the shawarma at this place
is absolutely perfect. The same reviewer says that the specialized preparation of
the shawarma and the sauces that are included with the dish make it superb.
According to Dorothy Hernandez of Detroit's Eater website,
shawarma is as representative of Detroit as the coney dog and the
square pizza. But where does one find the best chicken shawarma in Dearborn, Michigan?
Hernandez, along with several other contributors to Eater,
decided to answer the question with a Summer "shawarma crawl" that entailed visiting several
well-known establishments. The results of this excursion finally led them to Hamido,
to which they gave a perfect score of four out of four.
While Hamido has long wait times, that’s always a good sign. The shawarmas are very much worth the
wait. In fact, according to Hernandez, they waited the longest amount of time to be served at Hamido,
which should go to show just how good the food has to be. While it was a close race,
Hamido just edged its way to the number one spot because of the hot and perfectly charred
chicken and the garlic sauce, which added just the right amount of flavor.
Mama's Shawarma was established by a mother and son mother and son cooking
duo who are immigrants from Damascus. After coming to the United States,
they brought their combined expertise in shawarma cooking to L.A.
As a team, Krstein Kantarji handles the preparation of the recipes, while her son,
Chef Eyad Kawak, takes care of carving the roasted shawarma. Their enterprise
has been so successful that they've expanded from their restaurant into an additional food truck.
Mama's Shawarma specializes in both beef and chicken shawarma,
which is pressed on a plancha grille and sliced into sections a la Arabic
style. The shawarma is served with pickled vegetables, salad, tahini,
and seasoned fries. According to an LA Magazine article, both mother and son are focusing on
bringing Syrian cuisine to their American home to keep their culture alive through their food.
Kawak wants everyone to remember the taste of the shawarma found in Syria. As of the making
of this video, Mama's Shwarma is temporarily closed, but we've got our fingers crossed for
their return. If worse comes to worst, we can't wait to see what these talented chefs do next.
“We love you guys and wish us luck that hopefully in the future we open up Mama’s Shawarma.”
Since 2013, Lebanese Chef Charlie Succar has been serving up what could very well
be the best shawarma in Los Angeles at Furn Saj, a bakery and restaurant he owns with his
brother Mel. It's a bold claim, but one backed up by other outlets, including The Infatuation.
Furn Saj operates two shawarma spits, one each for beef and chicken, both of which contain layers of
fat to keep the meat juicy. You can get a plate of shawarma to enjoy at Furn Saj, but you might
be best off getting a wrap in order to enjoy the restaurant's famous bread. After all, its
in the name, literally. The word "saj" refers to a thin flatbread that's popular in the Middle East.
At the Los Angeles restaurant, the bread is cooked on a griddle until it's singed
yet still malleable. Then on to the layers of spiced meat, pickled cucumbers, tomatoes,
and garlic sauce to create a dish that is truly delectable.
Vashon Island may not be well-known outside of the greater Seattle area,
but if you're on the hunt for the best shawarma in the U.S., this plot of land in the Puget
Sound needs to be on your itinerary. The island is home to Iyad's Syrian Grill,
a Middle Eastern food truck operated by Iyad Alati and his wife Safa Jneidi, via Eater Seattle.
The family hails from Aleppo, Syria, a city with a storied culinary history.
When war broke out in their homeland, the family fled to Turkey. In 2017,
they migrated to the Seattle suburbs, where Alati enrolled in a culinary arts program.
Two years later, the couple opened a food cart, where they serve delectable lamb,
chicken, and vegetarian shawarma, among other things. Unlike many other shawarma
purveyors in the U.S. who stick close to the dish's Middle Eastern roots,
Alati and Jneidi have allowed themselves to dip into the wider culinary influences they found in
their new home in the Pacific Northwest. Most notable among these new ingredients
is the inclusion of mushroom, which adds a uniquely savory and earthy flavor to the dish.
Since 1981, Middle East Bakery & Grocery has been providing a place to indulge for
Chicagoans who are on the hunt for worldly flavors. For most of that time, the shop
simply sold Middle Eastern grocery staples and freshly baked bread. In 2014, however, the store
added a café to its operation, where you'll find some of the best shawarma in the country.
“The hummus is made fresh daily? Daily. The falafels are made fresh daily? Daily.
The pitas are made fresh daily? The falafels are made when you order it.”
The restaurant's menu has traditional beef and chicken shawarma, but of particular note is the
"shawafel" wrap. This culinary creation consists of falafel and chicken shawarma,
topped with hummus, lettuce, pickle, and tahini sauce. The end result is a garlicky, savory,
creamy, crunchy concoction that one writer for the Chicago Reader claims is the best sandwich
they've ever eaten. Such a proclamation would be of note anywhere in the country, but even
more so in a city known for some seriously famous sandwiches. But the shawafel wrap,
as well as Middle East Bakery & Grocery's other offerings, are so good that the Chicago
Reader has even included the eatery on its list of the city's most iconic restaurants.