---
title: National Shawarma Day
description: Celebrate National Shawarma Day on October 15 and discover shawarma history, Middle Eastern origins, Canadian connections and delicious traditions.
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#### Turning Heads, Turning Spits and Making October 15 Delicious

There are foods you eat with a knife and fork while maintaining an air of dignity. Then there is shawarma. On October 15, National Shawarma Day celebrates one of the world's most popular Middle Eastern foods: thinly sliced, seasoned meat traditionally cooked on a rotating vertical spit and served in wraps, pitas, plates and bowls with an assortment of vegetables, sauces and accompaniments.

Chicken, beef and lamb are among the familiar choices, while exactly what goes alongside them depends heavily upon regional traditions and the restaurant preparing your meal. Garlic sauce, tahini, pickles, tomatoes, onions, hummus and other additions can all enter the proceedings.

At some point, however, you may discover that the shawarma contains more ingredients than its bread can reasonably be expected to contain. This is not necessarily a problem. It merely means you should lean forward.

#### What Is Shawarma?

At its heart, shawarma is a Middle Eastern dish made from seasoned meat that is stacked on a vertical spit and slowly roasted as it turns beside a heat source. Chicken, beef and lamb are among the meats commonly used, although recipes and preferences vary considerably from one region to another. Rather than cooking the entire stack and then carving it, the outer surface is allowed to brown and roast before the cooked meat is shaved away in thin slices. A fresh layer is then exposed to the heat, ready for the next hungry customer who has been standing there watching the whole process and wondering why everyone ahead of them is taking so long.

The preparation begins well before the meat reaches the spit. Shawarma meat is typically seasoned or marinated with an aromatic mixture that can include spices such as cumin, coriander, cardamom, turmeric, paprika, cinnamon and pepper, depending on the recipe and regional tradition. The meat is then layered tightly together on the spit. As it slowly rotates, juices and seasonings mingle through the layers while the exposed edges develop the browned, slightly crisp character that helps give freshly carved shawarma its distinctive flavor and texture. It is a wonderfully effective cooking method and, conveniently, provides customers with something mesmerizing to stare at while waiting for lunch.

Once carved, shawarma can be served in several ways. It is frequently tucked into pita or another flatbread to make a shawarma wrap, but it can also arrive on a plate or in a bowl. Pickled vegetables, tomatoes, onions and other vegetables may join sauces such as tahini or garlic sauce, with the exact combination depending on where the shawarma is being prepared. This adaptability is one reason the dish has traveled so successfully: the basic idea remains recognizable while individual restaurants, regions and families can give it their own character.

Even the name tells part of the story. The English word shawarma comes through Arabic from a Turkish word associated with turning or rotation, a reference to the revolving spit used to cook the meat. It is an unusually sensible name. Someone looked at an enormous stack of seasoned meat slowly turning beside a fire and essentially called it “the turning thing.” Frankly, with lunch smelling that good, there were probably more important matters demanding their attention.

#### The History of Shawarma

The history of shawarma stretches back far beyond the modern restaurants and takeaway counters where we know it today. Its cooking technique developed from the Ottoman tradition of roasting seasoned meat on a rotating spit, particularly the preparation that became known as döner kebab. Earlier cooks had roasted meat horizontally over fires for centuries, but during the 19th century the vertical spit became associated with Ottoman Turkish cooking. Turning the stack vertically allowed the outside of the meat to roast while its juices traveled through the layers rather than simply dripping into the fire below. It was a relatively straightforward change in direction that ultimately helped create an entire family of internationally popular dishes.

As the rotating-spit technique spread through territories of the former Ottoman Empire, cooks adapted it to their own ingredients, seasonings and culinary traditions. In the Levant — including areas that are now Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Palestine — the dish developed into the shawarma familiar today. Meat could be marinated with distinctive combinations of spices and served with regional breads, pickled vegetables, tahini, garlic preparations and other accompaniments. Shawarma therefore wasn't simply a renamed döner kebab. It became part of the food culture of the Arab Middle East, developing recognizable flavors and serving traditions of its own.

Migration eventually carried shawarma much farther. During the 20th century, people from the Middle East established communities throughout Europe, North America and elsewhere, bringing their cooking traditions with them. Shawarma restaurants became increasingly familiar in cities far removed from its original homeland, and the dish proved particularly well suited to modern urban life. It could be prepared continuously, served quickly and eaten as a portable wrap or a substantial meal on a plate. In Canada, where National Shawarma Day would eventually be established, growing Middle Eastern communities helped turn shawarma from something unfamiliar to many diners into an everyday restaurant choice.

Shawarma also belongs to a fascinating extended family. Turkish döner kebab and Greek gyro share the rotating-spit principle, while immigrants from the former Ottoman Empire carried the technique to Mexico, where it contributed to the development of tacos al pastor. Each dish developed according to local ingredients and traditions, and none should simply be treated as another name for shawarma. Still, they demonstrate just how successfully a good cooking idea can travel. Apparently, once humanity discovered that stacking seasoned meat on a pole and slowly turning it beside a fire produced something delicious, there was very little chance we were going to keep the idea in one country.

#### How Did National Shawarma Day Begin?

Unlike shawarma itself, which has centuries of culinary history behind it, National Shawarma Day is a decidedly modern celebration — and its story begins in Canada. The observance was created by [Osmow’s Shawarma](https://osmows.com/about "About Osmow's Shawarma"), the Canadian restaurant business founded by Sam Osmow. Osmow emigrated from Egypt to Canada in 1998 and later took over a small sub shop in Streetsville, Ontario. After customers showed an increasing appetite for the Middle Eastern food he prepared, the business changed direction, eventually becoming the first Osmow’s restaurant and the beginning of a much larger Canadian success story.

In 2020, Osmow’s established October 15 as National Shawarma Day, with the inaugural celebration promoted as Canada’s first National Shawarma Day. The idea was not simply to sell a few more wraps — although nobody in the restaurant business is likely to object when that happens. The celebration was intended to recognize the growing popularity of shawarma in Canada and encourage people to discover a food that had become increasingly familiar through the country’s Middle Eastern communities and restaurants. What had once been unfamiliar to many Canadian diners had become sufficiently popular to warrant an annual day of its own.

The timing also made National Shawarma Day a celebration of how food traditions travel. Shawarma did not suddenly become Canadian on October 15, 2020, nor did its Middle Eastern history change because a Canadian company created a national observance around it. Instead, the day reflects the way immigrant communities introduce foods to new audiences while preserving and sharing the traditions behind them. Shawarma's journey into Canadian food culture is part of that much larger story, and National Shawarma Day provides an opportunity to recognize both the dish's Middle Eastern heritage and its remarkable popularity in Canada.

Since that first celebration, National Shawarma Day has spread beyond its original Canadian focus as Osmow’s has expanded and promoted the occasion more broadly across North America. But its origins remain quite clear: the October 15 observance began in Canada in 2020. Canada may already have maple syrup, poutine and a perfectly respectable claim on butter tarts, but apparently there was still room on the national calendar for a towering stack of rotating, beautifully seasoned meat. And really, who was going to argue with that?

![Family shares shawarma wraps, salads and side dishes while laughing together over dinner in a warm and welcoming shawarma restaurant.](https://marktheday.info/images/mark-the-days/october/oct-15/national-shawarma-day-1.webp "A Family enjoys shawarma and conversation")

#### From Middle Eastern Favorite to Canadian Favorite

The story of shawarma in Canada is part of the much larger story of immigration and the remarkable way food can travel with the people who prepare it. As immigrants from Lebanon, Syria, Egypt and other parts of the Middle East established communities across Canada, they brought their culinary traditions with them. Restaurants, bakeries and neighborhood food shops introduced more Canadians to dishes that had been enjoyed by Middle Eastern families for generations, and shawarma proved particularly good at making new friends. It is difficult, after all, to remain suspicious of an unfamiliar cuisine when somebody places warm bread, beautifully seasoned meat and garlic sauce in front of you.

Over time, shawarma became an increasingly familiar part of Canadian restaurant culture, particularly in cities with substantial Middle Eastern communities. What might once have required seeking out a specialist restaurant can now be found in food courts, neighborhood takeaways and shawarma shops across the country. The dish fits comfortably into Canadian life because it can be almost anything the occasion requires: a quick lunch wrapped in bread, a substantial dinner served on a plate, or a late-night meal purchased after somebody in the group confidently announces that they know a place that is still open.

Part of shawarma's Canadian success also comes from its adaptability. Traditional flavors and preparation remain at its heart, but restaurants have found plenty of ways to introduce the dish to new customers and combine it with familiar Canadian favorites. Shawarma poutine, for example, brings seasoned shawarma meat together with one of Canada's most recognizable comfort foods. Purists may wish to discuss the matter at length, but culinary history has rarely progressed by telling hungry people that they're not allowed to put two delicious things on the same plate.

The popularity of shawarma in Canada also helps explain why National Shawarma Day began there. By the time Osmow's created the celebration in 2020, shawarma was no longer an obscure dish requiring an explanation before ordering. It had become part of the country's diverse everyday food landscape, while still retaining the Middle Eastern heritage that gives it its identity. National Shawarma Day therefore celebrates more than a popular meal. It reflects the way a culinary tradition can cross an ocean, become part of a new country's food culture and still tell the story of where it came from.

And perhaps that is the nicest thing about shawarma's Canadian journey. Canada didn't need to reinvent it. It simply made room at the table.

#### Chicken, Beef or Lamb?

One of the pleasures of shawarma is that there is no single meat demanding exclusive ownership of the rotating spit. Chicken, beef and lamb are all commonly associated with shawarma, and each produces a noticeably different meal. The choice depends on regional traditions, the restaurant and, most importantly, what smells particularly irresistible when you walk through the door. This can make ordering unexpectedly difficult. You may have arrived completely certain that you wanted chicken, only to spend thirty seconds watching slices of beef being carved from the spit and suddenly begin questioning every decision that brought you to this point.

Chicken shawarma is one of the most familiar versions and is particularly well suited to the long marinating and roasting process. Pieces of chicken are seasoned before being tightly stacked on the spit, where the outer layers gradually brown as they rotate beside the heat. The cooked portions are shaved away in thin slices, producing a mixture of tender meat and those coveted darker, slightly crisp edges. Chicken also works particularly well with bold accompaniments such as garlic sauce, pickles and fresh vegetables. There is, however, a practical consequence to enthusiastic quantities of garlic sauce: everyone else at the table should probably order it too. That way, diplomatic relations can be maintained.

Beef shawarma brings a deeper, richer flavor to the proceedings and is usually seasoned with an aromatic blend of spices before roasting. Depending on the regional style, it may be served with tahini, vegetables, pickles and flatbread or presented as part of a larger plate with rice and other accompaniments. Lamb shawarma, meanwhile, has a distinctive richness of its own and reflects the long importance of lamb in Middle Eastern cooking. Some preparations also combine meats, particularly beef and lamb, creating yet another option for anyone who had hoped the menu might make the decision easier.

Modern shawarma restaurants have expanded the choices still further. Alongside traditional meat preparations, many now offer falafel and other vegetarian alternatives, allowing customers to enjoy many of the breads, vegetables, pickles, sauces and seasonings associated with a shawarma meal without the rotating tower of meat. Strictly speaking, falafel isn't shawarma — it has its own proud Middle Eastern history — but it certainly deserves a place at the table.

So which is best: chicken, beef or lamb? There is no universally correct answer, and National Shawarma Day seems like a particularly inappropriate occasion to start imposing restrictions. Order your favorite, try one you haven't had before, or persuade somebody else to order differently and arrange a small exchange across the table.

Just establish the terms beforehand. “I'll give you some of my chicken” is not legally understood to mean “you may take half of it while I'm reaching for a napkin.”

#### What Goes in a Shawarma?

This is where answering a simple question becomes dangerous.

There is no single universal recipe for what goes into a shawarma, and anyone attempting to produce one would quickly discover that the Middle East has several opinions on the matter. The meat may be chicken, beef, lamb or a combination, but once it has been shaved from the rotating spit, regional and family traditions begin to take over. The bread, vegetables, pickles, sauces and seasonings can all vary depending on where the shawarma is being prepared. That variety is part of its appeal: two shawarma wraps can clearly belong to the same culinary family while having quite different personalities.

The bread provides the foundation — and occasionally performs heroic structural work. Pita and other Middle Eastern flatbreads are commonly used, with the freshly carved meat wrapped inside along with its accompaniments. Depending on the style, those might include tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, parsley, lettuce or an assortment of pickled vegetables. Pickled turnips are particularly recognizable in some Levantine preparations, bringing a sharp, tangy contrast to the rich roasted meat. The combination of hot meat, cool vegetables and acidic pickles is important because a good shawarma isn't simply about piling as much as possible into a piece of bread and hoping gravity remains cooperative.

Then come the sauces, and this is where otherwise reasonable people can become remarkably enthusiastic. Tahini, made from sesame, is frequently paired with beef or lamb, while chicken shawarma is famously accompanied in many Levantine traditions by toum, the intensely garlicky sauce made primarily from garlic, oil, lemon juice and salt. Hummus may also appear, particularly depending on the restaurant and local style. These aren't merely there to make the shawarma wetter and considerably more dangerous to a clean shirt; they provide richness, acidity and flavor that complement the spices and roasted edg es of the meat.

The finished shawarma may be wrapped tightly and served as portable street food, or its components may arrive separately on a shawarma plate with rice, salad, bread, pickles and sauces. Modern restaurants have expanded the possibilities still further, adapting shawarma to bowls, platters and other combinations. Those variations may move some distance from a traditional wrap, but they demonstrate one of shawarma's great strengths: the basic combination of seasoned roasted meat and complementary accompaniments works remarkably well in several forms.

Of course, there is a practical limit to how much can be placed inside one shawarma. Eventually the bread reaches maximum capacity, the garlic sauce discovers an escape route and structural integrity becomes more of an aspiration than a certainty.

At that point, do not attempt repairs.

Lean forward, employ both hands and accept that the napkins were provided for a reason.

![Busy shawarma restaurant filled with happy diners enjoying freshly made wraps while a chef carves seasoned meat from vertical rotisseries in the open kitchen.](https://marktheday.info/images/mark-the-days/october/oct-15/national-shawarma-day-2-2.webp "A crowded shawarma restaurant demonstrating its popularity")

#### The Importance of the Vertical Spit

The vertical rotisserie is at the heart of traditional shawarma preparation. It isn't simply an impressive piece of restaurant equipment designed to make hungry customers stare helplessly at lunch while waiting for their order. The upright spit allows layers of seasoned or marinated meat to be stacked tightly together and slowly rotated beside a powerful heat source. As the tower turns, the exposed surface roasts and browns while the meat farther inside remains protected and continues cooking more gradually.

Once the outside layer has developed the desired color and texture, the cook shaves thin slices vertically from the surface, exposing a fresh layer underneath to the heat. This means the shawarma can be cooked and carved progressively rather than preparing the entire stack at once. Those freshly roasted outer portions provide an especially appealing combination of tender meat, caramelized edges and concentrated seasoning. A skilled shawarma cook knows exactly how deeply to carve, allowing the next surface to continue roasting while the slices just removed head directly toward somebody's waiting wrap.

The vertical arrangement also helps distinguish shawarma from the much older practice of simply roasting a piece of meat horizontally over a fire. Stacking numerous seasoned pieces together creates the substantial cone or cylinder familiar in shawarma restaurants, while continuous rotation helps expose the surface evenly to the heat. The size of that stack can be impressive, but its purpose is wonderfully practical: cook the outside, slice it away and allow the next layer to take its turn.

Of course, none of this explains why watching a shawarma spit is so hypnotic. You can know perfectly well how the process works and still find yourself standing at the counter watching the meat slowly turn, listening to it sizzle and waiting for the cook to pick up the knife.

At that point, the vertical spit has another important function. **Advertising**.

#### Shawarma Around the World

Although shawarma is firmly rooted in Middle Eastern culinary traditions, it has become a genuinely international food. It is particularly associated with the Levant, including Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Palestine, but variations are enjoyed throughout the wider Middle East and beyond. Wherever shawarma is prepared, the basic principle remains wonderfully recognizable: seasoned meat, a vertical rotating spit and thin slices carved from the beautifully roasted exterior. After that, however, local traditions take over, influencing everything from the spices and meat to the bread, sauces, pickles and vegetables served alongside it.

As people from the Middle East established communities around the world, shawarma traveled with them. Restaurants and food stands introduced the dish throughout Europe and North America, where it proved remarkably capable of winning over people who may never previously have encountered Middle Eastern cuisine. Canada provides an especially good example, with shawarma becoming a familiar part of the food scene in many communities. Its popularity there eventually helped inspire the creation of National Shawarma Day itself, but Canadians are certainly not alone in discovering that meat slowly rotating beside a heater is extremely difficult to walk past.

Shawarma has also adapted to its new surroundings without losing the characteristics that make it recognizable. Depending on where you order it, you might encounter a traditional wrap with pickles and garlic sauce, a generously filled pita, a shawarma plate with rice and salad, or newer creations combining shawarma with local favorites. Some adaptations would probably surprise the cooks who helped develop the dish generations ago, but that is often what happens when food crosses borders. People preserve traditions, introduce them to their neighbors and then somebody eventually says, “I wonder what would happen if we put this on fries?”

Shawarma also has culinary relatives around the world. Turkish döner kebab and Greek gyro share the vertical-spit cooking principle, while the Ottoman rotating-meat tradition eventually influenced tacos al pastor in Mexico through migration and cultural exchange. These are distinct dishes with their own histories, ingredients and traditions, rather than different names for exactly the same thing. What they demonstrate is how an effective cooking technique can travel, adapt and become part of entirely different cuisines.

Today, you can encounter shawarma in everything from a small family-run Middle Eastern restaurant to a busy city food court. That worldwide popularity makes National Shawarma Day on October 15 particularly easy to celebrate. You may be thousands of miles from the Middle East and considerably farther from the Canadian restaurant where the celebration began, yet there is a reasonable chance that somewhere nearby, a large tower of seasoned meat is slowly turning and waiting for you to notice it.

#### How to Celebrate National Shawarma Day

There are celebrations that require advance planning, special equipment or remembering to buy somebody a card. National Shawarma Day is considerably easier. On October 15, the most obvious way to participate is to find a local shawarma restaurant, place an order and enjoy the food responsible for the occasion in the first place. Better still, seek out a Middle Eastern restaurant in your community and support the people who prepare the dish every day. Your contribution to the festivities can therefore be both culturally rewarding and covered in garlic sauce.

If you already have a favorite chicken shawarma wrap, National Shawarma Day is a good excuse to become slightly more adventurous. Try beef or lamb, order a shawarma plate instead of your usual wrap, experiment with different pickles and sauces, or simply ask the restaurant what they recommend. Different establishments often have their own marinades, seasonings and combinations, so ordering shawarma somewhere new can produce a surprisingly different experience. Taking a friend who has never tried it before is even better. You get to introduce somebody to shawarma while watching carefully to make sure they don't reach across the table and sample yours without authorization.

You can also celebrate by learning a little more about the Middle Eastern history and traditions behind shawarma. National Shawarma Day may have originated in Canada, but the food being celebrated has a much older story. Explore the differences between regional preparations, learn about the spices used in marinades or discover why chicken might be paired with a powerful garlic sauce while beef or lamb is often served with tahini. Food is one of the easiest ways to explore another culture because the research frequently concludes with lunch.

For the ambitious home cook, October 15 is also an opportunity to make shawarma-inspired food at home. Most kitchens lack the enormous vertical rotisserie found in a proper shawarma restaurant, but seasoned and marinated meat can be prepared using an oven, grill or skillet and served with flatbread, vegetables, pickles and appropriate sauces. It won't reproduce the commercial spit exactly, but it can introduce you to the seasonings and combinations that make shawarma so appealing. Making your own toum is another possibility, although anyone planning social interaction later that evening should understand exactly how enthusiastic a garlic sauce can be.

And if your local shawarma restaurant is offering something special for National Shawarma Day, take advantage of it. The celebration began as a way of recognizing the popularity of shawarma and encouraging more people to enjoy it, so sharing your discovery with friends and family is entirely in keeping with the occasion.

Just remember the most important rule of October 15: Never tell someone you only want one bite of their shawarma unless you have established precisely how large a bite is.

![Couple enjoys shawarma together at a restaurant as the woman laughs while her companion discovers that garlic sauce and clean fingers do not always go together.](https://marktheday.info/images/mark-the-days/october/oct-15/national-shawarma-day-3.webp "Making a mess with shawarma is easy.")

#### More Than an Excuse for Lunch

Food celebrations can sometimes feel like little more than convenient permission to eat something delicious, and National Shawarma Day certainly succeeds on that level. Nobody needs to produce a lengthy cultural argument before ordering chicken shawarma with extra garlic sauce. But behind the October 15 celebration is a much larger story about food, migration and the way culinary traditions become part of life in new communities. Shawarma arrived in Canada because people brought their food traditions with them, prepared those dishes for their families and communities, and eventually introduced them to neighbors who quickly discovered that they had been missing something rather important.

That journey is especially interesting because shawarma did not have to surrender its Middle Eastern identity to become enormously popular in Canada. The spices, rotating spit, breads, pickles and sauces tell a story that began long before National Shawarma Day existed. At the same time, Canadian restaurants have embraced the dish, adapted it in different ways and introduced it to generations of customers from many backgrounds. National Shawarma Day therefore provides an opportunity to enjoy the food while also recognizing the people and culinary traditions responsible for bringing it to the Canadian table.

There is something rather wonderful about the way food accomplishes this. You don't necessarily need to understand another language, study a history book or travel thousands of miles before experiencing a small part of another culture. Sometimes you simply need to walk into a family restaurant and ask the person behind the counter what they recommend. A meal can become an introduction, an unfamiliar flavor can become a favorite, and before long somebody who once had no idea what shawarma was has developed extremely firm opinions about exactly how much toum belongs in the wrap.

That makes National Shawarma Day more than an excuse for lunch, although we should be careful not to underestimate the importance of lunch. It is a celebration of a dish that traveled across borders, found enthusiastic new audiences and became part of Canada's diverse food culture while retaining the heritage that made it distinctive in the first place. Every shawarma restaurant has its own story, and supporting one on October 15 is a simple way to celebrate both the food and the people who keep those traditions alive.

Of course, after considering all that history, migration, cultural exchange and culinary tradition, there remains one unavoidable question.

*"Chicken, beef or lamb?"*

Some historical decisions are simply too important to rush.

#### Shawarma FAQ

Before we wrap things up, there are always a few questions that refuse to fit neatly inside a pita. Our Shawarma FAQ covers the essentials, from when National Shawarma Day is celebrated and how it began to shawarma’s Middle Eastern origins, the meats used, what goes inside and why that enormous tower of deliciousness keeps spinning. We’ll even tackle the important distinction between shawarma, döner and gyro — because apparently “they all go round and round” isn't quite enough of an explanation.

**When is National Shawarma Day?**  
National Shawarma Day is celebrated annually on October 15. The observance began in Canada in 2020 and celebrates shawarma, the popular Middle Eastern dish of seasoned meat traditionally cooked on a rotating vertical spit.

**Who created National Shawarma Day?**  
Osmow’s Shawarma, a Canadian restaurant chain founded by Sam Osmow, created National Shawarma Day. The first celebration took place on October 15, 2020, when the occasion was promoted as Canada’s first National Shawarma Day.

**Is National Shawarma Day a Canadian celebration?**  
Yes. Although shawarma has Middle Eastern origins, the October 15 National Shawarma Day observance originated in Canada. Since its creation, the celebration has been promoted more widely across North America.

**Where did shawarma originate?**  
Shawarma developed in the Middle East from the Ottoman tradition of cooking seasoned meat on a rotating spit. The dish became particularly associated with the Levant, where different regions developed their own seasonings, sauces, breads and accompaniments.

**What meat is used for shawarma?**  
Shawarma is commonly prepared with chicken, beef or lamb, although meats may also be combined. The meat is seasoned or marinated, stacked tightly on a vertical spit and slowly roasted. As the outside cooks, thin slices are shaved away for serving.

**What is traditionally served with shawarma?**  
That depends on the regional style and type of meat. Shawarma may be served with flatbread, pickled vegetables, tomatoes, onions, tahini, toum and other sauces and accompaniments. It can be eaten as a wrap or served on a plate with items such as rice, salad and bread.

**What is the difference between shawarma, döner kebab and gyro?**  
All three belong to a family of dishes associated with meat cooked on a rotating vertical spit, but they developed within different culinary traditions. Shawarma is associated with Middle Eastern cuisine, döner with Turkish cuisine and gyro with Greek cuisine, with differences in seasonings, meats, breads, sauces and accompaniments.

**Why does shawarma rotate while it cooks?**  
Rotating the stacked meat exposes its outer surface to the heat, allowing it to roast and brown gradually. The cooked exterior can then be shaved away while the newly exposed layer continues cooking. Besides being an effective cooking method, it also gives hungry customers something to stare at while silently urging the person with the carving knife to please hurry up.

**How can I celebrate National Shawarma Day?**  
The easiest solution is also the most satisfying: have some shawarma. Visit a local Middle Eastern restaurant, try a style or meat you haven't ordered before, or prepare shawarma-inspired food at home. It is also a good opportunity to learn more about the Middle Eastern culinary traditions behind the dish.

**Is shawarma spicy?**  
Shawarma is heavily seasoned, but it is not necessarily hot or fiery. Its flavor usually comes from an aromatic combination of spices rather than large quantities of chili. Heat levels vary by recipe, and anyone seeking additional excitement can generally find a hot sauce willing to become involved.

**Can shawarma be vegetarian?**  
Traditional shawarma refers to seasoned meat cooked on a rotating spit, so falafel is not technically shawarma. However, many shawarma restaurants offer falafel and other vegetarian choices using similar breads, vegetables, pickles and sauces. This means vegetarians can join the National Shawarma Day festivities without having to stand sadly outside watching the spit go around.

#### One Last Slice

National Shawarma Day may be a relatively young celebration, but the food behind it carries generations of history, migration and culinary tradition. From its roots in the Middle East to its remarkable popularity in Canada, shawarma demonstrates how a great dish can travel thousands of miles, find new audiences and become part of everyday life without forgetting where it came from.

So, on October 15, support your favorite shawarma restaurant, try something new or introduce somebody else to their first properly loaded wrap. Choose chicken, beef or lamb, add the pickles, be generous with the garlic sauce and don't worry too much when everything begins escaping from the other end.

After all, National Shawarma Day isn't the occasion for maintaining your dignity.

It's the occasion for one last slice.

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