Cycle 5 – Item 29

3 (Mon) February 2014

Special Beef Shawarma Sandwich

1.5

at Shawarma Snack Center

(Robinsons Supermarket – Robinsons Place)

-Ermita, Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines-

solo

Try Every Restaurant in Robinsons Place (9) (see also TERRP)

Shawarma Snack Center is a Middle Eastern restaurant chain.  The shop located in Robinsons Supermarket offers a limited menu: 12 shawarma items, chicken or beef or mixed, with or without cheese, on rice or with bread, or with bread wrapped into a sandwich, or with bread wrapped into a sandwich and grilled.

As part of the supermarket, it’s not a stand-alone restaurant.  I am including it in TERRP, however, because the place does have its own kitchen, its own tables, and it goes to show how diverse the eating options in the mall can be, which is the whole point of this exercise.

The Middle Eastern method of roasting meat on a rotating spit is known by various terms, depending on location.  In Turkey, where the origin of the method is generally attributed: “doner kebab,” which means “turning roast.”  In Korea: just “kebab.”  In Greece: “gyro,” which also means “turning.”  More commonly throughout  the Arabic-speaking world: “shawarma,” which derives from another Turkish word “çevirme,” which also means “turning.”  In most cases, the term refers to the method, the meat, and any dishes prepared with the meat (e.g., sandwich).

The sandwiches weren’t very good.  While the bread had a pleasantly rough and rustic feel in hand, it was also kinda tough and dry in mouth.  The meat, both chicken and beef, were dry as well.   Diversity is one thing, but quality is another.  At least they’re cheap, just 55 pesos apiece.

(See also GLOBAL FOOD GLOSSARY)

(See also RESTAURANTS IN PHILIPPINES)