Aladdin's Cafe

Late on Friday night we were walking in downtown, looking forward to Viet Sub, but nearly drawn off our path by an amazingly delicious smell coming from a shwarma place on Robson & Granville.  We made plans to go back to Aladdin’s Cafe – and that’s precisely what we did on Sunday afternoon.

Aladdin's Cafe - at Granville & Robson

We walked in and were hit with a wall of roasted meat smell – it was fantastic.  We looked over the small menu on the wall and made our choices.

Very reasonable prices!

We were lucky not to have much of a lineup, we paid (they take credit cards and debit in addition to cash) and then waited for our turn at the toppings bar.

Behind the counter - shawerma grills!

Chris chose a Falafel Veggie Wrap ($5.29) – I was a bit skeptical when I saw that the falafel patties (which were funnily shaped into donuts) were stored in the cold with the salad toppings, then nuked to reheat.  They still tasted great: a coarser chickpea “dough” provided interesting texture, and a great mix of spices added some kick to the wrap.

I went with a Chicken Shawerma Wrap ($5.85) which was delicious.  In an opened-up pita, a base of hummus was spread, followed by some shredded lettuce, tomato slices, and sliced onion.  A slightly-pickled mix of cucumber and more tomato went on next, then some tahini and hot sauce.  I eyed the tabouleh and tatziki but neither were offered (they’re probably part of the platers which are a few dollars more).

(L) Chicken Shawerma, (R) Falafel Wrap

The chicken itself was super savoury, especially since it was quite roasted from the shawerma grills.  I would have liked a stronger garlic flavour – that tatziki would have done the trick).  The last, extra saucy bite was super awesome.

The restaurant isn’t really set up to eat in – there a few stools at counters, but with the lineups and open door (and a glass-less window?) it gets chilli!  On a nice day, walking with your wrap to Granville’s semi-pedestrian area would be a lovely way to enjoy your lunch!

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