The smell of garlic sauce and grilled meat filled York Street on June 7 as thousands gathered in the ByWard Market for Ottawa’s inaugural Shawarma Fest, a day-long celebration of one of the city’s most recognizable foods.
Visitors lined up for shawarma wraps, watched live performances and cheered on a Guinness World Record attempt as organizers sought to cement Ottawa’s reputation as Canada’s shawarma capital.
Shawarma — a dish from the levant countries, Lebanon and Syria — is traditionally made from marinated meat cooked on a vertical rotisserie and served in a pita with vegetables and garlic sauce. Ottawa is home to dozens of shawarma restaurants, many of which were established by members of the city’s large Lebanese community.
That connection was on full display on June 7 as crowds packed York Street while vendors competed for the title of best shawarma restaurant.
The competition was judged by Ottawa-Vanier MP Mona Fortier, Rideau-Vanier Coun. Stéphanie Plante, Ottawa Festival Network executive director Tara Shannon, Gabriel Pizza CEO George Hanna, Ottawa Tourism CEO Michael Crockatt, award-winning food critic Mat Beausoleil and hospitality director MJ Naim-Brown.
Montreal-based restaurant chain Boustan ultimately took home top honours after a blind tasting conducted by the judging panel.
“We came all the way from Montreal, so we’re very happy that we could make our mark on the festival,” said Sarah Chentouf, who manages the restaurant’s social media.
The victory marked a successful trip to the capital for the Montreal-based chain, which competed against restaurants from across the Ottawa region.
“We are actually taking Shawarma Fest next year to Montreal,” Chentouf said. “We’re coming back for the first place again.”
Throughout the afternoon, volunteers worked to assemble what organizers hoped would become the world’s longest line of shawarma sandwiches. Rows of tables stretched through the festival grounds as more than 2,400 shawarma wraps were carefully lined up side-by-side.
Their effort paid off.
A Guinness World Records adjudicator presented organizers and Shawarma Palace with an official certificate recognizing a new record of 2,451 shawarma sandwiches, surpassing the previous record of 2,187.
The festival also featured a performance by Canadian R&B artist Xav Trudeau, the son of former Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau.
After the record was confirmed, all of the shawarmas were donated to Shepherds of Good Hope, which provides free meals for those in need.
