CEBU CITY – Shawarma Gourmet Restaurant at Escario Central, Cebu City is now a brand partner of the Cebu Online News Press Corps (CONPC) for a 25% discount to active members promoting the brand.
“Shawarma Gourmet is an authentic Lebanese Restaurant founded in 20213 with my Filipina-Cebuano wife in Dubai that offers authentic Lebanese and Turkish cuisine. The first branch opened at Park Mall, Cebu in 2015 with a second branch following in 2017. During COVID-19, we focused on delivery, operating from 10 am to 1 am daily,” Chef Mansour Houran and owner of Shawarma Gourmet told this writer.
Ched Mansour bared that concerns of accessibility led them to depart the Industrial zone to relocate to the residentially populous, Cebu City at Escario Central Mall, redefining Shawarma Gourmet as a destination restaurant in Q3 of 2017.
Its decision to relocate gave Shawarma Gourmet brand a boon to be known and favored both by locals and tourists. Fast forward in the years 2019-2023, for five consecutive years, Shawarma Gourmet has consistently gained the Traveler's Choice Awardee with TRIPADVISOR and number four out of 757 restaurants in Cebu that made the restaurant part of the top 10% of the Restaurants in the world. “It defies the threats of both Covid19 and Super Typhoon Odette,” Chef Mansour added.
In 2022, Shawarma Gourmet landed the local BEST SHAWARMA Award with SunStar Cebu and RECOMMENDED by Restaurant Guru a global online restaurant aggregator that helps find the best restaurants in many places around the globe, Chef Mansour bared.
The Shawarma concepts and customer traffic
The concept of Shawarma Gourmet is a mix of Lebanese and Turkish cuisines, with a focus on authenticity. The term "shawarma" comes from the Turkish word "döner," which means a vertical skewer of minced meat.
Shawarma’s cultural and regional variations is known by different names in various countries, such as "doner" in Germany and "gyros" in Greece while in the Philippines, it is sometimes called "kebab barbecue" by Filipinos.
“There are challenges of introducing shawarma to the Filipino market, such as the strong garlic sauce and the inclusion of onions, parsley, and tomatoes. To cater to local preferences, Shawarma Gourmet introduced a rice meal option and we also offer a salad with mango and cheese to blend Lebanese and Filipino flavors,” Chef Mansour said.
The restaurant has a mix of customers, including Arabs and Filipinos, with a significant number of regular customers, Chef Mansour added that during the COVID-19 lockdown, the restaurant focused on delivery services, partnering with Grab and offering in-house delivery options.
Let’s dig
in at Shawarma Gourmet’s food/meals
Chef Mansour told this writer that currently Shawarma Gourmet has two outlets—the restaurant at Escario Central and a kiosk at the food hall at the Nustar Mall. The restaurant is a fine dining establishment while the kiosk offers a more casual dining experience.
A hotelier by profession, Chef Mansour developed a passion for food and has made small twists to the menu to appeal to local tastes. Here are a few descriptions from the food Shawarma Gourmet serves:
1.Vegetarian Platter—is a complete Vegetarian Meal, with hummus, Tabbouleh, java rice, Falafel. Tabbouleh, a salad of Lebanese origin consisting chiefly of cracked wheat, tomatoes, parsley, mint, onions, lemon juice, and olive oil.
2. Fattoush Salad -- is a Middle Eastern salad, often considered a "bread salad," that's popular in countries like Lebanon, Syria, and Israel. It features crispy pita bread, fresh vegetables (like tomatoes, cucumbers, and lettuce), herbs, and a tangy dressing, typically lemon juice and sumac.
3. Chicken Shawarma Rice, served on white plate and Beef Shawarma Rice, served in take-out bowl.
4. Manakish Pizza-- Chicken Shawarma Pizza. Pizza with Chicken, Fries and drizzled with garlic sauce and Chef's Style Pizza; Half Labneh and Half Zatar. Zatar is a Middle Eastern spice blend typically made with dried herbs like thyme, oregano, and marjoram, along with sumac, toasted sesame seeds, and salt while Labneh is Yoghurt cheese.
5. Cheese Sambousek-- Empanada like stuffed with cheese and Chicken Musakhan--Spring rolls like, roasted chicken, caramelized onions seasoned with sumac. Sumac is a versatile spice derived from the dried, ground berries of the sumac shrub. It's known for its tangy, lemony, and slightly tart flavor, making it a popular ingredient in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisine. Sumac can be used as a seasoning, marinade, or garnish, adding a unique flavor and vibrant red-purple color to dishes.
6. Beef
Sambousek - empanada like with darker color, light colored is cheese sambousek Kibbeh
- empanada like with no design, almost shaped like camote, filled with beef and
lamb, Dark brown colored pastry.
7. Shawarma Bites Platter-- Beef Shawarma, Chicken Shawarma, Falafel, sliced into bite sized bits with Spiced Fries in the middle.
8. Chicken Khabsa Tray-- a popular Arabian mixed rice dish, traditionally from Saudi Arabia or Yemen, often featuring meat and aromatic spices cooked together. It's known for its hearty, flavorful combination of rice and meat, and is considered a national dish of Saudi Arabia.
Julienne Eva Guanzon of New Star Phils describes the ambiance of Shawarma Gourmet as not just a food experience. Shawarma Gourmet gives you something deeper--connection. With every dish, you’re invited to slow down, to savor, to remember. It’s the kind of place where you stay longer than planned because the vibes are that good and the people treat you like family.
"I left with a full stomach and a heart stretched across continents. The Middle East may be miles away, but that familiar warmth? I found it here,” Julienne added. (Photos: MBCNewman)
