Shawarma PAPI🥇 — Restaurant in Burlington

We decided to try Reco Shawarma for dinner today after reading all the amazing google reviews. We entered the restaurant and were pleasantly greeted by a tall friendly guy (not sure whether he is the owner or a staff member). We ordered a chicken shawarma platter and a chicken kebab platter, while ordering the guy asked us multiple questions like if we want the platter with rice or fries or salad (he mentioned we can pick two out of these three options) , we ordered with rice and greek salad. Till now everything was going great and we were looking forward to getting our order. Once the food came, we were shocked to see the quantity especially for the salad - salad was given in the tiniest corner of the box, it was not even a mouth full of salad. We have been to multiple shawarma places and this was the first time we received such a small quantity of salad with shawarma, generally most places give salad in a separate box. Now, when we look at other people’s food pictures from this place for a shawarma platter, it seems to come with a separate box of salad, which makes us super confused as we didn’t get any of it. Then after carefully scanning through reviews, it seems like the restaurant’s management got changed 3 weeks back and most of the good reviews seem to be there from before!

Anyways, we ate a bit of food and then in between the guy came and asked us if we are going to be in the restaurant for 5-10 mins as he has to go out for 5 minutes for some work, I mean as we were eating, we said sure, so he left his number with us ( to give him a call in case if another customer arrives before he returns) and went out. We finished our food and were waiting for him to come back as it seemed like he went for a longer time and then a customer walked in so we called him to let him know. He came back, didn’t even look at us or said thanks, he just started taking order from the other customer- honestly it was super weird to notice such a drastic shift in his behaviour. Long story short- had a really bad experience, wish we would have gone to Osmos or...

My recent visit to Shawarma Papi fell short of my expectations, especially considering its current rating.

Upon entering, the first thing that struck me was the lack of cleanliness and upkeep in the restaurant. It was immediately off-putting, but with the 4.7-star rating on my mind, I continued. Opting for the $16 (after tax) chicken platter, I mistakenly assumed it would include a chicken Saj wrap, given its placement near the Saj option on the menu. However, I soon realized my error when the employee began assembling the meal. While placing fries and salad in the box, I inquired about the wrap, they clarified that it was only chicken on top, not a Saj wrap. Accepting my mistake, I requested to add a separate piece of wrap/bread, and to place the chicken in that, instead of on top, for an additional cost. To my surprise, they charged me an extra $14, bringing the total to $30 for what essentially amounted to their usual $16 chicken platter with an additional piece of bread. The only reason I paid it was because I was expecting a partial refund afterwards, and that this was just part of the process with their machine.

Feeling taken advantage of, I expressed my dissatisfaction and suggested paying $14 extra for just a piece of bread seemed excessive. Their response was to offer a free can of soda as compensation, which only added to my frustration. Eventually, after some negotiation, they added some chicken on top of the fries to try and justify the inflated price.

Disappointed and feeling slighted, I chose to leave rather than argue. It's disheartening to feel as though I've been swindled by a place with a seemingly high reputation. There is much better tasting Shawarma in Burlington.

I won’t be...

This place has gone completely downhill. The owner might be kind, but there’s no excuse for how disgusting and unsanitary Shawarma Papi has become. Let’s start with cleanliness, there is none. Tables were piled with trash and old food, the floor was filthy, and the prep area looked like it hadn’t been wiped down in days. The sauce bottles were caked with grime and pieces of god knows what, and there was literal hair on the counter where the sandwiches are made. Male staff handling food weren’t wearing hair nets despite having long hair. Absolutely unacceptable. And the food? $45 for two meals that were beyond underwhelming. The shawarma was half empty, with barely any meat or fries. The wrap was so empty the bread was literally gaping open. For that price, I expected a full meal, not a limp sandwich. On top of that, they’re charging 99 cents for a tiny squirt of extra sauce. Seriously? They also removed the yellow garlic sauce, which was one of the only good things they had, and replaced it with some pink, tasteless sludge that adds nothing to the meal. Between the unsanitary conditions and the overpriced, mediocre food, this place has become a health hazard and a rip-off. The photos speak for themselves. I genuinely hope the owner sees this and takes it as a wake-up call, because whatever they’re doing now is not just bad, it’s unsafe. I live not too far and I used to recommend this place to friends and family, safe to say I’ll no...