Shawarma Palace- 17 AVE SE — Restaurant in Calgary

Amazing. Always a lineup, but never a long wait--and well worth any! Hot, fresh, and fast, and the service is always friendly and efficient. I am not super familiar with a wide range of Middle Eastern foods, but I tend to get the Large #4 Mixed Chicken and Beef Donair Wrap with garlic sauce, all the veggies (I can't recall all of them, but there are pickles, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, pickled turnip, and parsley I believe), all 4 topping sauces (Tahini, Sriracha hot sauce, Spicy Garlic, and Sweet Donair Sauce), with a little extra sweet sauce.. and dang, every bite is a flavour explosion!! 😋 🤯

I've had their samosas (available in Chicken, Beef, and Veggie) and baklava (available in a few different types like cashew, pistachio, etc)--they were decent, but the samosas and baklava are both keep in a cooler display at the front and so neither is ideal; they could both be better not chilled.. They will microwave your samosas for you, but, again, not the best way to have a samosa..

Atmosphere isn't anything other than an order counter, a beverage cooler with a decent variety of "standard" sodas and a few more alternative and ethnic juices and pops, and a few tables and chairs to chill and eat at if you want. I usually see people sitting, but not for long, and it's usually not every table--most people take their food to go. The place always seems clean enough, and they are popping out food constantly, so nothing's sitting around for long. I've only lived in the area for a few months, but I've found myself visiting Shawarma Palace nearly once a week... or more.. and sometimes, even for a midnight (or later) snack.. they are open very late into the am hours, which can be tempting if you live nearby.. You've been warned!...

Shawarma Palace is aptly named. For me it is the King of Shawarma. Yes, there are other great places in town but this is my personal choice for #1. It is a great place to get a great meal. Count yourself lucky if when you get there, there isn't a huge lineup. I hear on Friday and Saturday nights around 1 -1:30 in the am, there is usually a long lineup. They are open until 4 am on Friday and Saturday. The donairs are pretty hefty as they are stuffed with such goodness. There are three choices of meat including chicken, beef and lamb. Of course, you can have any combo you want or just one type of meat. The toppings are also varied. There is lettuce, tomatoes, onions, parsley, hot banana peppers, pickles, and pickled turnip. They will make it to your own preference. Plus, there are a variety of sauces including garlic sauce, hummus, hot sauce, tahini and, my favourite, sweet sauce. I usually get a platter because it comes with rice and potatoes. You also get a helping of hummus, a small salad and pita bread along with the meat. It usually feeds me three times. They also have a variety of drinks as well as baklava. The folks behind the counters are always attentive and courteous. I highly...

This is 5 star shawarma. I had a chicken shawarma wrap. The pita was soft and fresh, the vegetables were crisp, the meat was seasoned well and not overcooked, and the sauces add a ton of flavour. They arent shy with the garlic sauce, which really brings everything together.

The staff works super hard. They were also very polite and friendly.

The interior is dingy and run down, but its a shawarma place not a 5 star restaurant. It seems clean enough.

The price is exactly what you would expect for a shawarma place in Forest Lawn, which is very affordable and tremendous value.

I am giving 3 stars because when I was in there at lunch, a few massive online orders came in. There were 2 orders of like 5-10 items each. This caused the line of people in the store to be backed up. Restaurants need to make a decision about serving people IRL, or being a ghost kitchen. I dont think it works to try and do both. The owners should consider a second ghost kitchen location to handle the online orders. I think it might be best to place an order through Uber Eats for pickup instead of waiting in line, I am guessing that would help you...