Naga City - It's been a while since I ate shawarma. How many shawarma places do we have in Naga by now? Remember the authentic Shawarma along Magsaysay Avenue called Haidnor located in front of WestPark? A bottle of beer was always fun served with Haidnor's Shawarma in pita or on a plate. After Haidnor, I was a fan of Spice Eleven Shawarma, owned by friends who opened some time in 2010. For a few years they grew several branches around the city. There "to-go" place beside Saint Joseph School and their first store at the food court of Nagaland E-mall were the two sources of the hottest shawarma in town after Haidnor closed its doors. I can actually eat one pita shawarma and shawarma rice in a box in just one seating, that's how I loved Spice Eleven Shawarma before. When they closed down business around 2015 due to other priorities, from that time on I never tried any other shawarma in Naga not until last Saturday, November 12. Let's just say Haidnor and Spice Eleven was able to meet my standards in shawarma from Baguio.
Here's a quick story how I learned to love shawarma. Being a kid before, I hated beef, basically because I hated the "off" smell which eventually leaves a strong aftertaste in your palate. As I age, I appreciated beef from time to time and hey, I eat burgers right? Since it's not tasting like it's beef I believe that fast foods' burger patties really has a lot of preservatives just to counteract the aroma of the meat. I learned how to eat Shawarma during my college years in Baguio. When you want to eat shawarma all you got to do is go to Session Road. Shawarma stalls grow in number every Session Road in Bloom during the Panagbenga Festival. It's a comfort food in the cold weather of Baguio. From that time on I was able to outgrew my hate for beef up to the point of enjoying Bulalo. That was how I gained my-kind-of-shawarma.
I found this shawarma place in ALDP Plaza Mall food court at Roxas Avenue (Diversion Road). Surprisingly the food court in this mall has a good foot traffic. Captain Shawarma is the only shawarma place in this mall and the rest are various stalls offering meals you can choose from. Trying to regain my craving for shawarma, I was able to try the Pita version and took home the Rice Shawarma.
Serving Size is for the win! I must say, P50 for the Pita Shawarma with their kind serving is really something that I was not expecting. The main ingredients of the Captain Shawarma's Pita version are: tomato-cucumber relish, white onion, plus the white/garlic sauce. For other shawarma's being offered, cheese is an add on, sometimes they come in slices of the basic cheese, but for Captain Shawarma, it's a cheese sauce. The Rice Shawarma for only P60 also has a good serving size.
Pita Bread is Homemade. Unlike other shawarma places, Captain Shawarma's pita bread is homemade. Meaning, we are assured that it's fresh.
If you want your shawarma more "garlicky" just tell the server that you prefer more white/garlic sauce than the cheese sauce. Captain Shawarma's beef is tender and thinly sliced making sure there's enough for your pita bread. This on the go meal with veggies and sauce is perfect for our fast-paced world or just a snack for a slow afternoon for us to savor the spices of Captain Shawarma's offering.
Captain does not only serve shawarma in pita bread or in rice. They also Shawarma Fries, Nacho's, All Meat and Shawarma Platter at very affordable prices. For drinks they serve Magnolia's Healthtea because they want you to drink healthy. I know shawarma is so damn good with softdrinks, you can always purchase from the neighboring stalls. =P. I loved the pita version of Captain shawarma, after two years of not eating this delicious meal, now I can say I have regained my craving for shawarma.
Captain Shawarma has two other branches in Naga. One is located along Ateneo Avenue and one is right in front of the USI's HS gate. With their pricing, it's still affordable for students considering that the serving is that of a one full meal.
Thank you for having us Captain Shawarma! More power!
Facebook: Captain Shawarma 4400
Branches:
- ALDP Mall (Food Court)
- Ateneo Avenue (near Cathedral Street)
- USI Branch (Fronting USI HS Gate)
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