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Dishes of London

Guide

Types of kebab: which one to order

Kebab is not one dish. It covers a family of meals that are cooked in different ways, served in different ways and taste quite different from each other. A doner in a wrap and an adana on a plate have little in common beyond the word. Below: 8 types on one chart, then each with the East and Central London venues that serve it, 68 venues in all. Prices checked .

Kebab types by how they are cooked

  1. Vertical spitDonerShawarmaGyros
  2. Skewered cubesShishSouvlaki
  3. Minced on a skewerAdanaKofte
  4. PlatedIskender

Quick picks: what are you after?

Three ways a kebab is cooked

Most kebabs come down to three methods: meat stacked on a vertical rotisserie and shaved off in slices, cubes of meat threaded on a skewer and grilled, or minced meat pressed onto a skewer and grilled. Plated dishes such as iskender build on these.

You may also see ocakbaşı on a sign. That is a Turkish charcoal grill restaurant, where the meat is cooked over an open charcoal grill.

This guide sorts the kebabs on East and Central London menus by how they are cooked. Once you know the method, the names on the board make more sense.

The 8 types, and where to eat them

Doner

Vertical spit

Best for A quick wrapLamb, chicken or mixed

Doner comes from the Turkish döner, "turning". Seasoned meat is stacked on a vertical rotisserie and shaved off in thin slices as it cooks. In the UK it is usually lamb, chicken or a mix of the two.

It is served in pitta or a wrap with salad and sauces, or on a plate.

On East and Central London menus: 7 venues, 64 dishes; median £8.50, £4.50 to £17.90 across 63 priced dishes. Each venue's lowest plate price, cheapest first:

  • 7 MamasLamb Doner Wrap · £4.50East Ham
  • Grill-InnChicken Wrap Doner · £5Poplar
  • George & DragonShawarma Lamb Doner Sausages · £5.50Clerkenwell
  • OG BabsChicken Doner Roll · £6.50Chingford
  • GigsLamb Doner · £10.50Bloomsbury
  • Unity DinerUnity Döner Classic · £14.50Spitalfields

And 1 more venue: every kebab in East and Central London.

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Shawarma

Vertical spit

Best for Garlic sauce or tahiniIn a wrap

Shawarma is the Levantine and Middle Eastern relative of doner. It is also cooked on a vertical spit, and it is usually chicken or lamb.

It is often served in a wrap with garlic sauce or tahini.

On East and Central London menus: 19 venues, 41 dishes; median £12, £4.95 to £20.70 across 38 priced dishes. Each venue's lowest plate price, cheapest first:

And 13 more venues: every kebab in East and Central London.

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Gyros

Vertical spit

Best for TzatzikiPork or chickenGreek

Gyros is the Greek version of the vertical spit, usually pork or chicken.

It is served in pitta with tzatziki, tomato and onion, and often chips as well.

On East and Central London menus: 3 venues, 3 dishes; median £9.10, £9.10 to £17.95 across 2 priced dishes. Each venue's lowest plate price, cheapest first:

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Shish

Skewered cubes

Best for Grilled meat on a plateLamb or chicken

Shish is cubes of marinated lamb or chicken threaded on a skewer and grilled. "Şiş" means skewer in Turkish, so the name tells you how it is cooked.

It is served with rice, bread and salad, and it works well as a sit-down meal.

On East and Central London menus: 31 venues, 120 dishes; median £16.99, £6.50 to £29.50 across 88 priced dishes. Each venue's lowest plate price, cheapest first:

And 25 more venues: every kebab in East and Central London.

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Souvlaki

Skewered cubes

Best for Pork or chickenGreek

Souvlaki is the Greek skewer of small grilled pieces of meat, usually pork or chicken.

It follows the same idea as shish. How it is served varies from place to place, so check the menu.

On East and Central London menus: 8 venues, 27 dishes; median £15.95, £4.50 to £27 across 21 priced dishes. Each venue's lowest plate price, cheapest first:

And 2 more venues: every kebab in East and Central London.

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Adana

Minced on a skewer

Best for SpicyCharcoal grilledMinced lamb

Adana is hand-minced lamb mixed with red pepper and chilli, pressed onto a wide flat skewer and grilled over charcoal. It is named after the city of Adana in southern Turkey, and it is spicy.

Order it if you like heat and want something different from cubes of meat.

On East and Central London menus: 8 venues, 24 dishes; median £17.95, £9.90 to £24.95 across 15 priced dishes. Each venue's lowest plate price, cheapest first:

  • OG BabsAdana Kebab Wrap · £9.90Chingford
  • Che-MenAdana Shish Wrap · £10Dalston
  • Amber LondonAdana lamb skewers · £11Whitechapel
  • GunesAdana Kebab · £14.90Walthamstow
  • GemAdana · £17.95Highbury
  • CirrikAdana Kebab (Lamb Kofte Shish) · £18.50Dalston

And 2 more venues: every kebab in East and Central London.

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Kofte

Minced on a skewer

Best for Mince without the chilliLamb or beef

Kofte is minced lamb or beef mixed with onion and spices, then shaped and grilled.

It is milder than adana, so it suits you if you like minced meat from the grill but would rather skip the chilli.

On East and Central London menus: 23 venues, 62 dishes; median £18.50, £5.75 to £65 across 41 priced dishes. Each venue's lowest plate price, cheapest first:

And 17 more venues: every kebab in East and Central London.

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Iskender

Plated

Best for Knife and forkFrom Bursa

Iskender comes from Bursa in Turkey: doner slices laid on cubes of pide bread, topped with tomato sauce, melted butter and yoghurt.

It is a plated dish eaten with a knife and fork, and the bread soaks up the sauces.

On East and Central London menus: 7 venues, 14 dishes; median £21.50, £15.90 to £28 across 9 priced dishes. Each venue's lowest plate price, cheapest first:

And 1 more venue: every kebab in East and Central London.

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How to order

  • A "mixed" or "mix grill" plate combines several kebabs, so you can try more than one.
  • Ask whether the meat is halal if that matters to you. It varies from place to place.
  • Plates usually come with rice or bulgur and salad. In a wrap or pitta, the salad and sauces are usually built in.

Every kebab in East and Central London See them on the map

Where to go: kebabs by area

More guides

How this guide is made: the descriptions are general food knowledge, checked by hand. Every venue, dish and price comes from the venue's own menu as we read it, and nobody has paid to appear. How we check.