Petra Shawarma

Petra Shawarma is the real deal. Authentic Middle eastern food - so fresh. The flavours were spot on. Best baba ganoush I've ever had in NZ. The staff are very helpful and made excellent menu recommendations. They understand vegan and the menu is clearly labelled. Loved the felafel but the cauliflower salad was outstanding. I'm not a big cauliflower person but this made me rethink my cauliflower antipathy.
We were served promptly.

Auckland is not the best city in the world for Middle Eastern food. The falafal is not fresh, the bread is stale, etc. Needless to say, it's been a rough year.

Enter Petra Shawarma. It was a good sign when I got into a big chat with the lady who runs the place. She is warm and friendly and made me feel right at home. She pointed me to a seat, and down I sat, and waited, and waited, and waited... But it was worth the wait. So worth the wait.

The hummas was creamy, thick, and delicious, garnished with paprika. I watched as the falafal were fried, and so they were warm as they should be. Crispy on the outside and melt-on-your-tongue soft on the inside. The aubergine was cooked to that gooey consistency and the salad complimented the entire experience. The bread was not the best, but it certainly was not the worst I've ever had.

In summary, go there. And go there now!

Petra Shawarma is 'vegetarian friendly'. However there is meat on the menu.

The sisters who run the place are vegetarian and there is a vegetarian menu there, of which about 3/4 of the items are vegan.

They are very accommodating to dietary requirements and if you dont mind the wait - (they make everything from scratch even though its not always logical to do so) their food is some of the freshest and best Ive ever eaten in Auckland.