The Rare & Exotic Export, Halifax Donair

We were nine sweaty, dirty, ugly men with long hair and offensive t-shirts. Friendly Haligonians stared politely as we carried our plastic garbage bags down Agricola Street to the nearest laundromat. It had already been a very long tour. 

Auroch and Titan’s Eve in Victoria on the Burning Canada Tour

I liked Halifax quite a bit, more than any of the other cities we’d played on that summer’s “Burning Canada” tour. I’d actually been to Nova Scotia once before on a father-son vacation as a kid; we saw the 78^th Highlanders pipe band play at the Citadel and blasted their CD all the way down the East coast. But in all that parental bonding bliss, I skipped one of the city’s most fundamental and unique culinary experiences: the Halifax donair.

Nearly a decade later, as I shoved stinky, ripped t-shirts into the maw of an industrial washer a few blocks away from that night’s venue (Gus’ Pub & Grill) I realized I was a little hungry. Connected to the laundromat through a shared doorway was a dog-eared little eatery selling what I figured to be gyros, shawarma, doner kebab, something like that — basically some meat, roasted on a vertical spit and shoved into a warm pita with tomato, onion, and tzatziki sauce.

I wasn’t a total rube at this point; I’d heard Halifax was famous for these things, and we’d seen about every conceivable establishment selling them on the drive into town. Handing over some laundry change, I accepted the paper wrapped bundle, the white sauce leaking over the edge and running down my hand. I licked it — it was sweet, with a gentle acidic tang, and it left my hand sticky. This was not tzatziki, that classic plain yogurt with dill and cucumber. This was Halifax donair sauce: evaporated milk, vinegar, garlic powder, and sugar. Laundry was forgotten. Many, many donairs were had, and our poor van was quickly rendered inhospitable.

I can’t find that laundromat on Google Maps, but thankfully you can save yourself a flight anyway. Halifax and Victoria have a fair amount in common despite being about as far apart as you can get; both feature plenty of used bookstores, great food, a warm-hearted vibe and a big naval base. With the amount of sailors going back and forth between the two biggest ports in the Canadian navy, it’s no surprise that donairs have come along for the ride. While there are plenty of excellent gyro shops in town (Efes Turkish Doner and Athena’s Place to name a few) there are only two places I found serving donairs with Halifax-style sauce.

 The Donair Shop – 1243 Esquimalt Rd.

The Donair Shop Sign

This spot is only a few blocks from the Canadian Forces base and serves up the quintessential East coast import with thick, almost crumbly slices of slow-roasted beef. Owner Crystal Dunahee has run this spot for twenty years, but it’s been around since the mid-eighties. Please do not dare me to eat a whole Family deal, because I probably would.

Pizza All-Nite – 2714 Quadra Street.

Sign outside Pizza All Nite

I was very close to including this in my five secrets of Victoria, but I knew I’d be writing about donairs at some point and didn’t want to spoil it. Fawad Khaliqi moved to Canada from Afghanistan and tried several cities before deciding on Victoria. “I love it here. Lifestyle, you know, everything is close by, not too much traffic, people are nicer.” He and his family have run Pizza All Nite for five years now. “So far so good!”

You can pretty much throw a dart at the menu and you’ll like it, from the Vancouver Island Special pizza, to the Alfredo Lasagna Supreme, to the classic donair. The chicken shawarma is made in house, but Fawad searched for a while to find a good donair meat supplier. He finally tracked one down, a Greek guy in Vancouver who provides his beef and lamb mix. “I think what makes the difference is the meat itself; sometimes the meat is too chewy, it can be too rough when you eat it. You don’t have to fight it when you eat it and I think that’s a huge part.” s

You can say that again, Fawad. Chomp and slurp away, people.