Shawarma King
The owner gives away exactly one thing about the method: the family marinates the meat with its own recipes the day before it goes over the counter, so
the meat gets enough flavour(STV News, 27 February 2025).
Why go
Four years in a row, 2022 through 2025, this counter off Trongate has taken Best Kebab House in Scotland at the British Kebab Awards, a fan-voted category it won in London against nine other Scottish shops including Hajar's Shawarma and BABS (STV News). Majed Baerekhan runs it as a family business and will not say more than that high-quality meat matters and the marinade goes on a day ahead. Then Netflix arrived: Phil Rosenthal filmed here for the Scotland episode of Somebody Feed Phil and called the shawarma the best he had ever had (GlasgowWorld). The queue has behaved accordingly ever since.
Order this / avoid
- Order: the mixed pita, chicken and lamb together, which is the one Rosenthal ate. Meat comes off the spit and the pitta bakes fresh rather than sitting on a shelf.
- Avoid: the middle of the lunch or the late rush if you are in a hurry, since GlasgowWorld reports the queue "spilling out of the door" from noon until midnight. Also do not take this page for the Paisley Road shop, which is a different premises with a different inspection record.
What locals & experts say
- Majed Baerekhan, owner (STV News, 27 February 2025), on winning a fourth time:
amazing
, and on his customers,Without your support we're nothing, we're glad we're in the right place.
1 - British Kebab Awards 2025, Best Kebab House in Scotland, fan-voted, awarded in London on 26 February 2025, the fourth consecutive year.2
- Phil Rosenthal, Somebody Feed Phil (Netflix), Scotland episode, as reported by GlasgowWorld: he
described the Shawarma at Shawarma King on King Street as the best Shawarma he had ever had.
3 - GlasgowWorld (Liam Smillie, 27 February 2025), on the local standing: Shawarma King
really set the bar for a great kebab here in Glasgow.
2 - Local rec: Jeff's own note, in his words, "Must visit. One of the best street food restaurants in the UK. Also now featured on Somebody Feed Phil."
Good to know
- Hygiene, stated plainly: the Food Hygiene Information Scheme rates this premises at 113 King Street as Improvement Required, the failing tier of the Scottish scheme, from an inspection on 25 April 2025 (FHRSID 1220472, Glasgow City Council). It was still the rating in force on 30 July 2026, with no re-rating pending4. Fifteen months old, so it is neither this week's news nor an abandoned record. It sits alongside four national awards and a Netflix endorsement, and a reader gets to weigh both.
- Sites: two Shawarma King premises. This page is the King Street shop, the one filmed for Somebody Feed Phil. The other is Shawarma King @ Shisha Lounge, 232 Paisley Road G5 8NG, which holds a Pass dated 11 February 2025 on its own record. King Roj Shawarma on Argyle Street is a different business altogether.
- Where: 113 King Street, down by King's Court off Trongate, in Merchant City.
- Timing: open from noon to midnight, with the queue running the whole way through.
- Booking: none. Walk up and join the line.
Jeff's take (his words)
- Note: "Must visit. One of the best street food restaurants in the UK. Also now featured on Somebody Feed Phil."
Verdict
should-visit — Worth the detour for the shawarma itself, not a top-three send. Jeff (first-hand, 2026-07-30) calls it a bit overrated, good but probably not the third place to try in Glasgow. Weighing against a featured slot: the King Street premises carries a Food Hygiene Information Scheme Improvement Required from April 2025 that was still in force in July 2026, which is disclosed rather than disqualifying (ADR-0022) and is a real mark against sending someone here first. The Paisley Road site holds a Pass.