Shawarma Near Me in Clerkenwell for Rotisserie Lamb and Laffa: Shawarma Bar

Most shawarma near me searches in London end at a takeaway counter with a cone of meat in the window. Shawarma Bar on Exmouth Market answers the same craving with a sit-down room, a cocktail list and a whole lamb shoulder carved for the table. It is the second restaurant from the Berber & Q group, run from 46 Exmouth Market in Clerkenwell, and it treats the rotisserie as the centre of a Levantine meal rather than a quick wrap on the way home.

The group's own history starts in 2015 with Berber & Q Grill House, a fire and smoke restaurant under the railway arches in Haggerston. Shawarma Bar followed in July 2016, when Hot Dinners reported it opening at 46 Exmouth Market. The chef behind both is Josh Katz, a north Londoner who cooked at Ottolenghi and Galvin Bistrot de Luxe before going out on his own, and his 2018 Berber & Q cookbook includes the cauliflower shawarma that still sits on this menu.

The room was designed to feel open to the street. Early coverage described huge bi-fold windows, reclaimed wooden tables, leather-clad bar stools and a corridor lined with vintage photography, and Time Out's first review noted the hanging greenery and exposed masonry of a pocket-sized space. On a dry day the windows fold back and the dining room spills onto the pedestrianised market, which makes lunch here feel more like a terrace than a restaurant.

The June 2026 food menu on the official site makes the lamb shoulder shawarma the one to share. It costs £33.50 and comes with harissa, yoghurt, a mixed herb salad and grilled laffa, so two people can build their own wraps at the table. Beef shawarma is a single plate at £17.50 with garlic yoghurt, baby gem lettuce, pickles, green zhug and laffa, and it is the order for anyone who wants a classic shawarma without committing to a whole shoulder.

Two dishes show how far the kitchen pushes the idea. Cod shawarma, at £19.90, swaps meat for fish with grilled lemon, coriander, red onions, yoghurt, chilli and pita. The baharat-glazed rotisserie chicken is £24 with grilled red onion, herb salad and tahini. For a vegetarian centrepiece, flame-grilled cauliflower arrives with date and onion jam, pomegranate, pine nuts, chilli flakes and tahini for £16.50, and it is the plate most first-timers end up photographing.

Start with mezze rather than bread alone. Hummus with lamb ragu, pine nuts, amba and parsley is £9.90, and the mixed mezze board at £17.50 covers tahini with fermented chilli, wild spinach borani, aubergine salad, marinated olives and labneh with chilli oil, all with grilled laffa. An extra pita is £3.30. The drinks list leans on cocktails and a wine list the restaurant describes as mainly low-intervention.

Lunch is the best value on the street. The restaurant's lunch tasting menu is £19.50 per head for two to seven people and must be taken by the whole table; it brings mezze and a pita filled with rotisserie chicken shawarma, beef shawarma or cauliflower. Lunch is also the only time the kitchen serves its stuffed pitas, filled with rotisserie meats, vegetables and house-made sauces, while the full à la carte menu runs all day.

Shawarma Bar is primarily a walk-in restaurant, but a number of tables can be reserved for lunch and dinner. If your group is eight or more you will need to choose one of the set menus: a set lunch at £32 per head, a set dinner at £43, or the Best of Shawarma Bar menu at £45 for the whole table. For two people on a weeknight, walking in at opening is usually the simplest plan.

The posted hours split every service into lunch and dinner. Monday is closed. Tuesday to Thursday it opens from 12 pm to 2:30 pm and again from 5 pm to 10 pm. Friday runs 12 pm to 2:30 pm and 5 pm to 10:30 pm. Saturday is 12 pm to 2:45 pm and 5:30 pm to 10:30 pm, and Sunday is 12 pm to 2:45 pm and 5:30 pm to 9 pm. Plan around the afternoon gap; the kitchen does not serve between sittings.

Dinner changes the mood. The menu is written so that mezze come first and dishes from the fire follow, which pushes a table toward sharing rather than one plate each. If you want the lamb shoulder, arrive hungry and with at least one other person, and order it with the first round so it lands while the mezze are still on the table. Sunday evening closes earliest, so it suits an early dinner rather than a late one.

Exmouth Market is one of Clerkenwell's best short walks. The pedestrianised street is lined with independent restaurants, cafes and shops, so it is easy to wander before or after a meal. Walk north and you reach Spa Fields, a small sloping park that makes a good spot for an after-lunch coffee, and a few minutes beyond that is Sadler's Wells Theatre on Rosebery Avenue, which makes Shawarma Bar a natural pre-show dinner.

The nearest stations are Angel on the Northern line, Farringdon on the Elizabeth line, Thameslink and Underground, and Barbican. Farringdon is the easier choice arriving from the City or on the Elizabeth line, while Angel suits anyone coming from Islington. Buses along Rosebery Avenue stop close to the top of the street.

Choose Shawarma Bar when you want shawarma as a proper meal: a table, cocktails, a lamb shoulder to share and dishes like cod shawarma and flame-grilled cauliflower that no kebab shop serves. It is less suited to a late-night craving, since the kitchen closes by 10:30 pm at the latest and is shut on Mondays. For a fast wrap on the move, London's Edgware Road counters are the better fit; for a relaxed lunch in Clerkenwell, this is the easier call.

Address: Shawarma Bar, 46 Exmouth Market, London EC1R 4QE. Hours: Monday closed; Tuesday to Thursday 12 pm to 2:30 pm and 5 pm to 10 pm; Friday 12 pm to 2:30 pm and 5 pm to 10:30 pm; Saturday 12 pm to 2:45 pm and 5:30 pm to 10:30 pm; Sunday 12 pm to 2:45 pm and 5:30 pm to 9 pm. Key prices: lamb shoulder shawarma £33.50, beef shawarma £17.50, lunch tasting menu £19.50 per head. Ask Karpo in the Karpo APP to line up a table nearby.