Eating up the Hill: Chicken shawarma platter – better is definitely possible

Ottawa is Canada’s capital, in terms of government and in terms of shawarma. We have a longstanding Lebanese community that has ran shawarma shops across the city going back several generations. So when I saw that a chicken shawarma platter was newly added to the Parliamentary Cafeteria’s rotating daily specials, I was intrigued and trepidatious.

Going down to order it today, the first thing I noticed was a heating tray of chicken breasts caked in seasoning. I guess investing in a shawarma spit that would be used every six weeks would be too much to ask for, but I thought maybe they would have shaved it off site or something.

Anyway, they sliced the chicken breast like you would a chopped steak, and then put it in a takeout container with some turnip, tabouleh salad, a small handful of pita chips, a cup of what I presume was a garlic sauce (ingredient list unclear) and a cup of humus. No pita bread on the side or a green salad, as would be traditional for a platter. Sometimes potatoes too, though I usually pass on the carbs. This is half the price (and size) of a typical shawarma platter though, so sacrifices must be made.

Bringing it upstairs with a Diet Coke, I dove in. I sampled the chicken breast on its own. A little dry. Caked in seasoning, from which I got no heat but notes of cinnamon. The ingredient list confirmed this, as well as cumin, paprika and chili powder. It was OK, but I can’t say it screamed shawarma to me. Some quick googling confirms this is traditional, though could have used more pepper. But without being toasted on a spit, it's not shawarma meat.

I dipped the chicken in the garlic sauce and the pita chips in the humus. Both were fine. I ate but didn’t care for the tabouleh salad, but I don’t care for any tabouleh salad. I get the green salad when buying a platter. I wouldn’t have gotten the turnips but wanted to show you the full offering – I ate one to confirm I still don’t like them,

I appreciate the effort, but the caf just doesn’t do well with ethic food. They do a passable Chinese food offering which I’ll have tomorrow. They used to have a gyro sandwich which I made passable by having them heat the pita on the grill – I guess not enough people knew this trick as it’s off the menu rotation. 

So if you want shawarma, leave the building, walk a block and get the real thing. In Ottawa, better shawarma is always possible.

Recommend this Post on Progressive Bloggers

Why isn't Harper standing-up for a Canadian soldier?

I don't know how this story has flown under the radar for so long, but it really shouldn't. Last week, the report of a Canadian military inquiry investigating the death of a Canadian peacekeeper, Major Paeta Hess-Von Kruedener, during the summer 2006 Israel/Lebanon war, was released:

In a report released Friday, the board of inquiry into the death of Major Paeta Hess-Von Kruedener said it found no evidence that anyone from the United Nations or Canadian Forces should shoulder any of the blame - that the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) as a whole is responsible.

More on the incident itself:

The 43-year-old soldier from Kingston, Ont., and three other peacekeepers under UN command died in the bombing on the night of July 25. Fighting between Israeli and Hezbollah forces had broken out earlier in the month and the UN post, located about 10 kilometres from the Israeli, Lebanese and Syrian borders, was right in the thick of it.

That’s disturbing enough. But more disturbing is the lack of cooperation from the Israeli military with the investigation, and the apparent unwillingness of the Harper government to press them on it:

The report notes that the IDF did not fully co-operate with the Canadian inquiry and denied access to documents and people involved in the event. It suggests that if the board had the access it requested, it might have been able to assign blame to an individual within the IDF.

The board also couldn't resolve the unanswered question of why Israeli air force jets continued their attacks despite warnings that UN personnel were in the area.

I’m not going to buy into the theory floated by some, including the widow and Kofi Annan, that the UN outpost was deliberately target. That’s hard to believe. I don’t think the IDF had any nefarious intent, but clearly there was a breakdown of communications, and it had deadly consequences.

The report found no failure of communication on the UN side and said the IDF "has failed to explain why the attack was not halted."

According to the board's evidence, there was enough time for the information to get to the appropriate IDF authorities and "had the IDF side of the liaison network been functioning effectively, the incident could have been prevented."

This matter has not been resolved satisfactorily. Stephen Harper needs to telephone the Israeli Prime Minister immediately, and demand full cooperation from the IDF so the truth in this matter can be known. Major Hess-Von Kruedener deserves that much.

Recommend this Post on Progressive Bloggers