I always remembered the food at Babylon Cafe as being good. And I used to go to the commercial drive outlet (now permanently closed) often when I used to work in the area. So I was quite excited to get the food here when I was in English Bay Area. I always love the plates so I ordered the chicken shawarma plate to go. It was generously packed and the salad was fresh. There was so much lemon juice that it was really sour. Same for the potatoes. The chicken was a bit hard. What I didn't like was the charging. It's not transparent. As I got it to go, the staff just keyed in $19.99. It was $17.99 on the board. Even with gst, it should be less. So I'm not sure if the additional charge is because it's to go or they automatically added a small tip? Anyway this will be the last time I will buy food here. Right next door, there's a restaurant selling the same thing, and many more in the area. read more

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About 10 years this was by far the best shawarma in the whole city and I went every week for years, really disappointed to say it's not the same at all. The flavor and portion size is just not there. I didn't try their fries and all the new extra stuff they added but it was still busy at 10pm so clearly people love it. Didn't seem very clean as well. The food here was excellent before and now just typical. I think the owner left or retired a few years ago and it wasn't the same since read more

I am in love with the food at this middle eastern cuisine, tasted very traditional and yummy. The service was lovely, the Ambiance and vibe of the place makes me super happy. read more

Babylon Café - Lamb Shawarma Plate - Middle Eastern Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

I've came here twice now, first time for take out and I ordered the Lamb Plate. The rice and the lamb was very dry, so I thought because I took take out ill give them the benefit of the doubt to try again for dine In during lunch. They do have an outdoor seating near the English bay which I do like, the staff was not welcoming nor rude though. I ordered their chicken lunch special and my partner ordered the chicken plate. The only difference is Pita, salad and tzatziki added to the Plate for $4 more. The chicken and the rice was dry but they had added a dolmathes and that was VERY dry and not at all tasty. Overall, I don't recommend this place. I would say save your money and try another place near English bay! read more

Babylon Café - Chicken shawarma plate and chicken Lunch special - Middle Eastern Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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This is one of the best restaurants we've ever been to. The food was divine, and the service -- absolutely unreal. The staff didn't just try -- they gave it everything. We came in feeling normal, and left feeling insanely happy, you get me? It felt like home. No -- better than home. They lifted us up emotionally, spiritually, in every way. It was something else. They were so so nice and welcoming, trying to make our evening as best as possible (and definitely succeeded in that) Honestly... I'm speechless. Incredible experience 1000/10 definitely recommend! read more

Kitchen is always dirty and totally unhygienic food.i tried twice but always had bad stomach ache.

The food is decent there are several other places nearby with similar fare, but this place and their neighbours at the Mediterranean grill kind ruin the experience of eating on the patio. They both play loud music so you get to listen to clashing tunes and it honestly gave me a headache. Both of these places have someone outside trying to usher you in and i get the sense they are fierce competitors, and the deulling sound systems are just an offshoot of that. Maybe im off on that but thats the impression I got. I like loud music but this soundclash is terrible read more

Three stars. No more than three stars. We tried a chicken wrap in the late afternoon. Nothing was special about it. The price was ok but the wrap was dry and there was not a lot of chicken in the wrap. Fresh vegetables were the only good thing about the wrap. If I really wanted a delicious wrap, there are many other choices in Greater Vancouver. The restaurant was small. Spaciousness was not an issue, but the environment or ambiance inside the restaurant did not make me feel that I wanted to go back unfortunately. It was dirty on the counter. To my impression, any restaurants in downtown Vancouver should be at least having an average or above average standard in terms of ambiance, price, service and etc. I don't see any in this restaurant. read more

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Chicken shawrma was too greasy. They put way too much mayo in tahini sauce. Pita bread was thin, tasteless and not fresh. Also chicken seemed deep fried, not roasted as in other places, and my stomach felt heavy afterwards, even though I gave half of my wrap to seagulls on English Bay. I didn't try plate or any other menu items but I definitely not coming back. I give Babylon 2 stars. read more

They now have a bar section and the first time trying their food is not bad. Great service and vibe. read more

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Best rice dishes in town!! I take all my friends here when we are near. filling and flavorful. Keep up the excellent work!

One of the best Philly cheese steak sandwiches in Vancouver, and the customer service there is sooo enjoyable made me really feel like I was back home in Iraq read more

Open and inviting cafe on a busy and crowded street with cafes and restaurants along west end of Denman Street in Vancouver. I tried falafels today. They were fresh, tasty, soft and generous in size. Humus was made fresh today, however, could be better. Owner is from Baghdad and extremely polite and friendly. Eating at the sidewalk table on a chilly fall evening was a new experience. Just for asking me to put my images and review here, I was treated with freshly made baklava by the owner. I admire to see immigrants working hard to make a living operating from a small real estate in expensive city read more

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Best falafel/shawarma spot in Vancouver. Grab a generous plate here and sit by the sea wall and feast on the delicious goodness! Their veggie plate includes a taste of everything- potatoes, rice, a little spanakopita, a dolmates roll.. each bite has a new flavour. And topped off with fresh falafels of course. The guys who work here are super friendly. My partner goes here frequently, and I just love how they greet him with a warm "how are you my brother?!" A wonder West End staple. read more

Babylon Café - My vegetarian plate in the making. - Middle Eastern Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Other than 2 tables outside, this place is grab and go. Therefore service has to be efficient (and for some reason on this day the line just wasn't moving as the chicken was grilling fast enough). Wraps with salad were all lined up, just a lot of people hanging around waiting for the meat filling). Now due to the wait, we were starving so as soon as we got our chicken wraps we went straight to the beach across the road and dug in. Well for a $10 wrap (incl tax and tip) this was disappointing. It was mediocre tasting, meat to veg ratio was definitely off and it was a dripping wrap. We got the works with hot sauce but this wrap just didn't work or give me the spicy kick I needed. A friend also got some tabouleh and mentioned it was too oily and had too much onions. read more

Best Falafel!!! My kids loved the Chicken wrap. Staff were very friendly and the food was delicious! Thank You!

Since we're going with the thanks - I want to thank both Kath R and Marc D for pointing me in the direction of Babylon! A musical diddy dedicated to delicious chicken shawarma. [insert music icons here] Oh chicken, chicken - you filled my tummy so full of flavours that I have been raving about you all day. You put every lunch this week to shame...to shame! And you do it on the cheapo- on the cheap-cheap-cheap-o. Like $5.70! Raspberry soda-oda- whose brand name I've lost- I've lost in the bubbles of the fizzy sweetness - sweetness-sweetness Here comes the lahmajeen filled with meaty goodness-goodness (they were out of vegetable fill for the record). How can you go wrong? Although I'd spritz a little bit o tatziki on mine for next time! [next time with jazz hands] Oh, the love affair just keeps growing stronger and stronger...[insert music icons here] read more

Babylon Café - Babylon Cafe, Denman St, Vancouver, BC - Middle Eastern Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

I was nervously laughing when they began assembling my shawarma plate... Salad. check. Tabouleh. Check. Pita. Check. Hummus. Check. Feta. Check. Woah, woah! Where are they going to put the chicken?! Then I gazed upward at the menu and saw "comes with rice and potatoes"! The result was a massive plate of food for only $7.50 (see pic). The potato was lemony and roasty, and the rice had all sorts of carrots, corn, beans and peas in it. The chicken was as juicy and crispy as only a slowly roasting fire could make it. I would not have believed that the quality would also be good, but everything was delicious and I left without a micron of space in my stomach and a grin from ear to ear. read more

Babylon Café - Wow! $7.50! - Middle Eastern Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Grab a shawarma plate for $8 and walk over to english bay and eat it on the beach = yummmmm. This place is my go-to when I'm in the mood for some tasty middle eastern food and don't want to spend too much. The place itself is very tiny and not recommended for sit-in. The shawarma plate is my favorite, comes with rice, bread, salad, baked potato, taboulleh and the shawarma meat. all in all a great meal for under $10 and is always consistent, and always tasty ! When you get it to go they put it all nicely in those take-away boxes, so it's easy to eat later too. Definitely recommended if you're going to spend the day/evening at the beach. p.s. this place serves halal meat for those who are interested. read more

At first the staffs were so nice inviting you to get a spot and after you sat down, no one cared. They even let two ladies order after us but get the food before us. Tired, hungry and waiting for so long made me don't feel like enjoy the food anymore. I ordered beef wrap and it smelled and tatested like a blend of beef and lamp (which I cannot eat). Not recommend! read more

Very good chicken shawarma and plates, great prices, very friendly and helpful staff. Lots of topping choices. This place is a tiny little hole in the wall. If you want to eat there you can sit at 4-5 bar stools along a cramped counter inside or 3 little tables outside. But of course, walking down to English Bay is highly recommended. read more

This place has great energy and great food! Shawarma wrap was busting with flavor and bursting at the seams it was so big. Best in town, hands down. read more

Babylon Café - Middle Eastern Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Great food with super friendly service. We had a great time and ate right outside. You could also take food down to the water if you wanted.

Very unsafe conditions for COVID, no one in the kitchen wearing masks, too many customers in the tiny store, and the food wasn't great either. Chicken was bland but for the hot sauce. There was only one small potato on my plate. And I told them I had a dairy allergy, but they put a bit dollop of tzaziki on my plate. I wasn't impressed. read more

The best falafel in Vancouver you better check this one out they're so talented and fresh clean stuff keep it up guys!!!

Great place to vist and have shawerma (chicken or lamb) now Babylon Cafe have four lucations 105-1610 Robson st 1156 Denman st 770 Nelson st 1605 Commercial Dr read more

I love the experience of going to this place. The staff are welcoming, and I love the shawarma wraps. Noisy and chaotic and the perfect place for a midnight snack! This place is not fancy or foodie but rather a delicious get-in-my-belly kind of of meal that has a decent amount of veggies! read more

Got the kebab plate.. I must have gone on a 'bad day' Kebab was microwaved. Rice is stale and the potato was old and hard.. There were 3 men in there playing with the donair meat stand.. When I walked in it seemed like it was an inconvenience to them. I won't try this place again. Really disappointed. read more

I want to thank Kath R for letting me know about this Babylon opening up and the little secret of them having lahmajeen. I have visited twice now - with the second visit being for lunch today. The couple that operates the place is really really friendly and happy to talk about the food. After you order your lahmajeen they take a ball of dough out of a red container, flour it, run it through a nifty machine that has a two step flattening process to produce a thin layer of dough. Very fun to watch! They then grease a tray, place the dough on it, curl up the edges, run one of those back massager looking devices that punches holes into it, cover it with a delicious sauce made of stewed beef, onions, and various spices. They then put it on a conveyor oven similar to those you would find at a Quiznos and before you know it they take it out, roll it up and serve you this wonderfully hot, delicious, and flavourful treat. What a steal at only $2.25! I wonder how long that price will last! Also tried the chicken pita, which was just as juicy and flavourful as their original location on Robson Street. I love the variety of toppings they provide here which include pickled beets, tabouleh, garlic sauce, tahini, etc., etc. This is a very flavourful wrap which they also prepare fresh for you when you order it. I love the custom preparation of everything they make so that everything is served at a proper temperature to fully enjoy it. That, combined with the friendly couple and wide selection of middle eastern drinks (you can even get Fanta with Arabic writing on it if you are curious to do a taste comparison) make this a winner of a hole-in-the wall. Literally - it has only 3 seats against the wall and a small table out front with 2 additional seats. Go for the lahmajeen, stay for the rest. I'll definitely be back again - soon! read more

For real, the biggest chicken shawarma plate this side of Babylon. Not only that: best chicken shawarma plate this side of Mesopotamia. Their requisite potato is whatever (mealy, mostly. But there), but the rest of the platter is some serious shawarming. Ask for the works, and you will get every single thing that is in those rectangular dishes that sit behind the glass. Tabbouleh, tzatziki, tahini, pickled turnips, peppers, pickles, tomatoes, red onion, rice, lettuce, hummus, cucumbers, garlic mayo, and (here's the kicker) HOT sauce, people (but this is no Siracha. Don't get it twisted). The meat? The meat is delicious. And this is coming from someone who refuses poultry to be a part of her diet (ask me later why-for). Shaved right off the spit with all the crunchy bits intact, it's moist and marinated in magical flavour dust that results in an immaculate combination of soft, savoury meat juxtaposed with crispy vegetables and tangy sauces. The falafel is apparently pretty good, but I don't care about that noise when the hypnotic spin of the rotisserie is in sight. Babylon is must try when wandering the mean streets of the West End. read more

Now with three locations downtown: Robson @ Granville; lower Robson (in the Robson Public Market building); and now on Denman (near Davie), but Babylon Cafe's newest location (Denman St) is the only one that serves the famed turkish pizza. The turkish pizzas served here are cheaper ($2.25) than Istanbul Topkapi's and are of a slightly different style. According to Fred (the manager) the version here is a more traditional Iraqi style as opposed to the Turkish ones served @ Topkapi. In other words, don't expect the freshly sliced tomatoes, parsley sprigs and pickled onions. Here the ingredients are all topped on to the pizza prior to cooking and wrapped and rolled as one. In this way, these ones are much more like the street food of Germany. read more

This place makes great tasting authentic middle eastern food, and I've been there many times, but they have a serious problem. Hygiene. If you go when they aren't busy, they will make a show of using those little plastic gloves and even wash their hands (occasionally), but when they are busy (most of the time), there are five hairy, and very sweaty guys in a very confined space, no gloves in sight and the sink is not used at all. I got a Felafel wrap there last time and no less than four guys all had their hands all over the bread and the ingredients. It's almost as if they all felt they had to touch everyones food at least once with their bare hands. One of the guys spent some time talking to a friend at the counter as well and his cleaning cloth, which was wet and covered with gunk, swung back and forth precipitously over my open falafel for about five minutes while I waited. It's a very tight spot and hard to hear so they also lean over the counter a lot and when the sun comes through the window just right, you can actually see the hairs fluttering down from their stained aprons into the ingredients, which are all left open. Additionally, because they *try* to keep it clean (they aren't bad guys, they just don't seem to care about cleanliness), there is always someone mopping the floor, or the counters with (presumably) toxic cleaning substances, who then makes some food, and then maybe goes back to cleaning, and so forth. I haven't' got sick yet, and the food does generally taste better than most places like this, but it's getting harder and harder to force myself to take a bite out of what is undoubtedly a dirt sandwich to some degree. read more

This is it! The killer Chicken Sharwma Plate speaks for itself over the Brown Rice Pilaf along with the other items on the plate. Falafel King down the Street is also very good. read more

Always go there for shawarma. Never been disappointed. Owner and staff are friendly and good pricing.

Sunny day + chicken shawarma from Babylon Cafe + sitting at the beach = makings of a great day. They produce a really, really good chicken shawarma. A very generous portion of perfectly spiced and moist chicken was shaved off of the spit for me. They have a nice variety of vegetables and dressings to pick and choose from. I made it easy and told them to load it up with everything! This is the first shawarma that I have had that didn't have hummus spread on the pita, they used mayo-like garlic spread I think, but to no detriment. Only grievance, I'm not saying that you have to learn to roll a nice tight shawarma wrap under the tutelage of cuban cigar rollers, but I would like it so when the wrapper is pulled slightly back there is not a food falling out everywhere. read more

"Solid Medium", so said the dinning companion and I have to agree. Had better, had worse, was just ok. This end of town you can't throw a rock without hitting a middle eastern type joint. So how to pick? The firs time I walked by this place there was a line out the door, while the place next door, similar menu, no line. So I figure the locals must know, put on the list and come back (just had dinner down the street!). So I came back for lunch a few days later. the Place was empty, which was fine, I got to order quick. Got the shawarma plate with both lamb and beef. Got to try it all right? The smells are good, but I was having second thoughts when they pulled the meat out of the steam table and then proceded to microwave it. And it showed, things were tough. The best shawarma and kabaobs and Doner all seem to come from placed that cut it from the spit fresh. And my meal here reinforces that idea. Flavor of the beef was good, but like I said tough. The lamb was flavorless but tender. The rice and salad were pretty decent especially since the rice had just gotten nuked. I don't think the microwave is a "sometime" thing as they have a row of them, and others who ordered after me got the same treatment. Friendly people, but "solid medium" read more

Okay, I've been going to this place for a while, and their shawarma plate is delicious. I grew up in the middle east, and it's pretty legit. HOWEVER: I will never go here again. Last thurs I went to get my usual platter of goodness and the dude behind the counter blew his nose into a tissue. Then threw the tissue in the bin. Then started making my food. I asked "umm are you going to wash your hands after blowing your nose" and the guy just said "huh?". I walked out without my food, thinking that if bro doesn't wash his booger hands, he probably doesn't wash after he goes to the washroom either. I am seriously grossed out about how often I ate here. I never got sick, but luckily I have a godly immune system. I will not return unless they force their staff to re-take food safe. read more

It's the perfect location right next to English Bay. A nice summer beach day and a chicken shawarma plate...happy times. I live across town and will only go here for shawarma. Fresh and delicious. They give you heaps of toppings on your plate and the chicken always has a nice crispy edge to it. Yum! read more

This is the best deal for shwarma's anywhere. I usually have the chicken plate but the wraps are awesome too. The portions are huge and the price is cheap. Importantly, I see them using gloves and washing their hands all the time. Edit: Feb 2, 2012. I had the usual chicken shwarma but I noticed that the two new guys didn't wash their hands after handling the cash. Even worse, when giving me my change after I placed my order, the one fellow had sauce all over his hands. He made my food with dirty hands and then gave my change back with even dirtier hands! Also, the meat portions were half the size of what they used to be. I have to reduce my rating as a result and hopefully this behaviour will be corrected. read more

Denman street and its surroundings are practically the go to place for middle eastern food. You get to choose from a large selection of shops offering very similar menus: shawarma, falafel, wraps. From the little experience I have had at Vancouver I think Babylon stands out for the quality of of shawarmas it offers. We chose to have the lamb shawarma platter. It came with pita bread, brown rice, lamb skewers freshly cut from the spit, greek salad and humus. The lamb tasted delicious. If you ever visit this place, and are torn between whether to go for lamb or chicken in your shawarma, just go for the lamb. :) Well prepared lamb meat is not always easy to come by, and these guys really know how to cook their lamb! The salad and pita bread were standard. Having the option of having brown rice instead of white rice was a nice addition. Next time I am at Denman, I would like try out their falafel plate. It looked yummy in their display photos. Some fellow Yelpers have expressed their concern about the cleanliness standards of the place, I personally found no hygiene issues at this place. read more