While we were in Halifax over Easter we tried a local culinary creation, the donair. A donair consists of finely ground, spiced and seasoned shaved meat, onions, tomatoes and donair sauce wrapped in a thick, soft pita. I cannot really be more specific about the meat. It reminded me of gyro meat so is probably lamb or beef, but I can only guess. The donair sauce is really something else. It is made largely of icing sugar and may also contain garlic, depending on who makes it. It is almost unbearably sweet, but people like it on everything out here: bread sticks, garlic fingers (cheesy bread sticks), pizza and the like. Pretty much anything I would dip into hot marinara sauce at pizza hut they dip into donair sauce. It leaves me shocked and appalled. Minus the garlic I may use donair sauce to dip cookies into, but that's about it.
All put together it is a very messy food. The sauce to meat and veggies ratio is nearly one to one and the pita I found to be about two times too small. We were even told to pick off about half the toppings and then attempt to wrap it up, which is kind of bizarre. It turned out to be very neccessary. I picked a bit then rolled and started, only to have my donair fall apart after two bites.
I ordered mine with the works, since I wanted the true Halifax experience. I know now that it was a mistake. As mentioned before, the works includes raw onions and tomatoes. They are not minced, nor julienned, but thick sliced and a great hindrance to my enjoying the experience. The mushy tomato, crunchy onion and puzzlingly sweet sauce were in direct opposition to the tasty, almost crispy meat shavings. Four bites or so in I was picking the plant substances out of my donair (to the best of my ability). A few onions were able to escape my notice, but I was very fastidious as to the tomotoes. Afterward, I enjoyed the donair more, but was still mystified by the much lauded donair sauce. I am aware of people mixing tastes together. People I am well acquainted with dip fries into ice cream. I am a big fan of sweet and spicy thaï chili sauce and sweet and sour chicken balls are almost their own food group. Yet I must draw the line at mixing meat with what can best be described as runny cupcake icing. It's like matter and anit-matter combining: destructive and unnatural.
If a donair was just the meat wrapped in a soft bread, I would eat one every day. If a donair did not come with onions and tomatoes I would consider having one every time I went to Halifax, but since a donair has the sauce, onions and tomatoes I will do my best to avoid eating one for the rest of my life.
VERDICT: Gross! Donair sauce is just plain wrong.
