What’s the best donair in Halifax? This competition settled it once and for all

People waved and shouted as Corey Good, known locally as the Donair Beast, threw dozens of donairs in the air during the Great Donair Showdown at Staggers Pub & Grub in Dartmouth, N.S. on Feb. 28.

Four local restaurants participated in the competition to crown the best donair in Halifax, including King of Donair, Sasy’s Pizza, Tony’s Famous Donairs & Pizza and Revana Pizza. 

In the end, Revana Pizza took home the title. 

The donair was created in Halifax around the 1970s by a Greek immigrant, inspired by the Turkish döner kebab. The dish is made of thinly sliced beef and vegetables, topped with donair sauce (made from sugar, vinegar, evaporated milk, salt and garlic powder), all wrapped in a soft pita. In 2015, Halifax Regional Council named the donair as the city’s official food.

Good, the event’s host and an organizer, is passionate about donairs. So passionate, he’s making a documentary about them, exploring the history and how it became an iconic Halifax dish. The donair competition was filmed for the documentary. 

“I don’t know what makes [donair] so special,” he said. “Once you get it and you try it, the world’s wet sandwich becomes something delicious.”

To kick off the competition, Mayor Andy Fillmore cut an aluminum-foil ribbon. 

“[Donairs are] part of our heritage,” said Fillmore. “Lebanese immigrants came to Halifax and got their start opening restaurants, bringing and creating a very unique Halifax food.” 

A panel of four celebrity judges decided the winner, including Tyrone Parsons from Trailer Park Boys, Cape Breton comedians Tracy and Martina (Justine Williamson and Greg Vardy, respectively) and Halifax comedian Travis Lindsay.

“Of course, the fun part was being able to eat donairs,” said Lindsay. “But seeing the community come together for something so silly was quite nice.”

The judges rated the donairs based on their pita, sauce, vegetables, edibility, authenticity, donair spirit and wow factor, resulting in a tie between Sasy’s Pizza and Revana Pizza. To break the tie, Good called the establishments a few days before, and the one that answered fastest won the competition. 

The audience cheered as Revana Pizza owner Jack Toulany took the stage to claim his title. 

Toulany’s first job was making donairs at Tony’s. After moving to Dartmouth in 1975, he opened Revana Pizza, which became the first donair shop in Dartmouth. 

“We’ve been here for a long time,” said Toulany. 

His experience at Tony’s helped him refine the donair recipe he knew and loved when he opened his own shop. 

“We use 15 kinds of spices in our donair, while other people use two, three or four.” 

After the winner was announced, the event featured a second competition. John Snow and Jesse Byrne went head-to-head to see who could eat a donair the fastest. 

Last April, the two competed to see who could eat a burger the fastest, which Byrne won. After Snow accused Byrne of cheating, a rematch was scheduled — this time with donairs.

By only a few seconds, Byrne finished his donair first, remaining victorious. 

“I’m just happy to be a part of this event,” said Byrne. “Corey put a lot of work into all this, and it’s a good time.”