Donair costume sparks bidding war between Halifax, Alberta restaurants
CBC
How much would you be willing to pay for a donair costume?
Restaurants that sell the sweet and savoury treat on both sides of the country have been asking themselves just that, as they fervently outbid each other in an online auction for the unique meaty attire.
The costume is being sold on the Alberta government's surplus website, and the bids had topped a whopping $6,500 on Thursday afternoon.
It's East versus West, with Halifax restaurant chain King of Donair and Alberta's Blowers & Grafton vying for the peculiar piece, along with Edmonton's Swiss Donair and PrimeTime Donair & Poutine.
King of Donair bills itself as the first donair shop in Canada — having opened in 1973 — and co-owner Nicholas Nahas said his team is determined to bring the costume to the East Coast.
"It's about pride," said Nahas in an interview Thursday. "We're not shy to say we're the first ones to introduce the donair in Canada…. We feel it should be here in Halifax, as silly as it sounds."
The donair — which consists of roasted shaved beef, tomatoes and onions wrapped in a pita and drizzled with a sweet sauce — was declared Halifax's official food in 2015.
It was created in the port city in the 1970s by Greek restaurateur Peter Gamoulakos, who wanted to share the flavours of his homeland with Halifax. The taste of the traditional Greek gyro was not well received, and so he made some adjustments.
The donair eventually made its way out West, as droves of Maritimers fled to Alberta in search of better wages, and their favourite late-night fare.
But the western Canadian eateries don't always get it right, according to Josh Robinson, who owns the Blowers & Grafton restaurant chain in the Calgary and Edmonton areas.
It often looks more like the Greek gyro and includes ingredients like pickled turnip and lettuce.
Robinson, who is originally from Halifax, sought to change that. Blowers & Grafton serves up "authentic Halifax street food" — they even have their donair meat shipped from Nova Scotia.
Robinson said when he saw the costume, he knew he had to have it.
"We found it so funny," said Robinson. "There's a whole bunch of things we've been discussing and we could have a lot of fun with this thing."
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