At Craft Pita, founder Rafael Nasr is dedicated to sharing his culture through food. The fast-casual Lebanese restaurant has two Houston locations: West University and near the Galleria. The menu features traditional dishes made with authentic ingredients, including hummus, tabbouleh, falafel, and manaeesh, and is designed to be accessible to diners new to Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisine. When Caesar wraps began trending on social media, he created his own version and soon, the Toum Caesar Pita became a best-seller. craftpita.com
The Chicken
Preparation for the wrap begins well before it is assembled. “We marinate our chicken in over 23 different ingredients like clove, allspice, garlic, and lemon juice to make our shawarma spice blend for over 24 hours,” he says. After marinating, the chicken is cooked on a rotisserie. “Then we rotisserie the chicken in our French rotisserie oven, pick the chicken by hand, and cool it down specifically for this sandwich.” The process ensures the shawarma is ready to be layered into the pita.
The Sauce
One of the reasons the wrap has turned into a fan favorite is the toum Caesar dressing. “Toum is the literal translation for the Arabic word for garlic,” Nasr says. “It can reference an actual garlic bulb, but in the context of a shawarma sandwich, it is a garlicky paste or sauce.”
The ingredients are simple: oil, garlic, ice, and salt. “The ice fluffs up the sauce.” He describes it as “sharp, zingy, and spicy,” adding kick to the classic Caesar base of anchovies and parmesan. “Our toum Caesar dressing gives a Lebanese twist with extra garlic to everyone’s favorite dressing.”
The Mix-Ins
Texture comes from housemade za’atar chips. Nasr explains, “We use leftover day-old bread, cut it into triangles, and spread za’atar and olive oil on them.” The bread is baked until crisp. Nasr adds, “These crunchy, zesty chips give our toum chicken Caesar wrap bold texture and flavor.” The sandwich also includes romaine lettuce, the classic Caesar choice.
The Pita
The wrap is held together with thin, Lebanese pita sourced from Phoenicia Specialty Foods.