Akkawi

The menu is tight and focused, built around two core proteins — falafel and shawarma — served as wraps or salad and rice boxes.

The falafel is made from chickpeas, fresh herbs and spices, fried until the exterior turns crispy and golden while the interior stays bright green, packed with parsley and coriander. You can order it on its own in a wrap or paired with slices of golden-grilled halloumi in a combination wrap. The shawarma features thinly sliced marinated chicken, slow-cooked on a rotating vertical spit and carved to order into warm flatbread. Watching it come off the spit through the open hatch is part of the experience.

Both wraps come loaded with garlic sauce, tahini, chilli sauce and pickles, layering creamy, sharp and tangy flavours against the warm filling. A rice box with grilled chicken and fresh salad offers an alternative format for those skipping the bread.

Sides include vine leaves — grape leaves stuffed with seasoned rice — and a smooth hummus. The entire menu is 100% halal, with vegetarian options in the falafel and halloumi wraps. Vegan choices are available by selecting falafel without dairy-based sauces, and gluten-free alternatives cater to those who need them.

Akkawi also handles office lunches and team catering, bringing the same made-from-scratch menu to larger groups across the city centre.

Akkawi is a food-only operation with no drinks menu, alcoholic or otherwise. The compact kitchen behind the serving hatch is dedicated entirely to food preparation — falafel and shawarma, made from scratch to order.

For something to drink alongside your wrap, Albion Street has plenty of options within a short walk. Several cafés and coffee shops line the surrounding streets, and Trinity Leeds is moments away with everything from espresso to fresh juice and soft drinks.

The truck itself is the venue. Akkawi operates from a compact, rounded caravan with a domed silver-grey aluminium body — an Airstream-inspired silhouette that stands out against the stone-paved street and red-brick Victorian buildings. A large yellow circular logo with multicoloured confetti dots marks one side, while a central black panel carries a full-height photograph of the shawarma spit alongside the tagline “Healthy Made-From-Scratch Palestinian Cuisine” in green text.

A dark honeycomb-style menu board displays food photos in bold hexagonal cells, legible from several metres away. During service, the hatch opens and the rotating shawarma spit is visible from the pavement — nothing is hidden about what goes into your wrap.

There is no seating. You collect from the hatch and eat on the wide pedestrian pavement, framed by Victorian red-brick buildings and a city-centre church spire. The informality is the point — this is street food in the truest sense.

Akkawi sits on Albion Street in the heart of Leeds city centre, a wide pedestrianised stretch flanked by shops and offices. Trinity Leeds, Victoria Quarter and Marks & Spencer are all within a short walk, making the truck a natural lunch detour for city centre workers and shoppers. The Grand Theatre and Opera House is a short stroll north along New Briggate.

Q-Park Albion Street sits directly on the same road, offering paid 24-hour parking. NCP The Core, The Light car park and Merrion Street car park all provide nearby alternatives within a few minutes’ walk.

Akkawi operates at pavement level on a flat, stone-paved pedestrianised section of Albion Street with step-free access throughout.

Monday: 10:30 AM - 8:00 PM
Tuesday: 10:30 AM - 8:00 PM
Wednesday: 10:30 AM - 8:00 PM
Thursday: 10:30 AM - 8:00 PM
Friday: 10:30 AM - 8:00 PM
Saturday: 10:30 AM - 8:00 PM
Sunday: Closed