The main types of kebab you'll meet on a UK takeaway menu are doner, shish, chicken tikka, mixed meat, and vegetarian options, each cooked a different way and each worth ordering for a different reason. If you're new to kebabs, or you've only ever ordered doner from one place, the names can blur together. Doner. Shish. Tikka. Mixed. Adana. Knowing what's what means you order better every time.
Here's the plain-English guide to kebab styles, plus exactly what we do at Kebys in Great Barr. If you're still deciding where to eat, our guide to the newest pizza and kebab takeaway in Great Barr sets the scene.
What are the main types of kebab?
Kebab is a wide word. In the UK takeaway tradition it usually means doner, but the family of meat cooked on a skewer or spit is far bigger than that. The word itself has roots stretching back centuries, and different regions grill their meat in different ways.
Doner kebab
The classic UK takeaway kebab. Doner means "rotating" in Turkish. Meat is seasoned, stacked onto a vertical spit, and slow-roasted as the spit turns. The chef shaves thin slices off the outer cooked edge with a long knife, exposing fresh meat for the next round.
- Pros: Slow-cooked, deeply flavoured, generous portion. Travels well for delivery.
- Cons: Quality varies wildly. Many UK doners are only 60 to 80 percent meat, with rusk and binders making up the rest.
- At Kebys: Our Lamb Doner is over 90% Cypriot lamb, slow-roasted on the spit. £7.79 in a pitta.
The tell-tale sign of a good doner is the meat percentage and the char. A quality doner is mostly real lamb with a crisp, caramelised outer edge, not a pale, spongy slab that has been reheated. When the spit is carved to order in front of you, that's a good sign you're getting the fresh outer layer rather than something that has been sitting under a lamp.
Shish kebab
Chunks of meat threaded onto a horizontal skewer and grilled, usually lamb or chicken. Shish simply means "skewer" in Turkish.
- Pros: Each chunk gets its own char, so you taste the meat clearly.
- Cons: A smaller portion than a doner for the price.
- At Kebys: We don't currently do shish. We've focused our kebab side on doner and rice boxes.
Chicken tikka kebab
Boneless chicken marinated in yoghurt, lemon, garlic and tandoori spices, then grilled. South Asian in origin, and increasingly common on British kebab menus.
- Pros: Lighter than doner, mildly spiced, a good everyday option.
- Cons: Cooked in batches, so it can lose a little moisture if it sits.
- At Kebys: Chicken Tikka, £7.99 in a pitta, £8.49 in a naan, £9.49 with fries. Or as a Chicken Doner & Rice Box for £7.99.
Mixed meat kebab
A combination, usually doner lamb plus tikka chicken. Made for the customer who can't choose, or for sharing across the table. It's also the smart order when two people want different things but only want to place one order, since you get the richness of lamb and the lighter, spiced chicken in the same box.
- At Kebys: Mixed Meat, £7.99 in a pitta, £8.49 in a naan, £9.49 with fries. Or as a Mixed Doner & Rice Box for £7.99.
Vegan and vegetarian kebab
Plant-based doner has become a proper category, not a sympathy item. Cooked and dressed the same way as the meat version.
- At Kebys: we do not currently offer a vegan kebab — for a meat-free order, the Halloumi Burger and Paneer Tikka & Rice are the picks.
Adana and İskender
Two Turkish classics you'll spot less often in the UK. Adana is hand-minced lamb mixed with red pepper, garlic and salt, formed onto a wide skewer and grilled, named after the city of Adana. İskender is doner meat sliced over flatbread, layered with yoghurt and tomato sauce, and served on a plate. We don't do either at Kebys, but our Lamb Doner & Rice Box at £7.99 is the same idea in spirit.
What is the difference between doner and shish?
This is the question we get asked most across the till, so it's worth pinning down. Both are Turkish in origin and both are grilled, but the method is the giveaway.
- Doner cooks on a vertical spit. The meat is stacked, roasted slowly as it rotates, then shaved off the outside in thin strips. You get a mix of textures in one wrap, from soft inside to crisp edge.
- Shish cooks on a horizontal skewer. The meat is cut into chunks, so every piece browns on all sides and stays distinct.
Same family, different techniques. If you want the classic Great Barr takeaway experience, doner is the one. If you want to taste the meat on its own, shish suits you better, though you'll need to head elsewhere for it, since we've built our kebab menu around doner.
Which type of kebab should you order at Kebys?
There's no wrong answer here, but there is a right one for your appetite and your evening. If you're ordering for the family, mixing two or three of these covers everyone, and a Munchbox or a rice box each keeps things simple. Here's the quickest way to decide, based on what you're actually in the mood for.
- "I want the classic UK doner experience." → Lamb Doner in a pitta, £7.79. Add chilli sauce or garlic mayo for 30p. The standard.
- "I want something lighter than doner." → Chicken Tikka in a pitta, £7.99. Marinated, spiced, less fat than doner.
- "I want a bit of everything." → Mixed Meat, £7.99. Lamb and chicken in one. Or the Munchbox at £13.49, which gets you a kebab, a burger, fries and a drink.
- "I want meat-free." → the Halloumi Burger or Paneer Tikka & Rice.
- "I want it to travel well for delivery." → Rice Box, any flavour, £7.99. It holds heat far better than a wrap on a 25-minute run out to Kingstanding or Sutton Coldfield.
Wrap, naan or rice box: which is best?
The carb you pair with the meat matters more than most people think. It changes the portion, the price and how well the kebab survives a delivery.
| Base | Best for | Lamb Doner price |
|---|---|---|
| Pitta | Fast, classic, easy to eat. The default. | £7.79 |
| Naan | Bigger appetites, holds more meat and salad. | £8.29 |
| Rice box | Travel and delivery, the rice keeps the heat in. | £7.99 |
| Burger | The lighter option, smaller portion, lower price. | £5.79 |
If you're eating in the car or ordering to Perry Barr or Erdington, the rice box is the smart pick. If you're walking it home five minutes from Bowstoke Road, the pitta is unbeatable. And if you've got a bigger appetite after a long day, the naan gives you noticeably more bread and room for extra salad without pushing the price up much.
One more thing worth knowing for delivery. A wrap can steam slightly in the bag on a longer run, softening the bread, whereas rice holds its texture and temperature far better. If you're ordering out to Hamstead, Kingstanding or Sutton Coldfield at peak time, a rice box will almost always arrive in better shape than a pitta.
Which sauce goes with which kebab?
Each kebab pairs better with some sauces than others. All sauces are 30p at the till.
- Lamb Doner → garlic mayo, chilli, yoghurt mint
- Chicken Tikka → yoghurt mint, garlic mayo (go easy on chilli, the tikka is already spiced)
- Mixed Meat → garlic mayo, BBQ
House regulars tend to go garlic mayo with a stripe of chilli.
Are kebabs healthy?
It depends entirely on how the kebab is built. A pitta or rice box packed with salad and a modest amount of sauce can be a sensible meal. Lamb is high in protein and iron, the salad adds fibre, and the Eatwell Guide from the NHS is a good yardstick for balancing the rest of your day around it. The sauce is usually the main calorie variable, so if you're watching that, ask for it on the side. For anyone curious about how takeaways handle food safety, every UK outlet is rated on the Food Standards Agency hygiene scheme, which is worth a quick check for any shop you order from.
Where the doner came from
The doner kebab has been part of British high streets for longer than most takeaway food, and it travelled a long way to get here. If you want the full story of how a Turkish spit-roast became a national staple, read our short history of the doner kebab, which also explains why we insist on Cypriot lamb.
When and where to order
We're at 3 Bowstoke Road, off Newton Road, Great Barr, B43 5EB, open Tuesday to Saturday, 4pm to 10pm, with free parking outside. Order online at kebys.co.uk to collect, or order delivery through the apps across Great Barr, Perry Barr, Kingstanding, Hamstead, Sutton Coldfield and Erdington through Uber Eats, Just Eat and Deliveroo. Find us on @kebysuk.
Now you know your doner from your shish, your tikka from your mixed. The only thing left is to pick one.
Written by
Kebys Team
Stories from the Kebys kitchen, Great Barr
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