hawa charcoal chicken

2 blocks makes a difference. if you can be bothered walking 2 blocks down south street to get to hawa from el jannah, it's worth noticing the difference. the place is much larger. there is a dedicated ordering area. there is literally acres of seating inside so i had my pick of tables that would normally seat 4. got the 1/2 chicken meal to eat in and didn't take too long to come out. chicken was fine and the garlicsaucewas up to the expected standard - it was a substantial bowl of chips that came with the chicken (couldn't finish them). the food came out with a separate bowl with cutlery and napkins. was a large group eating nearby and in the indoors seating area the din was incredible. however overall, still a much better eating in experience than up the road.

i prefer charcoal chicken from hawa as everything is delicious. their chicken has a great charcoal flavour without dryness and the garlicsaucepacks the right amount of kick! i find the service here good as well.

they have a massive space and is probably one of my go-to places for charcoal chicken.

the chicken was a bit too dry and the garlicsaucewas a bit too mild. still better chicken and better value than almost everywhere in sydney but with el jannah over the road doing better at the same price, i'm not sure why i'd ever return.

everything else goes well but the garlicsauceis alright. really love coming here for charcoal chicken now. chicken is always moist and pickles aren’t too salty. chicken mix platter is good if you want all chicken, pickles, tabouli, dips and falafel in one plate. service is decent but always requires some waiting time for food to come out

i consider charcoal chicken to be one of the worlds greatest creations and hot chips to be their royal descendent. these two things combined with garlicsauceand pickles, are all i need to live happily ever after in my kingdom. hawa is without a doubt the best charcoal chicken in sydney and dare i say, australia. a former el jannah lover, i was unfaithful, turned to hawa in my time of need and have never looked back. we're now living in a joyous garlic fueled matrimony.

one of the greatest, most satisfying, and affordable meals you will ever enjoy.

i love a good charcoal chicken and upon driving past hawa it appears half of granville are too. we arrived early at around 5pm on a sunday and the queue was out the door already. i was excited at the fact i had finally found a chicken shop in sydney which generate the buzz of these shops growing up. 

after finding a park a block away we made our way down to the front of the shop and straight to the back of the queue. this gave us time to decide what we wanted. we ordered the hawa 1/2 chicken and chips deal ($16.95) dine in ($11.95) take away. we also ordered the hawa 1/4 chicken mixed platter ($16.95) dine in (cheaper take-away).

yes, the premium for dining in was big but sort of worth it when you're driving 30 minutes to get there and faced with a queue at the front of the shop. we sat at a table near front but realised there was a much larger dining area which took up two other shop spaces. 

the chicken really gives charcoal chicken it's meaning with a beautifully smoky flavour and unapologetically charred skin while the meat retained moisture. the famous garlicsaucewas the perfect accompaniment.

and yes naomi the drive was worth it!

⭐️⭐️2.5 stars
nah have to say that ej's is better. i came in for a late night meal and i could tell nothing was freshly cooked with the exception of the falafel balls. ordered the 1/2 chicken meal with 2 falafels ($20). the chicken and chips were warm when it should be piping hot and the bread was stale. the garlicsauceand flavour of the chicken was fine. it's a nice open plan restaurant though so it's good for family dine-ins. hard to not make comparisons with og ej's when the concept and restaurants are so minimally differentiated but give it a go and see for yourself.

i’ve been to this charcoal chicken place many times. every time i’ve been to this place it has been a fairly good experience. the charcoal chicken was nice, chips was nice, good amount of garlicsauceand sides. today’s experience was terrible though and that’s why i give it a 3. the chicken did not have any charcoal, tasted off and looked undercooked. the chips came out quite late compared to the chicken, and i like to eat both at the same time. the coke was also warm. the chips and coke i can forgive, but the taste of that chicken is the reason i wrote this review. management please note the date and time of this review because something today was so off.

second time here and i have to say i've been satisfied with my meal both times. the chicken here is j00c3y (compared to ejs) and both the garlicsauceand chips were nice too. 

also it was my first time trying the fattoush salad and i thoroughly enjoyed it!! this probably isn't the right way to eat it but i wrapped some salad in my lebanese bread with garlicsauceand chicken and i loved the added crunch of the fried pita pieces in my little wrap!

i had heard this place was good so we tried it. now we have eaten at heaps of middle eastern places. so many in fact i have not reviewed them. we ordered the mixed plate and a single plate. i liked the chicken but my preference is extra charcoal like. my friend liked the lamb and mince lamb. although we liked them they were not our favourites. the rest of the plate i didn't like. especially the baba ganoush. i think it's my least favourite. the garlicsaucewas not great either. the plate just lacked flavour and maybe lemon. also since we got it takeaway the presentation was not that good and the whole piece of lebanese bread was stuck into a tiny bag. makes it kinda hard to eat compared to the way other middle eastern take away places do it. plus the bread was sticky. why??? as for price i think it's on the pricier end and but not as good value for money as other places. we didn't get falafel even though i thought we were supposed to. i don't think i would go back. it's popular though so maybe you will like it.

my favourite place for charcoal chicken. best food. staff are great and a very filling meal. the garlicsauce(toum) is out of this world. chicken is very juicy

my boyfriend and i are a big fan of their food. we frequent this place everywhere week or so. theskewers are just amazing especially the mince lamb and lamb skewers. the amount of pickle is generously ( i preferred them over el j's pickles) and the amount of garlicsauceis reasonable.my only complaint was that it's a bit tough and i get a bit tired from chewing.

came here w the intention of trying the 'other chook shop' (hint: e.j.) in the area for back to back comparo. scroll dwn for summary 😆

impressed w how big and clean the outlet was. table service during lunch was efficient and polite, order taker knowledgeably pointed out to us that extra order of pickles was not needed as our chooks came w bread fries pickles n garlic sauce.

order of chicken n lamb cubes/skewers came after a short wait. we hit both the leg and breast, eager to find out if the leg 3.5/5 triumphed the breast 3.25/5 in succulent juicy goodness. dipped in in house garlicsauce(3.5/5), both cuts were almost on par, marinade penetrated meat well, skin lightly charred with that unique slightly sour (from lemon or vinegar) after taste. in terms of flavour, the chooks at hawa are not overwhelming, in fact they are quite mellow and well balanced. sad to say that our lamb skewer 2.75/5 was tough.

hawa is a comfortable spacious place to enjoy your leb food. it also has a cafe onsite serving (of course, coffee), various cakes and ice cream. it presents itself as a 1 stop dining venue with well mannered (part) table service.

in short: hawa offers a more comfortable n relaxed setting in which to enjoy your meal. el j is more cramped vis a vis hawa. hawa's chicken is just that more well rounded and no less juicy than el j's. service is almost on par with hawa just piping ahead (probably bec they were less busy when we arrived just before lunch time).

honestly i think they share the same garlicsaucerecipe as el jannah's down the road. if you blindfolded me and made me eat their chicken and garlic sauce, i wouldn't be able to tell the difference.

food arrives at a decent time. always tables available, which i'm surprised at honestly. this restaurant deserves to be full at all times. takeaway deals are well priced so that may be a reason for emptiness.

4.5/5

i saw the reviews and try but it wasnt good. i dont recommend. chicken wasnt tasty and galicsaucewas something missing. i did not enjoy at all