Nation’s favourite takeaway meal named and it’s a surprise choice

Nation.Cymru staff

Leading online food delivery company Deliveroo has officially crowned its first annual Takeaway of the Summer 2026 – and the winner has come out of nowhere to claim the inaugural title.

While a record-breaking heatwave might have been expected to send the nation reaching for something cold, we had other ideas with orders for Chicken Shawarma Wrap rocketing.

Instead, they turned to hot, hearty shawarma wraps, as Middle Eastern food went mainstream and the nation spent summer evenings watching football with a protein-packed wraps in hand.

The rise in demand has been so significant that over half* of the restaurants selling shawarma on Deliveroo this summer didn’t sell it at all a year ago.

And this isn’t the result of one major chain adding a new menu item. Restaurant after independent restaurant, from Lebanese kitchens to late-night grills, has decided its menu needs the chicken mighty wrap.

In fact, new Deliveroo data shows that orders for Chicken Shawarma Wraps are up over 70% this summer compared to last**, putting shawarma firmly at the top of the list of Britain’s most loved takeaways this summer.

The Shawarma proved to be an evening dish through and through. Orders on Deliveroo peak at 7pm, with Friday by far the busiest Shawarma loving day***.

Jeff Wemyss, Deliveroo General Manager UK & Ireland said: “Chicken Shawarma has spent years as the wrap you order at 11pm – reliable, delicious, always there. This summer, it became the main event. Independent grills up and down the country have been serving the dish rooted in generations of culinary tradition for years, and we couldn’t think of a more deserving winner for Deliveroo’s Takeaway of Summer 2026.”

Find out more at: https://deliveroo.co.uk/

Method

*Based on Deliveroo restaurant partners selling any shawarma dish across the UK, comparing 1 June – 17 August 2026 to 1 June – 17 August 2025.

** Based on Deliveroo orders for the Chicken Shawarma Wrap across UK restaurant partners, comparing 1 June – 17 August 2026 to 1 June – 17 August 2025.

*** Based on Deliveroo shawarma orders across UK restaurant partners, by time and day of order, 1 June – 17 August 2026.

**** Based on Deliveroo shawarma orders by city across UK restaurant partners, comparing 1 June – 17 August 2026 to 1 June – 17 August 2025, ranked by percentage growth.

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