The Turkish street food consisting of thinly sliced meat cooked on a vertical rotisserie and served in pita bread is döner kebab.
Döner is made by stacking seasoned meat—traditionally lamb, though beef, chicken, and veal are also common—into an upright, rotating cone. A heated element cooks the outer surface, and the vendor shaves off thin slices as needed. The Turkish word döner comes from dönmek, meaning “to turn.”
The meat may be served in pita or another bread with salad and sauces, wrapped in lavash as dürüm, or plated with rice and accompaniments. The familiar sandwich format became especially popular in West Berlin during the 1970s through Turkish immigration.
Döner, shawarma, and gyros share the vertical-rotisserie method but are distinct regional traditions. Shawarma developed in the Arab world, while gyros is the Greek counterpart. Kofte is a different dish made from seasoned ground meat, not shaved from a rotating spit.