Sheel & Mashi

Sheel & Mashi is the first American outpost of Sheel W Mashi, a sandwich shop founded in 2012 in Qurain Market, Kuwait, where it became known for pairing Kuwaiti and Lebanese flavors. The Bay Ridge location sits on Fifth Avenue at 71st Street, in the heart of one of New York's great Arab American neighborhoods, a corridor of bakeries, groceries and grills. The format is fast and friendly: a counter, a menu of more than twenty signature sandwiches and food that is built to be eaten on the go or at a small table inside. Everything is halal, and the shop brings a taste of Gulf street food to a Brooklyn avenue that already knows its shawarma.

Start with the chicken shawarma sandwich, grilled chicken with onions, garlic and pickles, wrapped with fries tucked inside, then branch out into the spicier and more unusual signatures that show off the Kuwaiti side of the menu. Sandwiches are compact, so ordering two different ones is a good way to taste the range. Sheel & Mashi was featured by the YouTuber New York Turk in 2025, on an Arab food tour of the city. After eating, walk a few blocks west to Shore Road Park for views of the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, or continue down Fifth Avenue for Middle Eastern sweets and coffee.