OUR BAR IS READY FOR YOU! COME CHECK IT OUT!
About Us
Who is The Wise Fool?
Goha the Wise Fool (also known as Joha, Djoha and Nasredin Hoja) is a beloved folk character in Middle Eastern lore. Friendly, convivial and not the brightest bulb in the pack, Goha goes about life always getting himself into sticky (and often comical) situations but always finding his way out of them. Each of his stories has a kernel of a life lesson embedded within, and through a mix of self deprecation, pithy anecdotes and harmless hijinks, he teaches us not to take ourselves or life too seriously, but to just enjoy the little things and the people around us.
What is The Wise Fool?
Like Goha himself, our little restaurant isn’t self-serious and we see the world and the community around us as something to be enjoyed. We are a casual neighborhood joint in Burlington’s Old North End serving Middle Eastern street food staples evenings and late-night for both takeout and dine-in. In our (humble) opinion, the type of food we serve is the best late night food to pair with a drink (or a couple!) and we’ve got the bar to match the food. While our style of cuisine can be found from Beirut to Berlin, our hearts are squarely within the Burlington community. So come grab a seat at the bar, a beer or a highball, and some awesome shawarma (or our even more awesome falafel!). Bring a friend, or three, come on a weekday evening when you’re too tired to cook, or late on a weekend night on your way to the bars. We promise you’ll find good food, good drink, good company and, perhaps most importantly, you’ll find us, like Goha, being our most authentic selves.
What Do We Do?
We make shawarma. You may know it alternatively as döner kebab, kebab, gyro or simply as street meat. Originally invented in Ottoman Turkey in the 19th Century, it’s since been adopted throughout the Middle East, Europe, Australia and the Americas. Today it is perhaps one of the most popular cheap eats in dozens of cities around the world. Here at TWF, you can get yours wrapped in laffa - a big Iraqi flatbread - or over rice (like they do in New York!). If you’re not a meat eater, don’t fret. We’ve got bangin’ falafel as well (for the uninitiated, falafel is a Middle Eastern chickpea fritter. It’s naturally vegan and gluten free and super addicting). We also have a small but stout menu of classic Middle Eastern dishes like hummus and fattoush salad. Oh, and don’t sleep on our fries! They’re triple cooked, wicked crispy and seasoned with our super secret shawarma blend of spices (just kidding, we don’t keep secrets, just ask if you want the recipes!)
While we may not be reinventing the wheel with our food, we take pride in doing everything the right way - from scratch - and with as many local products as we can. Everything we serve is made entirely by us (well, except the ketchup).