Lunch — Jordanian chicken shawarma wraps at Shawarmaji
2281 The Alameda, Santa Clara
The Bay Area's only Jordanian shawarma spot — thin-sliced chicken off the spit, feather-light toum (garlic) and pickles in an Arabic wrap. Dairy-free is easy: the wraps are built on toum and tahini, both dairy-free (just skip any yogurt-sauce add-on). Counter-fast and takes cards. It's four doors from the cat cafe, so park once here and walk.
A cult-favorite Japantown manju shop since 1953, open till 4. Traditional mochi and manju are rice flour, sweet bean and sugar — dairy-free by nature, so Deb can pick the whole case. Cash is easiest here. Grab a box for the couch tonight.
Drive·25 min·18.5 mi
Home to Newark — quiet evening in
Newark
Why it fits
The cat hour with Deb was already booked for 1:00 — the plan wraps a real Saturday around it instead of competing with it.
Lunch and the cats are four doors apart on The Alameda: park once, walk to Shawarmaji, walk to the cafe. Deb never has to move the car or navigate.
It hits 88°F and sunny, so every stop is indoors and air-conditioned — no midday sun and nothing hard on the foot.
Shawarmaji is the only Jordanian shawarma in the Bay — a specific, casual pick, and the wraps are toum- and tahini-based, so Deb can order without a single dairy-free question.
Shuei-Do's mochi is the thoughtful close: a dairy-free Japanese sweet she can actually eat, boxed to bring home for the couch.
Home by 3:30 with the whole evening open — good for her recovery and your Sunday lift.
Bring
A little cash for Shuei-Do — the mochi shop is easiest in cash (Shawarmaji takes cards).Sunglasses for the short walks between car and door; it's 88°F and bright.Start the car and run the AC before Deb gets in — it'll be an oven by mid-afternoon.Nothing else to carry — the day is indoors end to end.
Backup
If Shawarmaji has a lunch line, it's counter-fast — worst case, grab the wraps to go and eat before the cats. And if the heat wins the afternoon, drop the mochi run and head straight home — the day still holds.