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Similar in preparation (rotating spit), but gyro is mainly pork whereas shawarma is halal beef and lamb mix, or chicken. In the US version, gyro can also be ground beef.
Gyros are served in pita, whereas shawarma is often wrapped in lavash, then lightly grilled. There's also a difference in mix of vegetables and sauces (tzatziki vs garlic).
Edit: dammit, now I'm hungry.
Thanks for the info! I'm learning also that apparently things just aren't that authentic where I am. Shawarma is served in a pita as well, and gyros always means a lamb/beef mix. I don't think I've ever seen it with pork. No wonder I've been confused!
It's not so much about authentic VS knockoff. There are several valid variations, just because the gyro isn't made of pork doesn't mean it's a ripoff or fake, it just means their recipe is closer to the original doner.
To be honest, the main differences to watch out for are if they are meat chunks or minced meat, based on what your personal preference is, and the mix of spices used to make the kebab. The capability of the chef to get thin slices is also a mark of quality.
For me personally, I have tried almost every variant of doner, except for tacos al pastor and "german doner" (which makes me fly into a blind rage and rant about frankfurters being turkish). I like them all, except for any that are made in the pakistan to bangladesh region (basically,anywhere east of iran). They start to make the meat spicy, which is not what I am looking for.
One of the surprising delights for me was eating a kurdish doner, because it came with pickles, which made it delicious.
EDIT : Also, most bread types are equally valid, but you may have your preferences. Sometimes there isn't even any bread. You can have it in a pita bread, flatbread or middle eastern style buns/pide(tirnakli pide), or even on rice. In my region of origin, we have it on top of tirnakli pide, sometimes covered in melted butter, with your choice of plain, tomato sauce , yogurt sauce or both.