Food here is good. Atmosphere was quiet but there was a MLB playoff game going on so most people were at home or at sports bars. Hummus is tasty and falafel was good read more

This place was amazing! The food was fantastic! I loved the atmosphere! The linguine, shrimp pasta, and the chicken kebab are a must have. I will definitely eat at this place again. They had great service and the staff was very friendly. read more

Excellent Food, Service and Ambiance! Highly recommend. Welcoming, super clean, A+! Thank you Aldar...... shall return! Mira

Altar turned me into a hummus girlie! Smooth, creamy, and full of flavor! Can't wait to go back!

This restaurant has the potential to be a 5 star experience. It's one of those hit or miss kind of places. Definitely ask questions, be friendly and intrigued. Post your own pictures as well to help aid in promoting their business and offering more visibility for their business if you can. The salmon was really good. It had a crispy candied essence to it, highly recommended! The broccolini was too salty, and the rice was fine, nothing out of the ordinary. Chicken was lightly seasoned at best, it more so had a tasty charred flavor. The complimentary pita is fresh and excellent. The sampler was good, but seemed to lack a pazazz of flavor I wish it possessed. Overall it really was a great experience. A bit pricey for what you get, but the vibe and atmosphere is really relaxing and enjoyable. Service was alright, they got the job done, not perfect, but not bad either. I do recommend this restaurant as the options for of a Mediterranean restaurant in this price range are limited in this area. Enjoy! read more

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I want to echo the comments of David P, submitted on May of this year. I want to add that the service was poor and provided by a poorly trained and apathetic server. She was totally ignorant of the wine list as well as items non the menu, in addition to her negative affect. Warm sliced pita with dipping EVO served before the meal were tasty . My wife ordered as starters the combination mezze consisting of Babaganoush, Humus and Tabouli salad. The Tabouli consisted only of chopped parsley and chopped tomato and salty beyond the ability to eat it. When commented one the saltiness and absence of Bulgur cracked wheat, the waitress returned with the same salad sprinkled on top with dry, raw, un-soaked bulgur wheat which of course was not edible. When asked why was the Bulgur not soaked prior to being added to the salad, she replied that most customers prefer Gluten free dishes and that is the reason for their version of Tabouli salad!. I ordered a glass of red wine ( brand unknown since the waitress was unaware of any brands available..), fried calamari. and the Mousaka. Calamari were presented on an bed of lettuce and chopped tomatoes with a small spilled dish of marinara sauce. Calamari were half cooked, chewy , and flavorless., I could not finish the dish. The Moussaka was served in a small casserole dish on a plate with a side of rice and frozen greens that were steamed prior to serving. It consisted of ground beef with whole chickpeas and few slices of either eggplant or zucchini .I am not sure . Absent were the layered potatoes and sliced eggplant topped with béchamel sauce. I never encountered such a poor presentation of a Moussaka . The flavor dish was awful and had only one bite of it. This was was no doubt the worst meal we ever had anywhere ever. I strongly recommend for the owner to taste and review the presentation of dishes that his kitchen is serving, and for future customers to be aware of our reviews. read more

Food & drinks were excellent. Pricing was fair. Service left something to be desired, as they seemed understaffed.

A friend of mine was in town from New York so we decided to go to Al Dar. When you walk in, you are greeted with the sight of a bar with a couple of TVs to your right and on your left is the main dining room. The main dining room is elegant with a Mediterranean feel. The bar serves high-quality drinks and does not have a rowdy crowd allowing you to bring children. They also have some limited outdoor seating. Once inside the hostess greeted me. She quickly escorted me to my seat. However, she was unaware of what they had drink-wise. In the middle of the meal, she just left and April became the waitress. I started off with the grilled calamari. It was actually really solid. It was nice and flavorful! It also was topped with some nice lemon. For my entree, I got chicken and pasta. The pasta was really good topped with parsley and cream sauce. However, the chicken was a little hard. Al Dar can be pretty pricey, but that can be expected with most Main Line restaurants. Altogether, I had a good meal andI will return! read more

Worst meal we have had in a very long time. Service was fine, and that is the best you can say about Aldar. Worst Gyro I have had in more than 50 years. No taste. Lamb was small overcooked strips that had probably been just sitting around. Veggie Moussaka had no taste, but at least the rice and veggies would have been good if they were hot. Mussels were tasteless. Will never go back. Buyer be ware read more

The other night my wife and I did takeout and it was fantastic. I actually ordered through Yelp (powered by Grub Hub) for delivery and we received in 30 min. She got the Artic Char and I got the coconut salmon - both outstanding! When we get takeout, we typically are not impressed with the presentation because, well, it's takeout however Al Dar put each entree in a large enough container that it looked like the plate you would have received at the restaurant. We also shared the chilled moussaka which was outstanding. They also provided three large pitas and their famous dipping oil. Everything was warm (with the exception of the chilled moussaka of course.) Even the pita was warm and we live about 15 min away from Al Dar. Very impressed with the service and I'm glad we were able to support a local business during this challenging time. Thank you Al Dar! We will be back! read more

This was such a disappointment. The Greek salad was a regular salad with Feta cheese on top and 2 tiny olives. The Gyso has overcooked, dry lamb and not enough yogurt so it was dry too. The place is lovely and waiter was fantastic but not the food read more

We just had our son's Rehearsal dinner at Aldar Bistro. Our out of town guests were raving about the food and we agreed. Walid was a pleasure to work with and was as excited about our event as we were. We were welcomed as if we were family. The private room made for a nice atmosphere to have our rehearsal dinner. Service was fantastic and we felt there was great value at this restaurant. We highly recommend a visit and it is a great choice if you have a larger group event. read more

Stop here often since it's right down the street from our personal training studio. The menu has interesting food choices that are good. And the price is very reasonable. Chris Vtrainers Personal Training. read more

I would have given this place 5 stars if the service was better. The complimentary bread and hummus were amazing, the best I've had so far. We ordered the Baba and Falafel. I am not a huge fan of eggplant so didn't enjoy the Baba - it being served cold didn't help much either. The Falafel balls were crispy and good too. read more

Good good and like their service and ambiance. Would recommend their octopus and chicken dishes. Strange that they have beer taps at the bar but no tapped beer but decent bottled collection. Loyal clientele who are treated like family so good place to be a regular. read more

I decided to go to Al Dar Bistro with two of my grandsons, Ace and Ivan and granddaughter, Samantha. This restaurant is very well know on the Main Line with some of the leading medical professionals dining. I met a doctor at the bar while I was waiting for my table, who recommended the Arctic Char to me. Unfortunately, ten minutes after I ordered it, the waitress came to the table and announced they were out of it. Tough blow to my stomach. We ordered a few appetizers and each of us ordered an entree as well. My grandson Ivan couldn't decide on getting his lamb rare or well-done. He ended up getting medium-rare and loved it. The food didn't come out in an orderly fashion. The waitress brought out my appetizer and Ivan's before everyone else's. Two minutes later, they me my Mediterranean Pizza followed by Ivan's lamb. Literally, 25 minutes later, and only after we asked, they brought Ace's and Samantha's entrees, when Ivan and I were already done eating. There was a bad storm that day and the place was packed. Nonetheless, the food was excellent. The mix-up in serving the food could be attributed to the place being so crowded. Usually, they don't make mistakes like that, so I'll keep coming back. This just not my best experience though, given that they didn't have the food I ordered and they didn't serve the meals in an orderly fashion. read more

Aldar is a bit of an undiscovered, unappreciated Main Line treasure. The dining room is attractive with a full bar. They're very welcoming and the service is very good. Most importantly, their large menu of Middle Eastern and continental specialities feature super fresh and high quality ingredients. Their salads and vegetables are terrific and their entrees are cooked with care and are excellent. read more

Loved it! Food and service excellent. We are new town and were very pleased to find such warm and welcoming place. Will certainly make sure to spread the word around with my colleagues and friends. The quality of the food is top, and staff treated us as family!! A keeper!!! read more

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This is one of the best middle eastern restaurants you'll find. The food is always high quality and the menu is huge. Great specials and great service too. read more

Enjoyed the fresh pita and hummus. I loved the crusted salmon special! Menu lists lots of other tempting dishes. Looking forward to trying again soon. read more

Aldar Bistro - Interior - Middle Eastern Near Me - Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania

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While looking for a change of pace in what to eat the other night, we opted for Al Dar -- the Middle Eastern fare sounded appealing. It was our second visit in a few years. This will be our last. After dropping $75 on two apps, a beer, a glass of wine and two entrees (including tip), we felt it wasn't worth it. Here's the lowdown: ATMOSPHERE is a tad loud, but not out of hand. APPS were poorly done. The calamari was rubbery and the marinara came in a plastic cup, which screams of "we don't care enough to put this in a glass side dish". The falafel was hard as a rock and tasted bland. WINE was overpriced. The price per glass rivaled some of the downtown restaurants, except the selection wasn't nearly as good. ENTREES were a pleasant surprise. My sea brass was prepared properly and offered a nice combination of flavors. My fiance had the stuffed cabbage and enjoyed every bite. SERVICE was good. When we expressed our dissapointed with the appetizers, our server apologized and offered to remove the calamari from our tab. That's how it should be handled. Kudos to her. BOTTOM LINE is you can easily drop $75 on dinner for two at any number of restaurants on the Main Line. I'd encourage you to do it elsewhere. Al Dar is overpriced and inconsistent. read more

Called to inquire about renting space for private event. Man who answered said he would be happy to discuss over the phone the next morning as it was dinner hour and they were extremely busy. I asked if I could send an email instead and he could reply at his convenience. He then cut me off saying he was too busy. All he had to do was give me his email or put it on the website. I'm not interested in calling back, I'm busy too especially since I work during the weekdays when apparently the guy is free. That's one large party you lost for no good reason. read more

Staple of main life cuisine. Food does not get better than this. Have been going here for as long as I can remember. Isaac, the chef, crafts meal after meal of high quality Mediterranean cuisine. The kibbie appetizer and entree are two of my favorites. Fantastic Chicken and Steak Kebabs. Don't be scared to talk to Walid--the bar tender. read more

Lets see here , We have one bad review ? OK a person who writes a bad review about this place is either antisocial OR Went on a date here and paid more than expected . The food is of very High quality and its priced accordingly . Pros - The Food , The availability of boozes (its a word i just made it) , The snapper and the coconut crusted salmon (its Godly) , the service and decor . Cons - bahaha! To be honest I did not find any . read more

My boyfriend and I went here for dinner last night. The food was good and the staff was friendly. We tried the Awarma (hummus topped with minced meat) for an appetizer which was really good. I got a salmon dish and my boyfriend tried the Roz Bi Djaj. Both were very tasty. While I really enjoyed my meal the entrees were definitely over priced. Next visit I'll probably just get a couple small plates. read more

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I like Al Dar. The menu is Middle Eastern with some Greek in the mix. Meals are pricey for dinner, but the quality is good and this was the only place near my old apartment where I could get kibbeh. Lunch prices are much more reasonable and you can grab a pretty good falafel sandwich. read more

Where do I begin? The evening started off bad and my gut feeling was to leave. We should have. I have known the owners for years and asked for them, I felt very insulted and hurt when they never even stopped by to say hello, obviously it was an imposition and not important, fine. It was not a busy night there, by the way. Then, we waited, and waited , and waited. We sat there for 20 minutes before anyone gave us water, asked us if we wanted a drink or took a food order. I had to get up and find someone to help us. Again, it was not a full house. I have known the owners since the Allegresse days. Finally, we ordered food. Disappointing, to say the least. It was great when it was Allegresse, believe me, our family dropped a lot of money there back in the day,my Mother & Father went there with 2 other couples nearly every weekend. I felt very offended that they did not even have a minute to say hello, I asked the server to tell them I was there, I felt hurt. Finally, the food came, it was very mediocre. I have seen the owner shop at Produce Junction, so nothing is organic and I am not sure of the quality of any of the food. If you want AMAZING Middle Eastern food, go to Zahav or Citron & Rose... Even Hummus in Ardmore is better. This terrible experience happened a month or two ago, I wasn't going to write a review but I am because I am still so offended. I hate wasting hard earned money on terrible food. Not fresh. Moral of the story? Listen to your gut feeling. They are real. read more

I cannot say enough good things about Al Dar Bistro. We had planned a celebratory dinner for 13 people at a nearby BYOB last night (Saturday), only to discover the restaurant had no power, was closed, and never called to tell us. Al Dar not only accommodated us at the last minute, but provided a private back room, a wonderful server, and delicious food. We ended up having a wonderful and memorable evening. We were, are and remain big fans of Al Dar Bistro. Helene & Jeff read more

Last night we ate at Aldars for the 4th or 5th time. We were seated promptly (although to be fair, we did have to wait sometimes in the past), the food was uniformly excellent, and the service was outstanding! The owner even stopped by the table to make sure everything was good. The only reason I did not give a 5th star was that it sometimes got noisy and difficult to hear. I recommend it to anyone who likes Mediterranean food, and even for the few dishes that are not. read more

Been to the restaurant several times with my family and enjoyed the food. Went in Aldar at 9pm last night (Thursday 5/17/18) after a Board Meeting with the President of Merion Park Civic Association and the President of Union Fire Company. Sit at the bar. Told by big bartender resembling Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson that they are closing. Why advertise that you are open til 10 pm if you stop people from entering at 9pm? Disappointing. There were still people in the establishment dining. Poor business practice to turn people away. If I were the owner, I would be upset. The tavern a few doors away was happy to have our business. read more

Aldar's was the perfect place to have our rehearsal dinner the day before our wedding, which was held at Evviva. George,Walid and the staff were excellent and very professional. The food in addition was delicious and all the guests loved the choice of appetizers and dinner selection.(especially the lamb and vegetable dumplings) The private room in the back of Aldars had plenty of space for the 40 plus guests. The backlava and coffee were a great ending to the meal. read more

I went with my daughter to Aldar's, and was not disappointed! We parked on the side of the road, right in front of the restaurant (a quarter=30 minutes). The restaurant was delightfully busy, but not too much so. The menu was on the pricier side, however. The service was prompt and attentive. The food was delicious! My daughter realized her meal did not come with hummus, and she was very disappointed, so the waitress snuck my daughter a side of hummus! Overall, wonderful experience. Would go again. read more

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I've been dining at Aldar for years and I'm amazed at their ability to consistently provide excellent food and service. The prices are just a hair high, but the food is wonderful. Try their innovative take on spanakopita! read more

I'm baffled by the reviews praising the food and panning the service. They are both bad, but definitely the food was worse. It literally is no better than poor diner food. We had: - calamari -- grilled rings of unbreaded and unseasoned calamari served on a bed of undressed spring mix with a lemon wedge on the side. The predominant flavor of this dish was bitterness (from the grill marks). - avocado salad - two halves of avocado sliced and laid face down on the plate with two slices of tomato topped with fresh mozzarella the whole thing dressed with dijon mustard. The avocado wasn't ripe and the mozzarella was surprisingly tasteless. - grilled pita bread bowl - half of the pitas were stale and definitely came out of a bag. Tasted very much like supermarket pita. - turkey burger - a very dense and very large pattie of turkey meat served on a brioche type roll. - chicken kebab - grilled chicken lacking seasoning or any discernible marination served on top of semi-buttery rice and some sauteed carrots and steamed broccoli. Some pieces of chicken were tender, but overall the dish lacked flavor. Still, this was the best dish of the night. How can a place like this be so prosperous? It was packed today (Wednesday)! You'd have to pay me to eat here again. It wasn't the worst meal I've ever had -- I don't have food poisoning and the food was all edible -- but it was definitely lacking in anything resembling actual flavor or salt or savoriness. read more

This is a stone's throw away from where I live. Very cordial servers. My wife and I have been here twice and have tried quite a few things from their menu. We liked them all so far. Try from their rather long list of starters. The ambience is also warm and friendly, perfect for a cosy dinner out. read more

If I were reviewing only the food, I'd give Aldar's five stars. They have very good quality choices and a nice wine selection. The service, unfortunately, is routinely bad. It's almost as if they are purposefully employing careless wait staff. I go to Aldar's ever so often because I love the food, and when I go I brace myself for some really lousy service...and I am rarely disappointed on either count. read more

If you like a little food with your salt, this is the place for you. Otherwise stay away. Food is in many cases inedible, poorly presented, and the only flavor that comes through is the salt. But, if you want more bread, be prepared to pay $2.99, which they warn you about on three spots on the menu. They also suggest that if you pay in credit card, tip in cash. Ha! read more

Was there last night for dinner. Slow sporadic service, a bit overpriced (with small portions) and their menu is very deceptive as it does not explain that traditional dishes are prepared very differently than in authentic Mediterranean/ middle eastern restaurants. Ordered the Moroccan chicken which was described as a chicken curry with couscous. Instead it was a bone in chicken breast and leg with some curry seasoning. I would have never overpaid for a chicken leg. In fact, everyone was surprised with their orders as the menu did not explain how any of the dishes are prepared. I would have asked questions before and refused the food after if the waitress ever came by and we didn't have an event after dinner we needed to attend. Food was decent but not worth the high price. Would definitely not recommend unless they get a new menu that actually explains how their odd versions of their dishes are prepared. read more

One of the best kept secrets. I've eaten here countless times. They never disappoint. The host, and waitstaff are always lovely. The desert is amazing! I love it here! read more

Great food and service last night! Generous mazza platter with tasty hummus, babaganoush and tabbouleh salad. Main courses were chicken kabobs and sirloin keftahs, All the food was exceptionally fresh and tasty. The servers could not have been more accommodating or friendly. read more