This is my favorite restaurant. My family and I have been going there since it opened 20 years ago. We now live in Baltimore and always stop at Ali Baba on our way home from road trips up the East Coast. This is a family owned small business and all the staff is incredibly kind and helpful. The carrot and eggplant salads are LEGENDARY. I dream about them and we always get extra to take home with us. Our favorite entrees are the Samke Harre and the spicy Chicken. The Bastilla is also the best I have ever had. The will bring you as. Much pita bread as you want, FOR FREE. Everything is made in house and fresh. I can't speak for the hookah bar area because that's not my thing, but it is a large area and people seem to enjoy it. I hope Ali Baba stays on Main St forever because it brings much needed small business flavor to Newark. Main St is mostly corporate chains now, which is sad because Newark used to be quirky and have its own personality because of all the small businesses. read more

Ali Baba - Bastilla. Delicious and different. - Mediterranean Near Me - Newark, Delaware

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Unassuming facade but lively interior. Food was top notch and filling. Service, impeccable. Everyone very polite and helpful. Started with Moroccan Carrot salad, bursting with flavor, and the Ali Baba Hummus. Hummus was fresh and full of flavor. Best we've ever had. For entrees, my wife had the Lamb Kabobs and I had the Lamb Tajeen. Both were healing portions we couldn't finish. Beverages are in cans unless you order water or hot tea. 5 out of 5. Atmosphere seals the deal with comfortable seating (get a table, not a booth). read more

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4.5 stars for a great early dinner and an unexpected find. We pulled off I-95 to avoid a traffic jam during a weekend road trip and decided to return to Newark for a college town bite (they always have lots of options). Service was warm and efficient and the decor took us away briefly to Morocco. The mint tea was sweet and tasty, the lentil soup with a squeeze of lemon was yummy, and the veggie sampler platter was terrific and a perfectly sized portion. The baba ghanoush was the best option on the plate, hummus was good, fattoush yummy, and felafel was just okay, a bit dry. All in all, a great meal not far from I-95. Good prices, great service, and tasty Middle Eastern food. read more

Ali Baba - Veggie sampler platter was fantastic, especially the baba ghanoush! - Mediterranean Near Me - Newark, Delaware

Wonderful food and chill ambience Authentic and very quick and friendly staff Loved the flavor and the atmosphere read more

Ali Baba - Lamb Kabob - Mediterranean Near Me - Newark, Delaware

Always enjoy our meals from Ali baba. Newark has few Middle East choices, these folks know not only how to prepare our favorites, the atmosphere of the restaurant is fun, and popular. They have a huge hookah inventory as well. read more

Just had my Moroccan food fix and came away very satisfied. Had lamb kabobs, hummus, tabouli and Moroccan salad. Everything was so fresh and obviously homemade. Portions are generous as well. The service is very good with everyone making sure you're pleased with your meal. Just 2 criticisms. First, the pita is thin, dry and leathery. Second, the place seems a bit dated. I understand it's supposed to have a casbah vibe but it seems a bit drab. The more important thing, though, is that the food is authentic and great. read more

Delicious food and friendly staff. You feel appreciated at this place and always leave full and happy. Authentic middle eastern feel of the place. read more

Ali Baba - Lamb Kabob w/ Hummus and Tabouleh - Mediterranean Near Me - Newark, Delaware

The best place for Moroccan. I love their different salads and the chicken...yummy!!!

Great place, amazing food ,great ambiance .outstanding staff I would definitely come back, and recommend it for friends and family read more

Good food here. Love how consistent it is. Kind of expensive but you get good quality and quantity. One of the best Mediterranean in area

Great service, consistently good food. And delivery orders were complete and fresh. A favorite spot.

The best Middle Eastern food in the area! It's not a huge place, not super fancy but always a great vibe. We've tried pretty much everything on the menu before I decided to write this review (just started eating too fast before snapping more pictures but will update soon) and it is hard to say what our favorites are because we haven't had a bad meal or appetizer. What's best is that it is consistently good and the staff is super friendly and welcoming. Hookahs are on point and delicious choices for vegetarians as well. There is something for everyone, you will not be disappointed. P.S. - being of Middle Eastern decent, I feel we are probably more critical than most and we give this restaurant a solid five stars. read more

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Road-stupid from the drive up from Raleigh, we decided to pick up dinner from Ali Baba on the way to our hotel. Best. Decision. Ever. The dajaj Mashwy was packed so it stayed hot and turned out to be a delicious treat. The vegetarian platter was amazing, especially the babaganush. We have enough for dinner when we arrive home tomorrow. That, or the housekeeper will have a lunch treat because we have again forgotten to take it from the little refrigerator. Lucky housekeeper. We pass through Newark at least twice per year. There is no question where we will eat from now on. read more

I started going here about 10 years ago for both hookah and food. I no longer smoke or live in the area but I eat here whenever I visit family in DE because the Moroccan chicken is one of the best things I have ever eaten. The Dajaj Mashwy is also delicious, as is their rice but I have yet to find anything close to their Moroccan chicken anywhere else. The chicken is always tender and extremely juice, full of flavor. Definitely a Delaware gem! read more

Ali Baba - Moroccan Chicken, Dajaj Mashwy - Mediterranean Near Me - Newark, Delaware

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Very testy. Falafel and chicken skew kebab is out of the world. But the prices is very high.

I was here for the first time with a few of my friends. Sangria that I drank was pretty awesome! A friend and I shared a large portion of Moroccan chicken which was out of this world. So soft and tender! We got a side of rice which was very good, too. The only thing that I didn't like was the pita bread. It is pretty tasteless...The service was not too great as the drinks order at our table got messed up at one point but everything else was ok. We also waited for our food quite long but it was worth it in the end. I will definitely come back to try other items on the menu. read more

My go to spot if I'm in Delaware. Great service and hospitality, super fresh food, and hands down the best hookah I've ever had. The hookah burned super slow and tasted great for so long! Some of my favorite dishes are the samosa fingers (the hot sauce on the side is homemade and so tasty), hummus, fattoush, the kabobs (lovely grill taste and seasoned to perfection), and the salmon platter. read more

Ali Baba - Samosa Fingers (V) (3 Pieces) - Mediterranean Near Me - Newark, Delaware

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Food is always amazing, staff is so friendly and helpful decor is classy. Morocco's chicken is so yummy and mint tea is relaxing.

Must try! We were recommended to this place and we are so glad we tried it. All the food were so flavorful & big portions for a very fair price. We ordered their Hommus / Pita bread--they did not skimp! Falafel-- tasted fresh! Lamb Tajeen--lamb was very moist, we didn't care for the rice with vegetables too much, will substitute for white rice next time. Moroccan Chicken-- with harisa cumin sauce (spicy). To die for, chicken came right off the bone and we dipped everything in the harisa sauce. Customer service was excellent, very personable & fast! All this plus drinks was $50!! read more

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This is one of our favorite restaurants in Newark! The food is always fresh and delicious. The owners and staff truly care and take an interest in their customers. We also used Ali Baba to cater our son's rehearsal dinner which was at our house. We went and picked up the trays of food and brought them to the house. All our family members raved about how good the food was. We love this place and it is a regular spot for us to eat out or get takeout from. read more

Terrific food (we had lamb and salmon) and friendly service. I would not hesitate to go again! (And don't forget to try the Lebanese wine!)

I've been going to Ali Baba since they opened many years ago. This is a unique restaurant with a great atmosphere. Highly recommend!

Hummus and Baba Ghanoush lovers will leave happy without a doubt. I caution those that depend on speedy service because that has never been a part of my experience here. I usually go for the salads, falafel, and dips - I leave out ordering meat since there isn't anything especially exciting about the cost, quality, or flavor of it. Do I like this place? Yeah, great vibes. Do I want to take my high-maintenance father here? Nope. In my head, it's the place you go if your original pick on Main Street had a crazy long wait. read more

The salmon, hummus, kabobs, Spanakopita all great. The staff are very pleasant. The atmosphere authentic.

Incredible food, excellent service and did I mention the incredible food? Drinks are awesome too! I had the Long Island Ice Tea and a sea breeze... Everything was delish. We ordered the chicken kabob and chicken pita wrap with an ail babba salad with feta cheese. Great prices and service was good;-). I'll definitely be back! read more

Ali Baba - Long Iced Tea - Mediterranean Near Me - Newark, Delaware

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Stumbled in here with a friend when the place we were planning to go to was closed--and I couldn't be more glad we did! The vibe was incredibly warm and comfortable, and the staff were all very kind, helpful, and attentive. There was a bit of a wait for our food (and the staff kept us updated), but it was more than worth it. We ate in happy silence for the first 10 minutes, no joke. I had the Mujadara and my friend had the Dajaj Mashwy. Overall a great experience :) read more

Ali Baba - Mediterranean Near Me - Newark, Delaware

We've never eaten here before, but I grew up eating all sorts of foods from different cultures including Middle Eastern food. I was really looking forward to the dinner we ordered, sadly I have to say it wasn't what we expected. The food we ordered & had delivered was overly salty, greasy & and overly sweet. We had Samosa Chicken, Falafel, Vegetarian Lentil Soup & Baklava read more

A great spot. Wait staff friendly. Food fantastic. Was not here for a few years with the advent of Covid 19. Cane back with my wife and daughter had a great meal. Please forgive my ignorance. I can not remember the exact wording or spelling. I had the roasted chicken with rice. It was fantastic. A really nice night out. Great meal... We will return much sooner this time. I highly recommend this place. read more

As always a fantastic meal! The Bastille, Moroccan chicken and Red Majudara tonight and I couldn't get enough. Their tzatziki is amazing, the garlic sauce, and omg get the rice. Everything is fresh with quality ingredients and consistent every visit. The people are so nice and genuine; I really can't say enough good things about this place. read more

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this is always been one of my absolute favorite restaurants, I love how they have the hookah bar that you can smoke outside, I love how they have the most amazing food, the lobby, the falafel, the hummus, the lamb and everything is wonderful. the coffee the Lebanese coffee is absolutely the best, and the food, moroccan, Lebanese and Middle Eastern in general, is perfect. read more

Great place to eat and order from, been going for years, super nice people and food is top tier

Pretty good!! With all the choices in this area... How to find a good place? Yelp! And a strong recommendation from friends. Ordered the mint tea. Good flavor but it came out luke warm... I like my tea hot!!! Then the Moroccan chicken. Now this was in point. To die for. This is how I like my chicken!!! Falling off the bone. The flavor seeped into every crevice and waiting to explode in your mouth. Yum. Lemony and so good. The sauce is sooooooooo good. I want to bottle it and take it home... Now the rice. The rice is laced with something. It is addictive and so fluffy and creamy and soft and the flavor is perfect. I can only surmise that the rice was cooked using chicken broth. Such a deep rich flavor!! Now there was so much food that I had a whole nother meal... And reheating it? No problem. Just as good... Tried the baklava. Meh. Not my fav. But that's not why I'm going to come back to this place ;) read more

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Longtime favorite of mine--one of the first restaurants I really liked in Delaware and it's very reliable. The good: Traditional Middle Eastern fare such as kebabs, stuffed grape leaves (dolmas), lentil soup, mjeddara (lentils and rice with caramelized onion), hummus, falafel, shwarma, gyros, and salads. I'm a huge fan of the salads, carrot salad, fatoush (pronounced FAT-TUSH, love that, eh?) and tabbouleh are great. There are MANY vegetarian, even VEGAN options; the lentil soup, the dolmas have no meat, the falafel, hummus with pita bread, some of the salads, mjeddara (if you ask to have them leave off the tatziki yogurt side dish.) They have those tooth-achingly sweet pastries beloved of the Middle East--baklava and lady fingers (rolls of phyllo stuffed with nuts and honey.) Not vegan, the recipe includes a lot of clarified butter brushed on the phyllo. They even have Bastilla, the chicken and scrambled egg pastry in phyllo, topped with powdered sugar and cinnamon. Yes, that sounds WEIRD but you have to try it. The flavors blend and it's one of those "more-ish" (forgive the pun) dishes that make you want to take another and yet another bite. You sit in a Moroccan styled room with the bright but dimly lit decor, couches surrounding the room and the low tables. Mint tea, quite authentic, is served. The Bad: It is not very fast for a seated lunch. The concept of FAST doesn't jibe with this part of the world, where eating out is a party, and meant to be savored. Which is a shame in a way, as I'd eat this every day, every meal if I was close enough and sometimes in the US, speed is of the essence sad to say. But you can call and order ahead for take out or they have some delivery (never tried that, I'm out of their area.) Summary: One of my faves, delish, healthy food, plenty of it and you can take a vegan friend and they will be absolutely satisfied as well. Happy happy. read more

My favorite place!!! Love it! If you aren't familiar with Middle Eastern foods don't think you are heading here for Indian. I always have people ask me if its Indian food and I explain its not. I love the falafel, the eggplant salad (more like a stew than a salad) ( hard to explain but it's delicious) and the Lebanese salad with pita and feta cheese. So much good stuff here and I recommend getting several things for sharing with your group. Be prepared to sit low on either stools or couch like seating with low tables. Very relaxed feel and friendly service. read more

I wanted to like Ali Baba, but I couldn't. In the end, the kitchen and the front office fundamentally failed to execute. Service is the primary issue; there is something important about how to manage a restaurant that these guys don't get. From the initial greeting by the manager, to being seated at a table we didn't want, to the long long wait for drinks, to the long long wait for food, the service distracted from the dining experience. Even so, I was waiting for the food to make it all worthwhile. Not to be. Although it was nice to see pastille on the menu (and it was a competent incarnation, although short on the chicken and the nuts) and the tomato and cucumber salad was tasty, the kitchen has problems too. For one, they use the wrong rice and season it poorly. Getting the rice wrong is a big problem when it comes to Middle eastern food. Even the Moroccan chicken - which was nicely cooked with crispy skin and an interesting lemon sauce - failed to excite. The baba ganoush tasted too much like something else - tahini overload. The pita were fine, but neither hot nor compelling. There was an effort made in the decor of the back dining room. The front room less so and the outside dining area not at all. The men's room reminded me more of...well, let's just say it needed attention. "Ali Baba" can be a word for thief in Arabic. These folks certainly stole an evening from me. If you like this restaurant, you'll be blown away by a people who actually get it right. Try Marhaba in Lambertville NJ or Baba's Kitchen in Baltimore. read more

Best hookah Place period. Very easy nice casual chilled out place. The food is very good too. And for the price, it is awesome. The guys are very friendly too. Have been here so many times, didn't realize tht I have not reviewed it. Best place to hangout with friends and enjoy conversation. The music plays in the background. Outdoor seating is for hookah and indoors for food. I would recommend indoors of coming with kids. Overall the crowd is very young as it is student area. Highly recommend this place. read more

I must remove a star from my original rating of 4 because I came back here and tried some of their other dishes (bean soup, shrimp kabob, Morocan chicken) and found them all to be subpar. They were all pretty bland dishes. The Morocan chicken was bathed in some oils spice sauce blend and it was heavy on the taste of cumin. The chicken itself had no flavor whatsoever and the sauce did not make up for it. Shrimps were big but tasteless and rubbery. Bean soup was way over priced. $2 for a small bowl of boiled beans and lentils! Overall this restaurant has some great lamb dishes and some good chicken dishes, but everything else I've tried was bad. This place is a hit or miss. read more

Outstanding food and you definitely get your monies worth! I highly recommend Ali Baba. I have never had a bad meal here and take out has been awesome during COVID! read more

I love this place. The food is great, the staff is very friendly and attentive. I usually get a veggie platter because I am on a plant-based diet and my husband adores Maroccan Chicken. The prices are pretty affordable for the amount of food you get. They also have a large selection of hookah flavors. So far our favorite is Blueberry Mint. read more

Ali Baba - Veggie platter. - Mediterranean Near Me - Newark, Delaware

I love Ali Baba the food is Amazing! I have tried a lot of different stuff on there menu they never seem to disappoint me, and the service is great the staff are very friendly. read more