A true Pittsburgh institution. Hands down one of my favorite restaurants in all of this city. And, that's saying a lot considering what a foodie town the Steel City has become. In all of the years they have been in business (family owned since 1972), the quality and service has never waivered. I am an absolute nutter for Mediterranean food, specifically Syrian. The food is 100% legit, authentic. Made with love, care, & pride. My goodness that tabooli is INCREDIBLE! All fresh ingredients, all the time. Just the right amount of lemon so it doesn't overpower the rest of the flavors. The spinach & lentil soup reminds me of an old boyfriend's Sitty's kitchen. Her soup was the best and the stuff you get at Ali Baba is nearly identical. Kebab dinner platters and grape leaves are fantastic. If you're visiting Pittsburgh, check out North Oakland and this little gem. It's off the beaten path and not touristy but the food is solid and delicious. read more

Ali Baba - Middle Eastern Near Me - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

See all

I've been going to Ali Baba's to eat since I was a child. The food is authentic and made with family recipes that have been passed down. The service is always great and everyone makes you feel like family. It's a nice relaxing vibe. read more

This place is perfectly fine, nothing in particular was so extraordinary. Prices for dinner are reasonable, the vibes inside are good, dim lighting. I got the vegetarian trio: The baba ganoosh and hummus are tasty, have a good homemade quality to them. Artichoke was lack luster, just canned artichoke with tahini on it. The first basket of bread we got was cold, second was warm which was much better. Lamb kebob: He asked for it to be medium rare, was def well done. Rice was also a bit gummy. Arabic coffee: not as strong of a flavor as we would have liked. read more

Ali Baba - Vegetarian Trio - Middle Eastern Near Me - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

See all

This place has been reliably great since 1974 at least, one or two remodelings ago, when some seniors were playing backgammon at the bar for hours. Nowadays it's reliably great food. Their baba ghanooj is unbeatable, and I've truly enjoyed discovering new corners of their menu. read more

Solid spot for Middle Eastern food on Craig Street. Everyone working there was extremely nice and attentive. Prices are reasonable and the atmosphere is dark and cozy. I enjoyed the Ali Baba chicken shish kebab plate. read more

Ali Baba - Middle Eastern Near Me - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

See all

Ali Baba's should sit atop your list for Mediterranean, in my opinion. They have the best mujadarra in PGH. Lots of vegetarian offerings. All delicious and reasonably prices. Service is always good and with a smile. We love going there. read more

A true gem in North O. I've been here a couple times and decided to stop in tonight after craving Syrian/Mediterranean food. Family owned since 1972 so you know the food is good if it's been around for that long! I love the ambiance in here - it's so calming yet warm on the inside. The light fixtures and the art in the back wall add great touches to the vibe. I wanted to try something new so I got the lamb sandwich $11, which you can add fries for a couple more dollars too. I really liked it and the white sauce it came with but nothing beats the main entrees they offer. There's a couple draft and bottle beer selections but no other alcohol. Not sure if they're BYOB but I did see a couple who seemed like regulars that brought their own bottle in, I'd call to confirm! read more

Ali Baba - Lamb sandwich - Middle Eastern Near Me - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

This place has a great reputation around town, so I was excited to go there recently for a dinner with my wife. We enjoyed our meal, had no wait around 6pm on a Friday, and service was fast and friendly. The food was hit or miss. The shish kabob dinner was kind of disappointing. First it came with a tossed salad, which was pretty lame; all ice-berg lettuce with like three little tomatoes and slathered in dressing. The lamb was nicely cooked and tasty but there were only five small pieces. The meal also came with a small-ish and very plain side of rice. All in all, just not exciting enough for their most expensive dinner option. On the other hand, we really liked the veggie trio, which allows you to choose three of their vegetarian dishes for sharing. It was a large plate of food and a great variety. We got mujaddara (lentils with caremalized onions on top), sleek (kale simmered with black-eyed peas), and baba ghanooj. We got a basket of pita with this dish. All were very wholesome and filling for vegetarian options; the caremalized onions on the mujaddara were particularly delicious. read more

See all

My moussaka was so good! I was surprised to find that the eggplant was so soft that my fork easily sliced through it. The potatoes and lamb also went really well with it. I would definitely come back just for this dish! We came on a Friday night, it was pretty busy but we were able to be seated right away. Service was prompt and friendly. I appreciate the intimate ambiance. It's a great place to catch up with a friend. read more

Ali Baba - Moussaka - Middle Eastern Near Me - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Love this place. Remodled clean and the raw kibe is out of this world. Love to visit a couple times a year. read more

The portion is relatively small, but the advantage is that it is very close to the school (Hamburg Hall, TCS, and Tepper, just around the corner). I highly recommend the shawarma from this place. I also ordered the meat pie, which was a bit dry, but very delicious. read more

Nice ambience, attentive service. Food outstanding I highly recommend the chicken kebab platter. The chicken was some of the most flavorful and juicy chicken I have ever eaten. Muhammara, hummus and baba delicious. Fresh and tasty will definitely return. read more

Consistency with delectable food, attentive, kind and patient customer service and ambiance for over 30 years!

Went in for lunch on a Wednesday . The hostess asked if we had a reservation. Said no and we thought we weren't getting in even though there were plenty of open tables. She did seat us and we each ordered the platter with 3 items. It was as good as I remember it to be. Had the sleek, rice and baba ghanoush. Also a side of 3 mini pies, spinach, cheese and meat. Those were also good. In my opinion I think the cost was a little high for lunch but everything has gone up. Would definitely return and make a reservation next time. Parking is a nightmare over there. There is a CMU garage nearby $22 for 0-3 hours. read more

I have been coming to Ali Baba's for over forty years!! My husband went to this restaurant when he was a student at Pitt. It is our favorite restaurant in Pittsburgh. We are vegetarians, so we can order most dishes. The food is always extraordinary, and the staff is very friendly. Ali Baba's is a treasure in Oakland!! If you want good, homemade and authentic food, this is your place! read more

new to the area and decided to give them a try. ordered delivery but they missed a couple of items and i was told they couldn't give me a refund but would "give credit" in the future (but not sure how they would remember/know the "next time"). food was on par with some of the NYC area spots so might give them another try in the future. read more

Absolutely delicious (and authentic) Syrian/middle eastern food! As a half Lebanese person, I am very picky about middle eastern food and am so happy to say that Ali Baba gets 5 stars from me! The restaurant itself is cozy and charming with beautiful but understated decor. The staff is friendly and has good service. But the star of the show is the food which is so tasty and just perfect! The last time I went I got the mini pies as an appetizer, 2 cheese and 1 meat, and they were both great but the cheese one was my favorite. The Ali Baba platter with lamb was excellent: the lamb was cooked well and very flavorful, the rice was delicious (my favorite kind of rice!), and the hummus is truly the best I've ever had, don't tell my Tita! The Syrian tea which tastes a bit like chai but more cinnamon in flavor was the perfect drink for this meal and I got one of my favorite desserts, halawa bi jibn, which was perfection. I am so happy to have discovered this place and have been three times, will definitely be back for more. read more

Ali Baba - Halawa Bi - jibin and Syrian tea (cinnamon and chai flavor) - Middle Eastern Near Me - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

See all

Really quite good Middle Eastern food! There aren't too many restaurants offering some of these food options and I'm glad we have this place in Oakland. It's a great place to stop by after visiting the Carnegie Museum or as a Carnegie Mellon University student. I ordered the homemade plain yogurt, pita, Syrian chicken sandwich with tzatziki sauce, cheese pie, white rice with egg noodle as well as toasted nuts, feta cheese (1.5 oz) with olive, and halawa bi-jibn. The food is absolutely delicious and definitely very high quality. I'll start with the yogurt. You can easily tell this was homemade. It had a unique wholesome texture and flavor. Not salty, creamy but had little chunks (which is fine, it happens with homemade yogurt). The portion was unbelievably big for just $3! As in, bigger than most store bought yogurts by a large margin! Very good. The sides and little additions were great, too. Some individuals mentioned they did not receive pita, but I did. It was the standard pita you'd want. Fair portion, and great to dip in yogurt. The feta cheese was quite good as well. I'd say it's a bit too salty. I don't really understand why they combined feta (a very salty cheese) with an olive (quite a salty vegetable) since it was a bit overwhelming. Still, it's good to add in the sandwich. The tzatziki sauce was incredible. It came with the sandwich for free. Creamy, refreshing, and just prefect. On to the star of the meal: the Syrian chicken sandwich. Wow, wow, wow! An excellent sandwich and definitely one of the best lunches you could buy in the area. Super reasonable price at just $10(!!!) and great portion. The chicken has the perfect texture (it's shredded) and an amazing flavor. Nice wrap, crispy in the edges and soft in the middle. There weren't too many onions, and the sumac was a nice addition for that tanginess. So good, and highly recommend. The cheese pie was probably my least favorite item. It did come in a good portion. But, it was baked for too long and looked as well as tasted burnt. There also wasn't that much filling inside. The flavor was overall on the sweet side due to it having caramelized onions. I was expecting something similar to tiropita and was honestly a bit let down. The white rice and noodles were pretty good, but honestly I'd skip them. I thought I need some extra carbs to bulk up the meal, but it really wasn't necessary. Not much flavor but again, the portion was good. The egg noodles had a cool texture though. Finally, the dessert was also decently good. I've never had halawa bi-jibn so it was nice to give it a try. To my knowledge, this is the only restaurant that offers this dessert in the Pittsburgh area. The portion was on the small side. For me, it wasn't sweet enough. The texture was silky and it almost melted in your mouth. All in all, this is an excellent restaurant. The food comes in generous portions and it is authentic as well as delicious. If you want healthy food, this is also an excellent option! Some unique items and some more standard ones. I would for sure recommend Ali Baba! read more

See all

- lamb kabob ( cooked rare) was excellent - rice was delicious - good hummus - pita bread not great ( that was a disappointment) - fairly priced as portions are quite generous -friendly service - super casual but clean atmosphere Overall a good restaurant! read more

Best Syrian restaurant in Pittsburgh (maybe the country) hands down. Best hummus, baba, sish kabob, grape leaves by far. It's not just Mediterranean food, it's traditional Syrian/Arabic food, the region where hummus and other popular middle eastern dishes were invented. read more

I would rate this place between 3-4. I ordered the vegetarian trio - which included hummus, tabouli salad and sleek - and vegetarian falafel wrap. I judge a Mediterranean place by it's hummus. The hummus was good but not the best. I liked B52 but that's shut so this is the one of the places I've tried in Pittsburgh with decent hummus. Tabouli Salad was really good! I liked the vegetarian trio, I'll come back for it. The wrap was just ok, nothing great. Interiors- It is cute, nicely lit up and perfect for a candlelight dinner. The restaurant was clean overalll. Servers- They were perfect. They very kind and friendly. They helped me pick the trio. Parking - We found parking on the streets. It wasn't a hassle. I would recommend the readers to give it a shot! I would come back again. read more

Ali Baba - Interiors - Middle Eastern Near Me - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

See all

The restaurant does not look very appealing on the outside, but as soon as you step into Ali Baba you are transported to the Middle East immediately. The staff was super friendly, as i showed up as soon as they opened to get a table for my girlfriend and I. And I was really lucky that I came early, because within 30 to 45 minutes of opening, there was no availability! The staff let me sit there for 40ish minutes on my own and kept brining me water while I waited for my girlfriend, which I was super grateful for! As soon as she showed up, we put in our order. She had the student special, which comes with a tossed salad (she added feta cheese for an extra dollar), a big side of rice, and stewed lamb in a tomato sauce. The lamb was fall a part tender, the rice was super fragrant, and the salad tasted very fresh! For only $12, this was a really good portion of food and everything was delicious. I had the Kafta sand which which was stuffed with a bunch of vegetables and lamb. I had misread the menu and thought that it said you can add 2 sides for $2, but it was $2 per side. Because of this, I added on the tossed salad and the hummus. The hummus was really tasty and was topped with olive oil which was delicious! The sandwich itself was pretty big too: the lamb was super tender as well and everything was encased in a nice warm pita. To share, we ordered the baba ghanooj, which is a typical appetizer made of eggplant. It has a very similar consistency to hummus for reference. It was incredibly delicious though! I have never had it before and will definitely be ordering it from now on! I am really excited to come back for Ali Baba to try more of there amazing food! There was a backside to the menu that I forgot to photograph, but everything got the back side of the menu looked delicious as well! Definitely a good spot if you're in the area for lunch! read more

See all

Amazing food and phenomenal staff. Everyone is so friendly and helpful. You can't beat Ali Baba's for Mediterranean food in Pittsburgh, and in particular it's a nice break from the pizza places and Chipotle locations in Oakland. The vegetarian grape leaves are amazing and super lemon-y. The hummus is similarly delicious. Highly recommend. read more

First time here with friends. Loved the homey feel of this place. We were late for our reservation because traffic was heavy but Connie called and they said no problem, they'd hold the table. For appetizers, we shared the maza platter which had hummus, baba ganooj, feta, tabooli and artichokes. Presentation was lovely and everything was fresh and delicious. We also got a selection of the pies-cheese, olives and spinach and an order of mohorama. Again, very tasty. You'd think after all that food, we'd be full; however, we then ordered dinner. Three of us had sandwiches. I had the falafel wrap and it did not disappoint. My date ordered the shish kebab dinner and his only complaint was, compared to the rest of our dinners, his seemed a little small. But the lamb was perfectly cooked and well seasoned. read more

See all

Been eating here for over 40 years and still it is the best! Mujadara is exceptional as is the baba ghanoush, hummus, rice and spinach pies. Great place for so many vegetarian options. read more

Delicious Mediterranean food! I love the swarma wrap as well as the lentil soup - so cozy and warming! The atmosphere is lovely too! Great service! One of my fav Oakland lunch spots! read more

This is my favorite restaurant in Pittsburgh. Everything is so fresh, full of flavor and very authentic. I don't live in Pittsburgh but do try and visit every year and when I do, you can bet I'm going to be stopping by for dinner. read more

Great food, generous portions. Brought my own wine and cork fee was low. Nice server. Prices were very reasonable. read more

I love food from the Middle East so I was excited to come here for lunch after a morning at the museum. Sadly it was pretty underwhelming. The interior feels a bit of a time warp, it reminds me of a cafe from a film set in the '70s, it's very basic. The staff were friendly, but the service was a little lacking. "Excuse me, is it possible to get some cutlery to eat our salads with?" The food was okay but very bland. My husband had a chicken wrap and I had a lamb shawarma wrap. The bread they came in was good but there was just meat inside so they were a bit monotonous to eat. The salads were mostly iceberg lettuce, not very inspiring. Ali Baba is cheap and it is a viable option for a quick post museum lunch but it didn't impress us enough to consider revisiting next time we are in the area. read more

Jayne & I started coming here together when we began dating ten or so years ago. My late wife was Lebanese and, like her mother, a talented cook. The cooking style reminds me favorably of theirs. I've had everything on the menu & have never been disappointed. Jayne & I have since married & still come to Ali Baba often. read more

We have been eating here several times a year for the last 9 years and enjoying the food. They have everything we like and the food is usually a 4 to 5 The last couple of times we ate there, we also ordered takeout food when we left. We live across town and do not get here as often as we like The takeout portion was a bit skimpy compared to the eat in portions, but we ordered it again this time anyway thinking it was an off day. When we got our food home and opened it up, we discovered our baked kibbee had 1 inch of black burnt meat at one end. It was way more than well done. Really! We will try our luck somewhere else next time. read more

Kind and attentive staff, great ambiance, and affordable tasty food! Nestled away on S. Craig Street, Ali Baba is one of the most student friendly and fantastic restaurants that there is in the oakland area. I will take anyone here for a lowkey meal for as long as they allow it. Try the mohomara and the mussabaha if you get the chance! read more

very good food and service! the moussaka and the pies (3 for $6) were our favorites! we can't wait to go again! read more

Ali Baba - 3 pies (L to R): cheese, meat, spinach & feta, Moussaka, Syrian Soup, Tossed Salad, Pita Bread - Middle Eastern Near Me - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Walked over for lunch and truly had a terrific meal. It was very busy and it took just a little extra time to get greeted and get our food but it wasnt overly bad. We definitely didn't make it back to work in an hour, but don't tell my boss that. I got the falafel wrap and my friend ordered the lunch combo. Everything was delicious. i asked for tzaziki sauce instead of tahini and our server looked at me astonishingly. Whatever, it's what I like! We also got the hummus appetizer, which took entirely too long to be brought out. It, and the pita, were very good and flavorful however. The hummus is very smoky, which is new for me. I liked it. Lunch prices were on par with the other restaurants in the area. The ambiance and decor was nice yet still leaning towards average. I will definitely go back and/or place an order for pick up. I love falafel and while this wasn't in my top 3, it was still delicious. read more

So i ordered the stew lamb... I didn't see the land LOL!!! I received like 3 small squares of meet and a plate full of veggies..... I asked the server about the plate and the only thing she said was "sorry about that" and also this restaurant is not child friendly.. doesn't have changed table in the restroom. read more

Ali Baba - Middle Eastern Near Me - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Always love their food, but this time the lamb skewers were exceptional--rare and extremely soft and tasty And the grape leaves came warm and were delicious too Hummus and rice were perfect And that pita bread you can die for! read more

I had a terrible experience after I was chased down by the employee because I didn't tip. First of all tipping is OPTIONAL!!! Second of all how dare he chase me and my friend and try to intimidate us into tipping. I would like to emphasize it was dark and we're college students by ourselves in the store so you would imagine how scary the situation was for us. The man literally chased us out the store and wouldn't let us go until we tipped. This should not be acceptable and I am honestly disgusted by the treatment we received. Additionally the service was terrible before we even paid since he spilled some of the food he was serving us and didn't even APOLOGIZE, clean it up or try to replace our order. I am a person who tips when it's deserved and it was definitely not a deserved service. Be mindful of the service you provide and think twice before demanding tip. Shame on you. read more

I ordered takeout from Ali Baba for myself and a friend. As a vegetarian, I have always found so many options from which to choose. As usual, the meals were delicious. They we're ready to go when promised, and the cashier was very friendly. read more

I love getting a wrap for lunch from Ali Baba. Super nice staff and a nice eating space. I've noticed beers on tap. Also terrific for catering larger events. Have gone there many times. read more

The rice tasted like how my grandmother used to make it. The place is casual but the food is really good. I'll definitely be back. It's one of my favorite middle eastern places in the US. read more