We found this place while searching for a Persian restaurant during our road trip and I'm so glad we stopped here! They have dizi! It came with bread and was super tasty. I've honestly been craving it for years and was surprised to see it on the menu. We also tried their koobideh and homemade doogh, both were really good. Service was great too. Our server was friendly, checked on us throughout the meal and brought everything we needed quickly. read more

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The restaurant is a no-go despite having a soft spot for Iran in this tragic time. The waiter had a bad smirk when he took and delivered the order. I think he knew it was going to be a ripoff. Their signs in the bathroom were wrong. My son pointed it out to them. They gave him a stupid response. Not worth your calories or money. 2 stars is generous ---Not a good reply from the business manager-- they didn't learn anything from the other customers' complaints I read below. read more

Disappointing experience overall, especially for the price point. I Spent almost $100 for a family dinner. While the chicken and gyros were actually really good, the rest of the food was a letdown, the rice and salad were completely bland, and the bread was stale. Also the beef kebab was dry and saltier than the dead sea. On top of that, we got hit with surprise charges for sauce and peppers that nobody mentioned to us beforehand. Every restaurant i went to gives out sauce and condiments for no additional charge or notifies us. They didn't even bring us water until we explicitly asked for it, and they never came back to refill it once. Most places keep water topped off, but they definitely cut corners here. Our waitress was nice, but the waiter had a super forced smile and made it obvious he didn't want to be there. [[HIGHLIGHT]]The bathroom itself was clean, but they had a sign telling people not to flush anything including toilet paper, which is a total health hazard and a weird oversight for a restaurant.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] Some people may interpet this literally Between the mid food, hidden fees, lazy service, and weird bathroom signs, we won't be coming back. Save your money and go somewhere else. read more

Aria Restaurant - Poorly written bathroom sign - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Marcos, California

I was in the mood for Mediterranean/Persian food and glad my trusted Yelp App led me to Aria while I was in the area. [[HIGHLIGHT]]I walked into a spacious cozy restaurant with a welcoming atmosphere.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] I was seated right away by the hostess. And from there, I enjoyed the service from the super friendly waitresses. I knew exactly what I wanted to eat....Beef and Chicken Combo. My dinner was wonderfully deeelicious...sooo fresssh-n-flavorful. I'll definitely be back to try the other dishes. I highly recommend this hidden gem to the Yelp Community :-) read more

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Really easy to find parking in the lot, walk-in, and be seated right away. Such a friendly and welcoming staff too! My friend and I were served right away and our server had wonderful suggestions. We started out with the shallot dip. Loved the dip itself! I even added it to my rice later on. I had the chicken kabob and my friend had the lamb koobideh kabob. She loved her lamb (and it was delicious!), but I absolutely loved the chicken kabob. Just marinated wonderfully. Everything paired well with the basmati rice as expected. The kabob meals are very large so we only each got through a portion of our meals and we both needed to take some home. So wonderful larger portions overall. Happily filled. Can't wait for our next visit to try out more options! read more

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What a hidden gem! We were craving some good kebabs and found this nearby so decided to come try. We were greeted warmly and sat right away with our server providing lots of recommendations. We decided to start with the Falafel appetizer and lentil soup followed by the beef koobideh and chicken koobideh kebabs which also came with a big salad. Everything was so fresh and delicious- enjoyed the food and service! read more

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A hidden gem for great authentic Persian food! Absolutely love their kabob plate and it's a good portion of food and always consistently taste great. They also have beer and wine, really good traditional and authentic Iranian food and desserts. I've been here with family at least a dozen times and it's always so good! [[HIGHLIGHT]]Usually not very crowded either which is nice.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] read more

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We saw this restaurant just off the 78 in San Marcos. Since Mediterranean food is one of our favorites we thought we would try it out. We were not disappointed. [[HIGHLIGHT]]The decor is nice but not pretentious.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] We were greeted as we entered at about 2 pm. Everyone was very friendly. It was a very good start. Also, [[HIGHLIGHT]]we were surprised how many people were in the restaurant at that time of day. People must like it.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] We didn't order a lot since we are older and don't eat much food these days. We started with shallot dip made with Greek yogurt and shallots I presume. It's served with a delicious flat bread. The dip is quite tart and has great flavor. If it were me I would have ordered hummus but the dip was a very nice change. I had a Greek salad with a side of gyros meat. I have to say this was the best gyros meat I have ever had. It was moist and soft and hot. Definitely just sliced of the spit. Excellent! The salad was very fresh and complimented to meat perfectly. My wife ordered shish kebab. It was very tender beef served with basmati rice, roasted onions and bell pepper and zucchini and a broiled tomato. I had a few bits and it was also quite good. Our experience was very good at Aria. No opera was sung but the waiter was very nice and helpful and there when we needed him. I am very happy with our meal here. Everyone should try it. Thanks for a nice experience. read more

I made this account just to post this review. It was my first time trying Mediterranean food, and I ate everything on that plate. You will never catch me eating a grilled whole tomato or onion but I ate those up too. Whatever they did to it was magic, I ate it with the meat, I ate it with the bread, shit it was yummy just by its self. The meat was tender and literally melts in your mouth. I've never had that happen before. The rice was just yummy and whatever that sauce is, I drank it. I'm not from the area but I crave this place all the time. I have high standards because of this place. I don't want to go anywhere else. I'll see you at my wedding. read more

Aria Restaurant - Beef & Chicken Combo dinner - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Marcos, California

This has been our favorite authentic Persian restaurant for years We would go once a week Either lunch. Or dinner. Very very busy at dinner You will not be disappointed highly recommend Very far for us but worth the drive. We normally stayed the night when we went Nice long drive read more

This place is really delicious and consistent with what you receive. My friends ordered the gyro plate, a kabob koobideh plate and I got a Greek salad. Portions are really large, definitely large enough to share. My salad was yummy with lots of feta but I thought it could have used more toppings. Service is friendly and attentive. [[HIGHLIGHT]]The restaurant is always clean.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] [[HIGHLIGHT]]It does tend to be a bit warm inside the few times I've been but not a huge deal.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] We will be back! read more

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This was a nice Persian restaurant. The workers were friendly and attentive. I enjoyed my meal. The koobideh was delicious! You will love their desserts if you like the taste of rose water. There are multiple stalls in the bathroom. read more

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Aria is one of the BEST restaurants in San Marcos. Authentic, huge portions, their own parking lot, great service, amazing quality. Highly recommend the faloodeh! It's my fav ice cream ever!! read more

Aria Restaurant - gyro plate ( i think) - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Marcos, California

I ordered the combo beef Kubide and chicken $24.99 plus a side of grilled veggies $5.00+ a soda $+ The kubide was short and thinner. The chicken were small and few pieces. The veggies were barely grilled for few under grilled veggies costs me $5+ The price went up but the portion became smaller. That is when I stop going back to places like this. The plate I received and paid for is no where near the pictures posted on Yelp by others portion-wise and not what it was like before. I'm so disappointed and dissatisfied. Total cost of food for one person $45 tip included. I don't mind spending $ if I know I will be satisfied. I don't think I will ever come back and I do not recommend. read more

Aria Restaurant - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Marcos, California

I always enjoy going to Arias....I don't eat meat, usually, I get a falafel and fries. It has always been good. They have some nice sauces, good hummus and I usually get a side of cucumbers. ..service is always good....servers will answer any questions and are very helpful. [[HIGHLIGHT]]The restaurant, itself is very nice...they have lots of seating available[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] ..I often recommend this restaurant to my friends. read more

I order food from here often. Always great! Healthy fresh, and tasty! Like their chicken, beef or salmon kebab combo plates.

Seriously the best koobideh I ever had it had the perfect salt level and was oozing fatty juices all over when cutting it into pieces. The marinated chicken was almost equally as good at the beef koobideh. I never had chicken that I enjoyed more. It was also extremely juicy and flavorful. Plates are good portion but it was so damn good I over ate and finished it! Also, I highly recommend the pistachio ice cream it didn't have the typical hint of rose water but it was creamy and not too sweet. read more

Aria Restaurant - Beef & Chicken Combo lunch - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Marcos, California

Good food quality and service. Came here on my lunch break. I'll come back. I'd like if they had lunch specials but that's ok.

Authentic Persian food. Started with the homemade Dough, kashk-e-bademjan, mast-o-khair. We had the beef and chicken koobideh, chicken joojeh. We also ordered the gyros. Other than the gyros which are not Persian anyway, everything was excellent. The gyros were thicker than what you get at Greek restaurants but still quite good. The chicken was very juicy and very fresh. We had salads instead of rice and everything was very fresh and tasted great. Their baklava was amazing. They sell it by the piece which is great because baklava and Persian tea made for a great end to this meal. Service was attentive and very friendly. This is our new local favorite Persian place now. read more

I am not sure why this place got such great reviews. The food sounded pretty good on the menu but was not as good as it sounded. A couple of things stood out as negatives: - It took a REALLY long time for our food to arrive and our check at the end took forever to get also. - I got a vegetarian eggplant stew and it only had 2 small spears of eggplant in it. The rest of it was lentils and sauce. It should not have been called eggplant stew. It would be more aptly named lentil stew with 2 pieces of eggplant. The sauce was okay. The 2 pieces of eggplant were very tasty. The strangest part is that the dish came with a HEAPING portion of Basmati Rice. I mean heaping! There was at least 3 cups of rice if not 4 on the plate. So the whole meal was a small portion of eggplant and lentils and 3 cups of plain Basmati Rice. Extremely disappointing. My friend had a stew also but her's was more tasty and consisted of a pomegranite based thick sauce and chicken pieces. Her sauce was tasty and the chicken was tender but again - small portion with a huge portion of rice. In my humble opinion they could serve 1 cup of rice with some veggies on the side along with the stew and it would be much better. Prices didn't seem bad until we got the meal and realized that most of the meal was Basmati rice. [[HIGHLIGHT]]I did like that it was not noisy inside and we could hear each other talk.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] I probably won't return as the food was just okay. read more

A beautiful people and a beautiful cuisine! Thank you for representing the delicious foods of the Persian people we love so much!

Lunch and dinner is good here. Lunch or dinner plate its always been good. Service is prompt. Hummus and warm pita here is my favorite. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Seating and table cleaned.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] read more

My go to lunch spot. It started with the falafel and now I'm trying all sorts of great lunch plates. My job often gets their catering for meetings too! read more

Extraordinary! I can't believe I hadn't discovered this place sooner. It's a hidden gem tucked away in an industrial park in San Marcos (plenty of parking too), and the food is absolutely exquisite. I ordered a family platter for pickup and everything was fantastic. The chicken kabobs were incredibly flavorful and tender, the grilled onions and tomatoes were a perfect addition, and the gyro meat was outstanding. The platter also came with a fresh salad. My only small disappointment was that it didn't include pita bread, which I typically associate with gyro meat. That said, it may have been something I simply overlooked on the menu... perhaps it can be ordered as a side? [[HIGHLIGHT]]The restaurant itself appears quite elegant with plenty of seating, and it was clearly popular, as there was a steady flow of patrons dining in while I picked up my order.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] The staff were professional and personable. I will absolutely be back! read more

I had lunch here today with my daughter for a late Mother's Day lunch, and the food was fabulous. We started out with a snack plate that had hummus, olives, and something like tzatziki with pita bread and it was really really good. We even took containers of hummus home with us after we were done. I had the chicken kebab with rice and salad and she had a beef kebab lunch with rice and salad as well and everything was tasty. We had so much food we had to take food home. The person that waited on us was extremely nice and was very attentive. We will be back!! this was a great experience read more

Food - Adas polo was delicious with it - chicken kebab; and beef koobideh; tahdig was crunchy and had it with ghormeh sabzi! Service by Mostafa was excellent! Timing was good, had shirazi salad upgrade! Finished with Hot Tea and Baklava! Happy with this place! The hot tea was delicious too! read more

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If you've never had Persian food before, I highly recommend starting with the Chicken and Beef Kebab Koobideh Combo Plate. Personally, I lean toward the beef a little more, but both are excellent. To me, this dish is the staple of Persian cuisine. Be sure to try the grilled tomatoes and onions as well, but honestly, that plate on its own is perfect. Pair it with a cup of hot tea and a few sugar cubes, and you've got a meal that's close to perfect. The ambiance is nothing fancy , very simple, clean, but that doesn't take away from the experience. At the end of the day, it's all about the food, and here it's served with love and care. read more

Aria Restaurant - Chicken and Beef Kebab Koobideh Combo Plate and hot tea - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Marcos, California

Great Persian/Mediterranean cuisine, delicious and healthy food, friendly customer service. Strongly recommended read more

Was visiting the area and wanted to try a local restaurant and you just don't find Persian food everywhere. Was greeted and seated right away despite looking fairly busy. Our lovely server came to the table and happily answered our questions about our choices and whether or not there were nuts in them since we have an allergy. We were starving and decided to order the dip platter starter, delicious! What we didn't know though was how insanely huge the entree portions would be haha. You WILL NOT leave this place hungry! But it was really good and fresh and we enjoyed our dinner and the evening. Will definitely go here again when in the area! read more

Overall pretty decent, but at times a bit dry on the Kabobs. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Friendly staff, pleasant decor inside and decent portions, especially considering how most restaurants now are getting very conservative with their former portions.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]]..still, prices for combination dinner plates are a bit high though! read more

Aria is a Persian gem in the Escondido area. The chicken Koobideh is so flavorful my husband and I were fighting over the last piece. The beef is equally as delicious and SO tender. The rice is a nice complement but I did miss the grilled onion, tomato and basil Ive had with Koobideh at other spots. Not a big deal, but I would recommend splitting a side and entree to get some variation. The staff was friendly, and the decor is classic but very nice- clean and spacious. Almost looks like a converted Marie Calendars. Last-dessert! Do not leave without trying the Saffron ice cream! Its going to make your day! read more

Aria has very tasty food, especially the kebobs. They also have a wide variety of kebabs including ground beef, chicken, steak, and lamb. The tadik was a little over cooked which took the enjoyment of eating it away, but there plane rice is great. If you are looking to buy several Kebobs, don't get the combo but get them a la carté. They are also busy late, so if you want to get in and out go early. read more

Aria Restaurant - Kabob - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Marcos, California

[[HIGHLIGHT]]Table in the corner was not comfortable for 7, table was too narrow.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] Food took forever to come out and when it did, the chicken kabob was cold and dry. We've eaten twice here before and loved the food- especially the chicken but today was disappointing, especially since we treated Dad out. He wasn't happy. read more

We love coming here. Nice, bright ambience... friendly staff. Food is always consistently perfect, meat is always tender, juicy and flavorful. Rice is perfectly cooked, and salad is always refreshing. My favorite here is the Chicken Koobideh but you can't go wrong with any kind of meat here. I have yet to try their stews! We talked to another customer the last time we were here and he ordered some kind of lamb stew and he said that he comes here all the way from LA for that. Now, THAT is a must try! I just need to find out what the dish is called read more

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My family and I (husband & 2 kids) as well as a friend, were staying at the Lakehouse resort not far from this restaurant! We stopped in on a Tuesday evening & LOVED IT. Food was delicious, staff was super friendly! Quiet and chill environment for the evening. It was such a great/filling dinner! Definitely recommend if you're in the area! read more

Aria Restaurant - Never seen this beer before, decided to try it & it was delicious! - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Marcos, California

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This place is not good anymore. Very disappointed. Old rice and old koobideh what I got today and last time was almost same issue . I should not stopped again but I did . No more food from Aria for me anymore.. read more

Delicious food & I highly recommend this Aria! It's some of the best food I have had in a long time. I have Celiac and appreciate their wide range of gluten-free options, allowing me to enjoy anything I want. read more

Aria restaurant is amazing,the food is wonderful , delicious and fresh , one of the best koobedih in town The hospitality is excellent, the clean and quiet atmosphere Highly recommended read more

A hidden gem in San Marcos for sure. [[HIGHLIGHT]]When you walk in, it smells like a Persian restaurant.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] My boyfriend and I took my mom here yesterday for her birthday and everything was wonderful. From the food to the service. 10/10. We will we back soon! read more

There was a buffet branch for the Mother's Day yesterday and I love it! The food were good, kabob was juicy, hummus and tzatziki sauce were the best and baklava was delicious! Anna the waitress is so nice! read more

Aria Restaurant - Buffet brunch food - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Marcos, California