Went here today for the first time, in part because of the glowing reviews. Got their Shawarma salad, to go. The menu describes it as having lemon, olives, and "pickled wild cucumbers" among other things. In reality, there was no sign of the olives, pickles, or lemon. I called to ask about this, and the person (not the guy who originally took the order) was heard talking to a woman in the background to clarify. She curtly said that this salad "does not come with olives." Well, their menu says that it does, I've attached a screenshot. The guy on the phone then said to me, "Look, there's nothing I can do about this." One star review is for that type of attitude: first screwing up, then trying to cover it up, then arguing the point. Not going there again. read more

Cafe Yafa - Mediterranean Near Me - Natick, Massachusetts

This cute cafe has the most delicious food! Everything we had tasted very fresh and homemade, even our youngest (pickiest) ate every last bite. Highly recommend! And definitely grab some items to take home, the olive oil and spices are excellent! read more

Very casual place with great food at reasonable prices. We shared a Greek salad which was fresh and included lettuce, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, onions, oregano, vinegar, lemon juice, mint, sumac, feta cheese, olives (pits removed), and olive oil. Falafel wrap was very good with the right mixture of ingredients. The wow dish was the shakshuka lamb. The lamb was perfectly marinated and cooked so that it was rich in flavor and tender. It was served with a perfect mixture of onions, tomatoes, bell pepper, paprika, chili flakes, cumin, garlic, olive oil, and fresh cilantro on top. Definitely a dish worth coming back for. Service was perfect and the place is very clean. Drawbacks are cheap napkins and plastic utensils. This was our first visit and looking forward to many more visits when I'm in the neighborhood. read more

New place, tried it for the first time today- delicious orzo salad, chicken kebab, and eggplant platter - don't miss the zaatar manakish flatbread (tip: it's under "breakfast" in the online menu). Everything was tasty, with notably fresh veg. Note you can order online from their website now, though the site worked better for desktop than mobile: http://www.cafeyafa.menu/ We really appreciated the online ordering and curbside pickup option. Hope this place flourishes, it deserves to! We'll be back. read more

Cafe Yafa - orzo salad, eggplant platter and chicken kebab - Mediterranean Near Me - Natick, Massachusetts

Food here is always incredibly fresh, with crisp veggies in the salad and perfectly cooked chicken kababs. I often find myself craving the Yafa Chicken Salad, which comes with peppers cucumbers, tomatoes, olives and a mountain of feta. Just wish it came with a side of pita and hummus. One menu suggestion is to add a fuller chicken shawarma wrap (the ones served now are a little too small to be a full meal, in my opinion). A bigger one would be in my lunch rotation for sure! Also the owner and staff are wonderful -- friendly and warm. read more

Cafe Yafa - Yafa Chicken Salad - Mediterranean Near Me - Natick, Massachusetts

Great people and great food! Love you guys! I had the chicken shawarma, pickles, olive oil, chocolate chip cookies, and baklava. Amazing

Delicious food! The service was also stunning. It's great for casual dining, will definitely be coming back read more

Cafe Yafa - Falafel Plate - Mediterranean Near Me - Natick, Massachusetts

We stopped in on our way home to Westboro ... mainly because it was too late to make a reasonable dinner ourselves. We both ordered the falafel in pita/naan. Fabulous sandwich! Loved the pickled cucumber and the rest of the assorted vegetables in the sandwich. The falafel itself was excellent. The staff was very accommodating. The tables very clean. Will be back! read more

The falafel is wonderful and the hummus is so good. The cafe is super cute and inviting as well. It has a small selection of Palestinian groceries too, I got a big bag of za'taar that tastes amazing on everything. The vegan options are really nice, and clearly labeled! I will definitely be back, read more

I only leave a recommendation on Yelp maybe once every year or two. This is one of those times. This place is a gem. Tonight I ate here for the first time. Really excellent food and large portions. As good as any other Middle Eastern food I've had. And nice people. And inexpensive. It's about a half hour from me, I just happened to go because I was meeting a friend. If it were closer, I'm sure I'd eat there at least once or twice a week. I did the next best thing and ordered a bunch of food to go. read more

Cute cafe with great middle eastern food and a terrific coffee bar. The owner is so friendly and accommodating and the food is all made fresh to order. Highly recommend. read more

See all

Absolutely delicious I got it today through door dash, beef shawarma. Absolutely delicious came with pita bread and a side of hummus! read more

Cafe Yafa - Shawermah beef plate - Mediterranean Near Me - Natick, Massachusetts

TAKEOUT REVIEW ONLY Traveling on business, stuck in hotel in Newton, I want some delicious ethnic food for lunch. I launch Uber Eats and find Cafe Yafa in Natick. Uber Eats took forever. After seeing nothing happening for 20 minutes I actually called the restaurant. They said my order was ready immediately, but that Uber Eats was having trouble finding a driver. My order was finally delivered 1:45 after I placed the order! I ordered a falafel sandwich (Falafel, pita bread, sliced tomato, pickled wild cucumber, turnip pickles, lettuce, sumac and tahini sauce) and a baklava dessert. Both were fine, but nothing special. Obviously a 1:45 delay didn't help the falafel sandwich to taste warm and fresh. But I found it a bit dry, there was no extra tahini to moisten and freshen the sandwich. Saving grace was the pickled wild cucumber and turnip, these are unusual and were excellent ingredients. I am crazy for good baklava and this one was ok, nowhere near the best I've had. A bit moist rather than the nice light crunch of fresh baklava. Not too sweet which is good. Food rating is good, so a 4 rather than 3 stars. I was hoping for a 5. read more

Great food - tasted very fresh. Amazing service. We also got the baklava and it was delicious. read more

Cafe Yafa - Chicken Kabab Plate, Shawermah Plate, Falafel - Mediterranean Near Me - Natick, Massachusetts

Excellent food, clean and comfortable restaurant. The food never dissappoints. One of the best places in Natick to get vegetarian options.

Cafe Yafa is fantastic. The food is amazing . . . always super fresh and made to order. Add to that some of the friendliest service ever and you have a real winner. Easy parking and right off Rte. 9 too. Great spot, great food, great people, 5 starts all of the way. read more

Fresh and delicious food that's made with the care and love of home cooking. Cafe Yafa is a gem and the owner, Mo, is wonderful. The manakish is a unique and delicious (we had spinach, but there are other option). Falafel was freshly cooked to order and fantastic. Highly recommended! read more

I was expecting a reasonable plate meal with the price I paid. It's very expensive. I have been to other Mediterranean or Arabic restaurants and they aren't like this. I'm Arabic and the chicken shawarma has nothing to do with Shawarma. Kebeh with meat not that much I ate way better in other restaurant. You get a humose (chickpeas) comes in a very small container as a sample!! I paid $63+$9tips for food samples !!! I don't recommend this place. read more

Great food and service. A must visit if you're in the mood for Mediterranean food!!!!

Friendly! Delicious! Welcoming! Such a wonderful place to enjoy :) so thankful for Cafe Yafa in narick :) pick up some tasty homemade or packaged goods to go, too! read more

Just stopped in for a quick lunch. Everything was so fresh and tasty. Good and good for you. We will be back. Worth the drive from Foxboro! read more

I got the beef with a tomato base sauce.The beef needed to be cooked at least an hour longer- super tough ! I do have to say the fatoosh salad was great. read more

Visiting Cafe Yafa because of the reviews. The Cafe is nice and clean. Staff is nice, introduced me the promotion, but the sandwich is cold and very little of shredded chicken. I rather to pay for the full price, but with right amount of meat, instead of buy one get one free, all I got it's cold pita bread, a bunch of lettuce and red onion. read more

I went here for the first time today. Everything was deliciously fresh and cooked to order. Moe is a terrific guy and goes above and beyond to make sure his customers are happy. read more

Excellent food. Authentic middle eastern (our family is Egyptian). In addition to the awesome food, service was great. 100% recommend - we will be ordering again! read more

Cafe Yafa - Butter croissants and hazelnut croissants - Mediterranean Near Me - Natick, Massachusetts

See all

Really nice people working here. I got the lamb and beef Shawarma and thought it was done well. I'd come back if I'm in the area. read more

Cafe Yafa - Mediterranean Near Me - Natick, Massachusetts

It is so hard to find healthy, delicious, and quick takeout meals! We were so excited to see a new place opening during the pandemic, and cannot imagine how difficult that must be. Despite this major obstacle, we were very pleasantly surprised! The place was very clean and had several tables available for indoor seating. We opted for takeout lunch and called ahead, with our order ready quickly. Food was great! I got the avocado hummus platter and yafa chicken salad (fresh Greek salad with chicken). My husband got the shawarma sandwich and yafa cheesy fries. The fries were exactly what we'd expect, but likely better fresh than to-go. We're looking forward to trying they're breakfast menu next time! Our only suggestion for the cafe is to look into online ordering options for future (though we had no trouble calling in our order). Glad to have a healthy place nearby! read more

See all

Just opened. Tried for the first time today. Absolutely delicious pita sandwiches! We tried the shawarma and shawarma chicken sandwiches, sooo good. Everything is homemade including pickled cucumbers, tabouli, tahini, and the sandwiches are wrapped in Pita and then griddled so they are crispy. The people are Very nice too, they are a new business and opening in a pandemic is challenging... So I am considering that with respect to their pricing, which is on the high side. Hopefully they will continue to do well and can lower their pricing at some point. Highly recommend! read more

Cafe Yafa - Menu board - Mediterranean Near Me - Natick, Massachusetts

See all

the place is nice and clean, owner very kind and welcoming. food is good, good portions and selection. family friendly place. been twice, would come again. read more

Our family has been a huge fan of cafe Yafe since they opened during the peak of the pandemic. Im a huge fan of middle eastern food and would travel to Watertown for a fix. I live in Natick and can now drive to cafe Yale in two minutes. It's convienant , delicious and the owner Moe is always friendly, genuine and goes above and beyond to assure quality food and amazing service. The staff is awesome also. I love this place and It's a true tribute that they survived the pandemic and business is booming. Thank you Moe and staff. N.N in Natick read more

Went to lunch today at cafe yafa. The place was incredibly clean. The gentleman who took our order and brought us our food was patient and helpful. I ordered the shwarma salad and my daughter ordered the kofta platter. We also had the jalapeno hummus. Everything was cooked very well and very flavorful. On our way out the man gave us homemade baklava for free, to try. It was light, crispy and not too sweet. I can't wait too go back. read more

Cafe Yafa - Jalapeno hummus - Mediterranean Near Me - Natick, Massachusetts

See all

The food is pretty good. The ingredients are good quality and they don't seem to be coming from a mainstream restaurant supply store. But it is definitely a little overpriced based on portion sizes. So I took half a star off for that reason. Food prep is pretty darn slow. I ordered a sandwich and fries and it took approx 25 minutes. I recognize this isn't a fast food restaurant, nor a restaurant that just reheats stuff (Applebees or a Olive Garden). But 25 minutes is pretty slow. So I took another half star off. But, the gentlemen running the front was pretty rude to me. As noted above, my food took approximately 25 minutes to come out. I was definitely annoyed, and told the person upfront that I'll be back in 15 minutes because I needed to run out (had to get my son from a physical therapy session, but didn't tell him that detail). There is no question I sounded annoyed/exasperated. But I didn't raise my voice or yell. Just annoyed. He said it'd be "right out" but I couldn't wait any longer. So I left and came back. When I came back, I just annoyingly asked for my food (which was bagged up for me). Again, no question that I was frustrated but I didn't say anything rude or "be a Karen". He handed my food, lightly-berated me for not waiting (and, berated is probably too strong of a word, maybe "lecture" is better) and sarcastically said "you're welcome" when I took the bag. I'm sorry, but that was just unnecessarily rude for no reason. So I took off another star. I won't be back, but this place is still decent enough so I want to be fair with my review. read more

Incredible! We went here tonight and everything was the best we've ever had from the baba ghanoush and tzatziki to the chicken kabob plate and baklava!! Beyond perfect seasoning with extremely fresh food! To top it off, every worker was super kind, professional, and very welcoming. Go order your meal today, it'll be your favorite :) read more

What a gem! Well worth the bike ride from Needham. Everything was so fresh and flavorful. We started with cheese and spinach manakishes. It's impossible to match the quality of their dough - so soft and tender. We also got labneh sandwiches which were cool and refreshing - perfect for the hottest day of the year so far. Really delicious vegetarian kibbeh and dolma/stuffed grape leaves too. Everything was perfect. The two ladies who served us were extremely kind and welcoming. We brought it over to a picnic spot on Lake Cochituate that's right around the corner - Camp Mary Bunker Park. Awesome! read more

Excellent croissants and pastries!! So fluffy, moist and buttery! Friendly service! Can't wait to go back to try their falafels and shawarma!! read more

Cafe Yafa - Mediterranean Near Me - Natick, Massachusetts

I finally got around to visiting this new place in Natick. I ordered at the counter in the restaurant, and my food was ready in a few minutes. Online and phone ordering is also available. There are a few tables inside, or everything is available to go. The food was great - we tried the chicken platter and the Yafa chicken salad. I especially loved the fresh pita bread. We'll definitely be back! read more

Food was delicious and fresh! Very clean inside. Picture is of hummus, falafel wrap (I cut it in half) and the chicken shwarmeh. Both with very good sizes and we were left full :). Pic is from home not restaurant. Look forward to going back. read more

Cafe Yafa - Hummus, falafel wrap, chicken shwarmeh wrap, and a danish - Mediterranean Near Me - Natick, Massachusetts

Excellent and fresh lunch at Yafa today! The shawarma salad was delicious and you could tell it was made with care. The tzatziki and tahini were fantastic, and the beef/lamb wrap was hot, complex, and super tasty! Definitely give them a try when you're in the area! read more

2nd lunch here in 2 weeks because the food is so good! This time: mixed appetizer + chicken shwarmah sandwich. Hubs got lamb and beef shwarmah. Last time I got chicken plate. Looking forward to trying more menu items. Hoping that this business thrives. It's amazing they opened despite pandemic, when other businesses had to close doors. Plus, happy for more diverse food choices in the area. We've only been doing take out, so can't speak to interior space but highly recommend food if you want to try something tasty, filling and healthy! read more

Cafe Yafa - Mixed appetizer + chicken shwermah. Delicious, flavorful, excellent! - Mediterranean Near Me - Natick, Massachusetts

This was the absolute worst Mediterranean/Middle Eastern food I ever tasted - and I've had a lot. This had no taste. The hummus was bland, falafel dry and cold, tahini sauce was unrecognizable, and they served sour cream with the dried flavorless kibbeh!!!! Not even close to authentic! The price was expensive. $18 for a tiny chicken kabab plate that was served in an extra small takeout container to eat in-house! This food does not remotely resemble the pictures on their website. Avoid at all costs!!!!!! read more