Middle Eastern restaurant on Kempt Road in a house! Small dining area that's cozy. Mostly booth seating with a larger table at the back. Tasty food - have Syrian along with Turkish, Jordanian and Saudi specialties. Decent sized portion. Had an entree along with appetizer platter that was shared. Friendly service. Reasonable prices. They do a lot of catering. read more

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This was the best Middle Eastern food I have ever had. So fresh and flavorful and the meat kabobs were so tender. Wished I lived here so I could eat there more often! read more

Really good food, great service. The dishes we ordered brought a taste from home T_T I ordered the chicken Mandi and a lamb dish and it was sooo juicy. The meat was literally falling off the bone, the tomato sauce and rice were delicious! Angel was our server and she was amazing!! The portion sizes were also good for the price. Parking was hard to find though. read more

Delicious from the last time I had their food- fall off the bone meat, rice and salads fresh and a vast variety of choices- Sauces awesome too will definitely return! read more

Today was my second time eating at Chef Abod. I failed to post a review the first time. At least I don't remember posting one. One thing I did not forget was how amazing the food is! I took my cousin with me tonight. I had the chicken shawarma plate( extra toum) fries and salad. It was absolutely delicious. I couldn't eat it all. The hummus was so creamy. The toum( garlic sauce) was the best I've ever had. My cousin tried some on her falafel wrap and was blown away by the taste. If you have not tried Chef Abod, you don't know what you are missing. Great service too. read more

Chef Abod Cafe & Catering - Falafel wrap with a side of Mandi rice. - Middle Eastern Near Me - Halifax, Nova Scotia

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Tried this place after a family member recommended it and was not disappointed! Bar none, the best middle eastern food I've had in Halifax. Basha Asker was fantastic, went really well with the Smokey rice. The vegetable plate was lit, the Bourak, Baba Ganoush, delicious. I'd like to type more but I'm too full to move :) read more

Chef Abod Cafe & Catering - On left: Basha Asker, right: Veggie Plate. - Middle Eastern Near Me - Halifax, Nova Scotia

I love their Mandi lamb especially the rice was so tasty. The food was excellent and price was reasonable too.

The Kind host, the down to earth chef and the over all ambience of the restaurant will make you want to keep coming back! The foods presentation is always beautiful , the spices compliment the food . Chef Abode Cafe should definitely be on your list of go to restaurants. Its not everyday you can say the : service, food , and atmosphere are perfection ! read more

i love this place. the food is amazing. The server was very friendly and quick. It's always nice to have great middle eastern food. thanks

This was a pleasant surprise on my east coast trip. I was told that before the chef came to Halifax, he used to cook for royalty. The place is cozy and the items were of quality. My only problem was that the lamb was so dry and chewy. Rubber ish! However all the other items including the salad were right on the mark! read more

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My wife recently heard about this restaurant and we decided on our next date night to check it out. I'm glad we did as everything we had was excellent! The restaurant is a cozy space that had a lot more space than meets the eye. I got the Okra and my wife got the lamb Mandi. The lamb on both dishes were fall off the bone tender and very flavorful. We closed our evening with Turkish coffee, baklava and a coconut almond square (forgot the name). Highly recommended! read more

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100% the best shawarma I have ever had in my life. I've had shawarma all over the North America and in Europe, this one is world class. They have a lunch special that is only $12 with fries, try it out! read more

Just know a few things before you go and you'll have a better experience. Several people said the food is excellent and that's all they told me - so I'll tell you a few more things: Not licensed. It's just good to know before you go and you are expecting to have some libations - it could be a disappointment. SERVICE: slow paced. Again, as long as you know you can prepare yourself. It's not a bad thing to have uninterrupted conversation unless you've been waiting all day to try the delicious eats and your stomach is rumbling and you don't have a beer or wine in hand and you really want someone to come and serve you. Good and friendly service by the one young man at the counter who was fielding the tables, as well. So he did a good job but you hardly saw him (we were at the back) and he forgot to bring side plates and said he would bring them but never did. And we were there a long time before ordering and long time overall. At the end, I just pushed things along by going up to the counter myself (my foot/knee/leg were not working well this day if you are wondering why I didn't do this sooner). VALUE: quality food. So letting go of the above two items, we had a good experience and will come back when we have time to sit and chat and enjoy the food. FOOD: 5 stars for the hummus! And yes, the food is really tasty. We tried a couple of platters to share - shish kebab platter with rice. And the platter with grape leaves, falafels and hummus, tzatziki, and two others that I didn't recognize but we're good as well (I thought one was babaganouch and the other was like a spicy salsa) and pita. FAMILY and GROUP DEALS: I saw online they have deals for families of 5 and other sized group deals. I'm glad I didn't order that only because our two platters ended up being more than enough for 4 of us on this day - we even took some home. Atmosphere: Clean. Small but not crowded. Not fancy... quaint? Simple. Overall 3.5-4 stars: If you like Mediterranean food, definitely give this place a try. Or maybe do takeout. read more

As is often the case, I'd never heard of Chef Abod until I purchased a Groupon for the restaurant. It's a small but cozy little place in an odd location, and it is absolutely worth your while to check out. My partner and I treated my parents to supper this weekend. The brightly-decorated restaurant was about half full when we arrived, which meant prompt and friendly service. We ordered the minced lamb and hummus, as well as the cheese and beef sambusas, as appetizers - great choices. My parents split the vegetarian special appetizer plate (lots of variety and plenty of pitas) while I ordered the okra lamb stew and my partner had the grilled haddock. My meal was extremely flavorful and loaded with tender okra and lamb. Plates were cleaned very quickly! We couldn't resist ordering desserts - the display case was filled with a variety of them. I had kanafeh, which was a light but highly satisfying choice. The bite of milk pudding I had was also pretty good. After all was said and done, the four of us left quite full and contented on less than $20 apiece. There is no doubt that we'll be returning at some point in the near future. read more

Best shawarma in town hands down! I try all the shawarma I come across and this is by far the best I've had in Halifax. The staff were very helpful and friendly and the atmosphere is clean and quiet. My shawarma came with a side of choice and an almond/coconut dessert square. The fries I chose were good but the dessert square was amazing. I will definitely be back whenever I get the craving for a shawarma. read more

The very best restaurant for the sophisticated, yet traditional Lebanese-Syrian cuisine in North America! Delicious food and fabulous service! read more

There is always a need to find new and exciting places that dont cost and arm and a leg for lunch and still have amazing cuisine. Chef Abod is definitely worth checking out for its diverse menu and great desserts. Especially since they are so handsomely displayed at the front counter when you walk in... The service is prompt and the staff is friendly. Being middle eastern myself I am a pretty good judge of food from this area in general. I started off with the soup of the day which was like a Creamy corn and Chickpeas and potato affair. It was amazing. It tasted very close to home made. Very lush textures and perfect balance of spices. I had the simple chicken pita wrap with the soup. The bread was toasted and the chicken was superb. I wish I had time to try the desserts, they all looked incredible. Especially the KNAFE. and if anyone of you ever been to LEB FEST. this dessert is killer on the tastebuds. BTW this place is supposedly Syrian. But it has similar foods to Lebanese of course being neighbors and such. I will be back for sure. The menu was way too enticing to avoid a second try... read more

Just discovered this nice Middle Eastern Ethnic restaurant, near my office. They even had a Syrian dish on special. I enjoyed their Beef kabob (served without the stick) on a bed of rice. The rice had a unique flavour that I think may have been accented with cinnamon - very tasty. Came with a spicy dipping sauce. They seem to have a very small outside deck (maybe room for 2 o 3 tables only), but this was not operational at lunch time. Waitress was attentive. Great $10 lunch. read more

I'd driven by this place numerous times but it wasn't until my colleagues and I were trying to find a place for lunch this week that we decided to stop in. The restaurant isn't huge but there was only us and one other table at the time. The sever was very attentive but seemed unsure of the menu and had to check on a few menu items and clarify our order twice. The food, however, was fantastic. We each had a lunch special ($9.99). There was a good selection of choices - one of my colleagues got the appetizer plate and said it was fantastic. The other got soup and a wrap. Also stellar reviews. I had the shawarma and house salad. The salad was fresh with a nice homemade vinaigrette and the shawarma was awesome! Not huge, but just the right size for lunch. With our meals also came a cake, that I can't remember the name of, but it was moist and had coconut and was delicious! I can't wait to go back and try more! read more

Probably the worst shawarma I've ever had. Way too greasy and quite small. Staff was friendly and helpful. The shawarma was served with some great rice and a tasty desert. I will likely go again to try something else, but I do not recommend the shawarma. read more

I visited this cute little place last week with one of my bosses, and I have to say I was impressed by the food for sure. The portion was a good size, and the prices decent. I had literally to much food for a change which is not normally like me. Usually I can eat like no tomorrow. The charming place was neatly decorated, and pleasant. The only thing I did not time for this go around was the delicious looking desserts in the front display. Next time I will make a point of having one, and a coffee, which i heard was also good. Service was o.k. The young lady who served us seemed a bit young, and slightly nervous, but overall still pleasant. I would return to this place anytime for a meal. Thanks for the delicious food this most recent visit! read more

I've been going to Chef Abod for around four years now and have never been disappointed. All menu items are delicious and full of flavour. They are accommodating if you need to change anything in your order. The restaurant atmosphere is also great. My favorite dish is the Lamb Mandi, but I also enjoy the Mansaf on Thursdays, and mixed kababs. For dessert, Om Ali is a must try. The owner is a nice, humble and charitable person. I've seen him sponsoring various events through the city. A must visit for everyone! read more

My son got married last night they chose Chef Abod to cater the reception. Wow.... There aren't enough words to describe the delicious Vegan feast they prepared for us. The explosion of colour and the variety of the various plates were incredible! The dips were outstanding and the pistachio baklava was so delicious and loaded with fresh pistachios. The dolmade grape leaf rolls were so tangy and fresh... the Tabouli salad too. We also had wraps, pitas, fabulous char broiled tofu skewers and falafels.... All superb. They provided us with a complimentary fresh fruit tray as well. I highly recommend Chef Abod. We are so grateful they were able to cater our event on short notice. The guests were all wowed by the delicious spread... even the non vegans. Thank you!!! read more

I LOVE CHEF ABOD! First and foremost, Chef Abod and his staff are some of the kindest people I have ever met. It's only more beautiful to know that Chef Abod was a Syrian refugee and many of his staffers are in similar situations themselves. Whenever I spend time in the restaurant, I have lovely conversations with the workers and usually end up with a free pastry in front of me. When hosting a workshop for Syrian newcomers, Chef Abod contributed catering and service for *half price* because he supported the cause. Second, talk about delicious food! This was the first Middle Eastern cuisine I have tried, and it kicked off my search for more delicious food from the region. Nothing has come close to Chef Abod quality and taste. read more

Third visit: a cold, sunny Monday in January at about 11:45. There was only one or two tables taken, and we chose one toward the rear for a change. The ceiling is covered in artificial, thick vines, which is a cute touch. Friendly staff as usual, and attentive. My friend and I both opted to try the traditional dish Mandi (on a bed of smoky rice, topped with onions & raisins). He got the lamb shank for $15.99, me the chicken for 14.99. He found the taste of the lamb very good and better than my chicken, albeit a fair bit of fat on the meat he had to cut off. My chicken I found delicious and plentiful. They come with a small container of chili sauce so I poured that all over the plate to add some heat. I like the crunch of the fried onions as well, to give a variety of textures. This is on the dinner menu, so it's a lot to eat for lunch when you consider it comes with a side salad as well. But despite being very full, we split an order of pistachio baklava (2 pieces) for $3.50 and they were small and hit the spot for sweet tooth, rounding out the meal perfectly. I look forward to going here more often and trying other dishes. read more

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I went to Chef Abod last Friday for lunch with a friend. Much as it pains me, I feel I have to write this review. I have been there many, many times before. Firstly, my friend and I had to wait at least ten minutes before being given a menu (after we finally asked for one) and some water. We ordered - my friend ordered large fattouche salad with a chicken breast, and I ordered the pan fried haddock, and I asked if I could substitute a small fattouche salad instead of the house salad, and was told categorically "No." When my friend asked the difference in the ingredients, the server had difficulty describing what any differences were. In the end, it appeared that the fattouche had pita bread on top and the house salad didn't. Not sure if it was a new/different chef, but the fish was not up to par that day. I asked for a cup of coffee, and when it was brought, I immediately noticed that the "new" cups hold approximately half as much as the old mugs used to. Our meal came, and we ate. While we were still eating our main course, the server appeared with two plates which had our desserts on and squeezed them at the side of our main course plates. I asked for a refill on the coffee. When it was brought, I felt the cup and it was cold. I actually put my finger in it and it was barely even luke warm. I called the server back, and asked for it to be heated. She asked if it was cold!! I invited her to feel the cup, she did, and took it away, coming back with it steaming hot. My friend and I eventually paid and left, inquiring of the server how long she'd been working there. Seems she'd been there quite a while, but usually worked in the evenings. Only when I got home and looked at my bill did I realize that I had been charged for two cups of coffee!! I have never been charged there before for a refill, and was absolutely livid. I understand it's only $2.49, but it's the principle that counts. AND it was cold!! I have been so upset and irate by this whole disastrous lunch (which was a birthday lunch for my friend) since then, that I felt I needed to back away from it for a couple of days before writing this review. Sad to say, not sure when/if we will ever return there. read more

Amazing food! If you have a hankering for a Shawarma plate, lamb, tandoori chicken, and much much more; this is the place to order from! Absolutely amazing! Spectacular! read more

First time ordering from here and ordered the family platter for 5 - food was great and plentiful, it would have fed more than 5 as there was lots of leftovers. Staff were very friendly and helpful - it was a great choice for our New Year's Eve meal. I will be back sometime soon. read more

Ordered the lamb kebab main course that came with the sides of pilaf rice and salad. Also had a Bourak as an appetizer - was simply amazing. Decor was ok but I wasn't too concern of it as the food was more important to me. Service was good, the staff were nice and the owner was friendly. I would recommend anyone to come over here to try it out. Although it is middle eastern, you shouldn't be mistaken with Greek or Turkish or others. Though they try to have a good spread in their menu, their flair is more to the Arab influenced dishes - so go for those as that's what they are good for. Btw, loved the Backlava pastry. read more

So the owner of the place contacted me to remedy the situation with the misleading food descriptions. I ended up having some sort of cream and meat dish that was exactly as it was described to me. Food was great, service was informative, delivery was quick. read more

It the only and best Khabsa and Mandi (middle eastern food) in entire Atlantic Canada... The food is to died for must try and must try the Mandi read more

The food here was very good. I also recommend the lentil soup, you get quite a big bowl and it is very flavourful. Authentic dishes and affordable prices. I liked the atmosphere as well, very cozy lots of seating. read more

Overpriced and the quantity is very less. For the price you'd pay, you would assume to get more meat along with the rice, but there are barely a few peices of meat and your dish is filled with rice instead. It shouldn't cost that much for a plate of rice and few peices of chicken or anything in that matter. Staff is friendly, the food taste nice but not worth paying so much. read more

I almost cried last night when I went to go to one of my favorite middle eastern restaurants and it was closed but you know what they say "when one door closes another opens!" . i just happened to be driving up Kempt Rd today and did a double take as I had never seen the sign before and decided what the heck...I'm SO happy I did! Great selection for me being a vegetarian, I ordered the platter so I could try a little of everything and absolutely amazing! I think I just found my new favorite restaurant for middle eastern cuisine!!! read more

We stopped in yesterday for lunch. The restaurant is not fancy, don't expect modern. But with food like that, who cares! I had the appetizer plate. It had lots of delicious little things to try. Our waiter was brand new and seemed a little confused at times but he had a big smile and was very attentive. He will do just fine. Everyone in the kitchen area looked happy to see everyone who came in. We will definitely return! read more

Great food and service. Authentic Mediterranean cuisine. Mixed grill plate was awesome. read more

One of the best Arabic food places in Halifax! I love their lentil soup and chicken mandi. Great service as well. During Ramadan they have amazing specials as well! read more

Great food! the place is always consistent and delicious, and reminds me a lot of the food I had growing up. Not perfect, but very close to it. read more

Excellent cuisine, great prices and value for money. Staff are always professional and friendly.

My go to lunch place. They have the best lamb kofta in the city. My mother loves eating there too and she is hard to please so that's a huge compliment. Make sure to try the babousa coconut cake and the lentil soup. read more