Cashiers is very friendly polite + good food…read more You can find anything you like in the menu I recommend this place!

PARTY CATERING - July is all about birthday celebrations and this one was for my sisters birthday !…read moreWe called Richmond Kebab and Gyros and soon as I spoke to the owner I knew this was the right place ! He gave us the best options and multiple ways to customize for our party . We ordered steak platter , chicken platter, rice, hummus , grilled veggies, green salad, pitas and a variety of sauces!!! It was alll soooo good! We got so many compliments on the meal . Great spices! Great flavors and perfect taste! Highly recommended!! We thank you and will be back ! Impeccable service too .

Diamond in the rough. Excellent halal meats and all your grocery needs at one stop…read more We bought some goat meat. It was cut well to order and fresh. The butchers were very busy with Ramadan shoppers but very attentive in making sure everybody was helped in a timely manner. I believe the gentleman that helped me was Iftikhaar. Very impressed with the service and prices. The isles seemed a bit crowded, but so clean and organized. You will find almost anything and everything under the sun in the store :) I will return iA

It looked like the kitchen was closed, and we should have taken that as a sign and left. We would…read morehave been much better off. Very friendly staff. Great market selection, which we perused while waiting for our food. We got home before looking at the food, and that was our second mistake. We have eaten gyros and shawarma and kebabs and falafel in different countries. This was just... abysmal. The gyro slivers were paper thin and had obviously been cooked/fried multiple times before. The falafel also had a super hard exterior and a dry interior, so it wasn't fresh either. We were told the plates include fries and a salad. The fries turned out to be dry rice, and the amount of "salad" fits on a tablespoon. Beyond disappointing. Great market, but I had better and more flavorful cooked food during my stay at Kaiser hospital.

Heard about this place and finally came here on the afternoon of Sat 3/21…read more It's located on the main street so you have to park nearby and walk to King of Kabab. There's a corner liquor store next door so if you want to try your luck and buy a scratcher while dining or picking up food to go, here's a perfect location to kill two birds with one stone. First time visiting this joint and I was impressed! The protein (chicken) was not overcooked and had the right amount of flavor. They wrap their delicious chicken shawarma's tighter than a burrito! Next to the cashier on the left is a little window of Turkish delight (sweets). I ordered the red-velvet + orange + lemon flavored treats. Looked appealing, but after I took a bit of the red velvet, everything stuck to my teeth and had to do extra work with the dental scalpel. It's like layers of hardened fruit roll up with molasses of the flavor. The cahier did warn me that this was sweet with a small side eye that I shoulda caught right away bc I did go in for quite the surprise. Ambience and customer service was on point. They offered for us to sit in the outdoor dining, but we ended up taking our order to go. Stop by this joint when you're in town, you won't be disappointed!

My husband came here today to pick up a meal. It's our first time trying this restaurant. They…read moreopened 10 minutes late for lunch. We tried their stuff falafel plate that comes with rice, hummus, salad and one pita. We never had a stuffed falafel before so this was pretty good. Lots of flavor from the onions inside and super crunchy. Reminded me of fried chicken. The rice was very fluffy but a little bland. The hummus was good and not too salty. What I like about this place is that none of the food is too salty which tends to be the case in a lot of places with Mediterranean food like Troy and Zaytoon where I frequent. It is very unusual that the food is low sodium. The salad was the worst part because it was limp and tasted cheap. I really enjoyed their pita here because it was chewy and crunchy at the same time. Maybe the pita was whole wheat because it was darker than most. We did toast it before we ate it. You can add a dollar and get extra rice or hummus and we added both extra rice and hummus. The portion size is relatively generous although you only get three falafels. I added some olives to make the rice less bland. That's the nice thing about taking food home to eat because you can doctor it. Overall, we enjoyed the food. I wouldn't go out of my way to come back but will definitely visit when in the area. This is a busy area and can be difficult to find parking.

Who's working the magic in the kitchen?! Hercules is the…read morefortunate home base for Naan Stop Kabob. Hubs and I were missing Vic's in Berkeley, but didn't want the hassle of going there. We remembered seeing Naan Stop Kabob when we went to other shops near by. After looking up the menu online we called and placed our order. We bought a lot of food. (See picture for list). We were so happy with all of our choices. Just the right amount of spice and heat. Absolutely delicious! We will definitely be back. Menu is extensive. Everyone should be able to find the right choices for them. Highly recommend.

SERVICE: counter style, be sure to ring the bell so someone comes out and water/utensils might be…read moreself-serve. They're at the front right of the register. AMBIANCE: clean and cozy FLAVORS: Lamb Boti Kabob (2/5) - asked for it to be cooked on the medium-rare side, it came out very very very dry. Like someone forgot it. Ghobi Chicken (4/5) - Gobi chicken was really good though! Ended up sharing my portion with my dining partner which was enough for us. PORTIONS: filling PRICE: appropriate BONUS TIP: did not see customer washroom/restroom available

Great food! Best for to go orders. My favorites is the Family B special. The falafels are very…read moregood, too.

So fresh and delicious! Healthy, too. Our family loved the chicken, lamb and veggie wraps (Ali's…read morespecial style) with Mast-O Khiar, grilled veggies and shirazi salad.

We have a couple of Indian restaurants closer to us that we like, but we ventured out a little…read morefurther this time. We were having dinner with a friend that eats Halal food and Bismillah popped up on Yelpas a good option. Being the uncultured person I am, the only reference to Bismillah that I knew of was from Bohemian Rapsody, so I had Queen running around in my head for the week leading up to this dinner. We walk in on a Friday night, the lights are off, there are no customers, and an older gentleman greets us at the register. It's not the most welcoming environment, but we are hungry, so we order our food and grab a window side table lit by the setting sun. Two modifications to our order - they ran out of mango lassi , and when I asked for Raita, the gentleman recommended the chutney instead. Also, no tap water, but you can buy bottled water. Turns out the guy behind the counter is the chef and waiter as well. We ordered Chicken Tandoori (leg), Lamb Biryani, Palak Paneer, Chicken Karahi, and Chicken Tikka Masala for our entrees. My favorites: Chicken Tandoori - nice char, flavorful and tender Chicken Karahi - kind of like a hearty chicken stew Onion kulcha and Roghni (sesame) naan - the garlic naan was actually a bit disappointing (on the dry side). So when we ordered more naan, we tried the other varieties and liked them better. Pricing was very reasonable.

Do not pass this up. I cannot find a comparable place that makes mixed veggies or tikka masala as…read morethey do. Honestly, I've gone as far as Sacramento and none hits like home like Bismillah. We are a frequent for many years. In the early 2000's when they first opened. Of course it's changed a lot in dining styles but the quality and service the same since day one. Same order every time, mixed vegetables, chicken tikki masala, rice, one plain and one garlic naan. This can feed four females, two teens and two adults. Plenty of parking in the plaza. There is a discounted rate of you use cash.

We came back here and had wraps for dinner last night. My husband loves their kefta wrap. There's…read moretons of meat in it and a side salad or fries. I tried their falafel wrap for the first time and I was delighted. It was so tasty with tons of sauce and veggies. I couldn't stop eating it. The salad is healthy but kind of bland. Definitely returning to have more falafel wraps. Our waitress was nice and this restaurant is always a relaxing place to eat.

Staff and Service: - Came here on a Saturday evening and…read morewere seated fairly quickly - Even though I had ordered beef kebab, which was similar in texture to steak, I was given a butter knife. I thought this was interesting given the other guest who got beef kebab received a steak knife Food: - Beef kebab: delicious. Flavorful, filling, and delicious with the mint jalapeño sauce. The rice was also very tasty - Couscous: flavorful (not as filling as the other dishes) - Pastilla: first time trying this and it tasted good. Was a little watery inside still, so the diluted the flavor a bit. Miscellaneous: - Indoor and outdoor seating available - Good for small and large groups - Environment-wise, good for kids. Food-wise, maybe not good for kids who aren't adventurous - Parking available via street parking

I stepped in to grab food before realizing there was a separate cafe next door…read more Decided to come back after dinner next door to pick up some dessert and I'm so glad I did! I got an assortment of Turkish delight and some pistachio baklava ($2.99). The Turkish delight is sold by weight across all the varieties and goes for $16.99/lb. The guy behind the counter was super friendly and offered us a sample of one of the flavors to try which I thought was a nice gesture. Everything looked so good, so we picked a couple different pieces of Turkish delight to try. To my surprise, my favorite ended up being the saffron, though rose petal with pomegranate and sour cherry with pastachio were close seconds. I didn't like the coconut or the chocolate one that much, so reminder to myself to skip those next time. After picking up the dessert, I did a quick circle around the store to see what they had. It's not a big store but they manage to cram a lot of stuff into the limited space!

I usually stop by either the Middle East Market or its sister spot, the Middle East Café, during my…read moreweekly laundromat run down the block. The café bartenders are always kind -- once they even let me use the bathroom before I realized the laundromat had one. I've ordered a beer while waiting for my clothes to dry and was welcomed to sit with my dog on the back patio. The atmosphere is warm and accommodating. The market itself is a treasure trove: shelves filled with Middle Eastern dry goods, nuts, dried fruits, spices, blends, and condiments you can't find anywhere else. Kofta, shish kebab, falafel, sumac, garam masala -- it's all here. They also carry pita, lavash, labna, and other breads and yogurts that make cooking from scratch feel like heaven. Bonus points for the large assortments of delicious house made baklavas! Even without a full kitchen, the prepared foods are excellent. I ordered falafel, eggplant dip, hummus, and cucumber salad from the to‑go counter -- a mini feast for $26 that didn't disappoint. **Verdict:** Courteous service, respectful staff, and a fantastic selection. Whether you're cooking at home or grabbing a bite, this place is a gem. Highly recommended.

It's true when they say you can taste the love put into the food. Even though this store seems…read moreunassuming, I was really surprised by the quality and taste. We ordered joojeh and koobideh kabab. They are both so good. My partner says it's the best joojeh kabab he's ever had in his life. They give a nice portion, with generous amount of butter and saffron, to make everything taste more fragrant and delicious. Nice salad and tomato for a complete meal. I'm excited to try their other options next. Thanks Darband for providing a delicious meal. Recommend 10/10. Ordered through door dash.

Darband's is located in a little cute eatery food court near the Berkeley campus. The owner is…read moresuper nice and always asks customers how they like the food, like "Was your meat seasoned enough or juicy enough?". The owner values customer opinions about his food which I think is awesome. I ordered a Beef koobideh plate which I thought was perfect. The meat was juicy and had a nice buttery flavor. It came with two roasted tomatoes, rice and some pita. The entrees are definitely reasonably priced as well especially being near the campus. Only drawback is this place doesn't stay open too late, closes at 7pm and misses much of the dinner traffic, but definitely a place worth trying.

I am just here for the chicken. Whole, specific portion, or boneless, they have it all. I love…read morebone-in whole chicken but hate the messiness of cutting it up; here they do a fine job of cutting it at pretty much the size I want. They have a huge range of generic spices, and specific dish-ready spice-mixes that spans South Asia all the way to the Middle-east. as well as other goodies like assorted cookies, cake rusks (the Asian counterpart to the cantuccini), dates, and more. I'd be remiss to not mention that they will also grind meat for you on demand. I think that's awesome! More so when it's not all that easy to get ground chicken, like you get the other meats. Chicken kebabs, here I come! In short, this is my go-to for chicken, whenever I want to put in a little more than minimal effort towards cooking a particular/special dish.

they are always nice to deak with. have " excellent fresh…read moremeat cuts " !!! goat, lamb chops & chicken !!!! fresh & halal / kosher / cruelty free !!!! i love the rusks, pickles ( mango, lime etc.), & all the cookies , snacks. dates , yogurt & sherbet drinks ... smaller cooled basil rose sherbet 2 go etc.. as far as the snacks - excellent haldiram's savory snacks and others ( packaged ). chilled tamarind chutneys to boot. also ' a very large variety of frozen desi dinners, frozen shammi kebabs & frozen sheikh kebabs . lamb, chicken. beef etc.... too ..." fresh wheat pita & afghan bak3d large wheat breads ideal to enjoy with gravy, brisket & other curries & grilled meats, 4 wraps etc. rices, yellow & red lentils ... very ckean store & kind, co-operative owner couple ... local small business that made it through covid - 19 .... well worth supporting these guys !!!!