I found Kababbq on Yelp, I was researching Mediterranean food to cater our office staff meeting here in Novato. I have to give them 5 stars! (I wish I had taken some pictures of the trays we had). I was too busy eating my fabulous meal. Next time I promise. From start to finish the helpfulness of the owner Ali was pleasant and easy. I decided to go to the restaurant to check it out. He listened to my needs for the office & delivered the great meal for the joy of my office mates to enjoy. Summary. Kababbq: Fresh & quality ingredients. Chicken & beef kabobs, were juicy, had that grill smokey flavor. Rice & salad was very generous. Everyone raved about the Falafel & homemade humus. We had herbs, onions, bread & feta cheese for starters. Thank you again, we will be ordering soon. read more

You just get a lot for your money at Kababbq! I this day and age of inflation, yo I can eat for several days on the family dinners. Delicious and healthy! read more

Best middle eastern food I've had in Marin, no question. Perfectly tender meat, great wait staff. I love this place!

I enjoyed my dinner here. I got the falafel salad and the french fries. The fries are fresh cut! They were delicious. The salad was fresh and tasty. My friend got a streak kabob which he enjoyed. Our server was awesome. Jv was friendly, attentive and knowledgeable about the menu. I look forward to coming here again. read more

Kababbq Grill & Café - Entrance - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Rafael, California

I was visiting some clients in the San Rafael area and I was craving some Persian Food... having lived in SoCal for 35 years and the last 3 years here in NorCal it's always a challenge to find great, fresh, authentic Persian food in the Bay Area/NorCal. I was a few miles away from Kababbq and I was like sure let's give it a shot! I ordered joojeh kabob, mast mousier, half shirazi salad/half rice paired with fresh squeezed lemonade. I was very happy with the service, how I was treated, the quality of the food and the freshness of my meal. I'm glad I was close by and found this place before my 1.5 hour commute back to my house. If you're looking for a great spot to get your Persian food fix in give them a try you'll be very happy! read more

Kababbq Grille is hidden away in an odd industrial/marina complex in San Rafael. Don't let that deter you! Once inside, you are greeted with yummy smells, cozy seating & decor and super friendly service. The menu is diverse with everything from kabob plates to wraps to salads and an array of Mediterranean/Persian appetizers. They are open until 9 and we arrived a little after 8. During our meal there was a steady stream of dine in customers and take out orders. This place is popular! My boyfriend and I had just done 10 miles on Mt. Tam (heading back to Walnut Creek) and were hungry, AKA going all out. The small hummus appetizer we ordered was plenty for two people-smooth and lots of flavor served with flat lavash bread. My entree was the veggie kabob plate that came with well grilled and seasoned tomatoes, peppers, squash and onions. With the plates you can choose two sides, so I opted for the saffron rice and cucumber/tomato salad. Everything was super fresh and flavorful. My boyfriend ordered the chicken wrap which was stuffed with rice, veggies and hummus-it was a lot!! He commented on how amazing it was but could barely finish it-and he can eat... Very attentive service the entire time and I definitely hope to be back if I'm in the area again. read more

Kababbq Grill & Café - Veggie kabob, saffron rice and cucumber tomato salad...so good! - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Rafael, California

First time here, and it was definitely a big hit with Mr B and me! We shared two entrees and four sides, and had plenty of food to take home for another meal. The koobideh kabob is a must order. It is ground sirloin with 7 spices and onions mixed in. Think of it as a VERY elevated meatloaf. The spices really come through the meat, so it's way better than mom's meatloaf. The Cornish game hen kebob ($17) is another recommendation, as it's much juicier and tender than regular old chicken. The saffron and lemon make this really stand out. Vegetable kabob made a great accompaniment with grilled zucchini, tomatoes, onions, squash, and peppers. Each kabob order comes with two sides, and these were the stars of the plates! Shirazi was my favorite! Chopped tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, in a bright lemon mint dressing. Saffron rice was good, but could have used more saffron flavor. Hummus and side salad were both excellent. Service and ambiance are fine. I feel the price point is a little on the high side, so wish I had known about the Yelp deal that doesn't seem to be available at this time. read more

Kababbq Grill & Café - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Rafael, California

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We had Garlic fries, Koobideh, and Chicken (Joojeh). Service was very friendly and location definitely fits a hidden location description. It is at a local strip mall next to a dock for what seems to be commercial fishing. Garlic fries was ok. They are thick fries stirred with garlic paste. Both Koobideh and Chicken came out hot, moist, and good flavor. Sides were fine. All in all a good experience but did not rise to the level where I would go out of my way to just go there. A reasonably good choice for Mediterranean food if you are in the vinicity and have a craving. read more

The place was small and cute. We had a large water polo team. It was around 20 people. They were very accommodating. They gave us separate checks. I got the cheese burger. I know that is not what you go there for but I was in the mood for a good burger. This place had a surprisingly good burger. I only say surprisingly because my friends said it didn't taste good. The only reason why I don't give it 5 stars is because the food did take a while like I said we were a large group of people so I didn't expect the service to be lighting fast. They also never refilled our waters or asked how everything tasted. Over all I recommend. read more

Sometimes is amazing and sometimes it tastes like they need to clean the grill. I would at my experience has been 60% positive

This is a hidden gem! The staff was very friendly and helpful. The food is delicious! And the atmosphere is quaint! It was a perfect find for my family and we all left very satisfied read more

I Don't recommend this place. When you enter to eat, you expect to be respected. Workers over here are very impolite, very unfriendly and always throwing nerve on you as if they hate serving food. The tone of aggressiveness is in the voice of the cashier to the point that I felt provocation. It seems those people forgot that food business is connected to experience. Replying to Ali M. Of Kababbq: 1- You have a wild imagination, it took you 1 month to write this untrue story. 2- Your reaction just confirmed my previous review, thank you for your politeness. Your words talk about how you treat your customers. read more

Yelp Deal + Cash Back = a great value The Family Dinner B can easily feed 4 people IMO koobideh (mix beef) was the clear favorite followed by the chicken, then shrimp and lastly the barg Liked the addition of the side dishes especially the feta and the rice with the sauce from the skewer plate Service was friendly (I believe he was the owner) and liked how straightforward/generous he was Parking can be tight and hard to find when the other stores are still open (they each have reserved parking for their shoppers) Overall Thoughts I would gladly come back again! read more

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This is our second time and we will be back! Great food, good value and friendly service!! read more

Kababbq Grill & Café - Family Platter B - highly recommended! - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Rafael, California

I try not to leave a negative review even if I have a bad experience! But what happened for us tonight in this restaurant is really unacceptable and unbelievable!!! Such a RUDE waitress!!!!! She wasn't talking to us and looking at us when we were talking! We tried to be nice and didn't say anything. But when she brought the food, she kinda threw it on the table without talking and she looked so mad!!!! Very rude!!! The chicken kebab was literally uncooked and It was terrible! She was talking about us and laughing with the other guys working there! My husband and I couldn't stand it and left the restaurant before eating and can you believe when we were leaving, she didn't even raise her head to look at us!!!! So rude! That was my last time in Kebabeq and I will make sure that none of my friends and family will go there! Such a horrible service, uncooked food and RUDE waitress! read more

As an Iranian, I judge a place by how fire the Khoresh's are. Also the variety Stews are mediocre at best. Promotion offers a nice price point but definitely nothing to write home about. Their kobideh is good but I question the quality of meat they use and they don't use real saffron in some of their dishes a huge issue for someone who wants to experience a traditional Persian dish. read more

Reliable delicious food and the server was terrific in managing two large tables. We'll keep coming back.

I live in a very wealthy County. Despite this fact, there is hardly any decent food to be found. My close buddy took me and 7 others here for dinner Weds. We had a family style meal with filet mignon, lamb, prawns, saffron rice, lemony delicious salad and wonderful feta cheese and lavish bread We all went wild over the food and service!! Very quaint place and then the Baklava was to die for! Two days later one of our party returned for a meal and on Saturday I took my wife. We were thrilled! read more

Kababbq Grill & Café - A little bit of Persian Heaven here in Marin - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Rafael, California

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Fantastic meal and excellent customer service. What an enjoyable evening and very unexpected. Small unassuming restaurant, in a funky little strip mall. Just the kind of place we like to find. Wonderful service and delicious food. We had the three person family style meal with lamb, chicken and fillet kabobs. Salad rice and a little plate of mint, feta, lavosh and butter. The fresh herbs and feta was a perfect accompaniment. Luckily, Ali explained how to eat it and we quickly scarfed our meal down. read more

2nd time here- both times we ate here after riding mtb at China Camp- great tasty food that was quick. I really like their hot sauce too, thinking they make it themselves... read more

Always great food, plus service with a smile! Quick & easy for picking up dinner on the way home from work. (Not too many parking spots at the door of the restaurant, although there's plenty of parking if you drive past it to the back of the lot.) read more

I think pictures will say all I need to say... We had a good time, good food and service! Will have to come back when in the area again!!! read more

Kababbq Grill & Café - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Rafael, California

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Faloodah dessert is amazing! Unlike anything I've had before. The tartness of the cherries and lemon with the sweetness of the vermicelli sorbet is just a exquisite. This is all on top of saffron ice cream and topped with pistachios. Had to be one of the best desserts I've ever had! I had the mixed greens salad with falafel, so fresh and flavorful. read more

Authentic Mediterranean although wasn't quite as on as my first visit. Chicken Kabab, tzaziki and tomato cucumber salad would be my recos.

Great food, honestly one of the best meals I've had this week. I ordered the chicken with bone and it was awesome, well cooked and tasty, with sides of rice and delicious yogurt cucumber. Highly recommend it for a quality meal and nice staff and atmosphere. read more

Kababbq Grill & Café - chicken with bone - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Rafael, California

Worst service ever came in for a walk in got seated. Waited patiently for ten minutes and still didn't get served. When my daughter hunter down the server he said sorry we are busy I will get to you when I get to you. You didn't make reservations and I am busy. I'm sorry you can't handle 5 tables but early you could at least bring water or something. When I asked for the owner I told him how we were treated and he pulled server in and asked him if he said that and he said yes and he dismissed him by waving him off. Employee stormed out and owner just walked away trying to get him back. No thash a kur. Can't believe I received this level of service. read more

If looking for persian food, never consider here! You are eating Turmeric! On Barreh kabab, chicken kabab, and on rice full of turmeric instead of safran! Kabab is not on charcoals as I think! Very burnt everything!! read more

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One of the best Persian restaurant in San Rafael. Special things about this restaurant is its waitress,JV She is very nice and polite lady. She make sure you have everything and is very attentive to your table. The food is good specially Kabab Koobideh. read more

Until Kababbq showed up to this lost location near the boats, a string of Persian restaurants, dressed to the T in stuffiness tried to and failed. Kababbq seems to have at minimum traded the stuffiness for a clever, lively menu. The food is great, the service is good enough, and overall it is great value. Positives: * Very tasty kebab's (you say kebab, i say kabob.....). I specially like the boneless chicken. The kebab's are as good if not better than most I have tasted in the Bay Area * Simplified menu that allows one to make a unique combo of fine side dishes. Try the hummus and lemon juice dressed salad. * Accommodating (came in with children and they split and served in kid friendly bowls) Negatives: * Bad real estate. It is out of the way, though proving to be a destination * Spotty service, specially when they are busy (don't expect to be charmed) * No desserts. I don't care for the pre-packaged cookies. Summary: these guys are kebab specialists. If you are looking for an authentic, sit-down Persian restaurant, this is not it. If they keep up what they are doing, they will likely become famous for great kebabs, with service that is consistent with fast-serve, and value that will be tough to rival. read more

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The first thing one has to come to grips with is that strictly or not this is not just a Persian restaurant. It's a grill that also has a sampling of Persian cookery on its menu- a couple of stews and a few varieties of succulent kabob, along with a number of salads and appetizers (the yogurt and shallot dip is great). Dispersed within the Persian food is a smattering of Eastern Med cuisine and hamburgers with fries. Yes, you can have kabob with fries and a hamburger to go if you so choose. It's a good combo actually. Have that fizzy sour yogurt drink (doogh/dough) to wash it all down. It's important to note that hummus is not native to Iran (Persia). You would be hard pressed to find it at all and if you do it would be at a Lebanese restaurant (which is a rare species in and of itself there). The same goes for falafel. It's way more prevalent in Amsterdam and New York. Virtually impossible to find in most of Iran. But I digress. You get the picture. This is an all encompassing smorgasbord of cherry picked delights from Eurasia. The following awaits you: Mountains of fluffy Basmati rice prepared in the singular Persian style, non-Persian hummus, a delightful fenugreek stew (no relation to Greece), a Greek salad, and of course hamburger and fries. All prepared by some Latino gentlemen who are highly able chefs and also very friendly servers. The restaurant is in an old strip mall by the San Rafael canal. There's always a few gnarled characters walking about the parking lot but don't be scared. They typically do not bite and it's worth taking your chances with them just so you can experience dining at Kabobbq. read more

Kababbq Grill & Café - When can we go again? - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Rafael, California

What a gem of a restaurant hidden in plain sight! I had to leave my car with Subaru for an oil change so I took my two dogs and wandered around and found Kababbq. It had a lovely space outside so my two dogs were happy. I ordered the lamb wrap... Wow! And the pistachio ice cream desert wow wow wow... yummy! The service was a 10 and the food was a 10- can I give more than 5 stars... the flavors of mint and tang of yogurt type sauce with the lamb was delightful and the ice cream... well my mom and I ordered one to share and we ordered another for good luck... see pic. Serious food in a relaxed atmosphere! read more

Kababbq Grill & Café - Pistachio ice cream desert with lemon and sour cherry... yum! - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Rafael, California

Absolutely delicious! We stopped here on our way up to Santa Rosa and were very impressed! Fast and kind service from all wait staff. Authentic and extremely fresh Persian food. Would recommend getting the grilled tomato with the lamb or koobideh kabobs, as well as the hummus and pita plate. One of the best Mediterranean restaurants we've eaten at :) read more

First time here and came with two other people. Went here on a Thursday night around 4:30. Not crowded. The waiter let us find a seat because not many people were there. He gave us menus. I ordered combination B: shrimp & chicken, saffora rice and the cucumber tomato salad. We ordered the cucumber yogurt with pita bread for appetizers. Pita bread was warm and the cucumber yogurt was refreshing. The coffee here is good with hazelnut on the side. Food took around 10-15 mins. When our food came out, portions were big! It was a lot to indulge. One of us ordered the hummus and it was delicious! There was a lot of food and took the leftovers home. I suggest trying one of the appetizers. Everything is delicious! Ask them about their specials too. Customer service is excellent. read more

Kababbq Grill & Café - Combo B: saffora rice, cucumber tomato salad, shrimp and chicken kobobs - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Rafael, California

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Was here for the first time Since we have eaten many times at authentic Persian/middleeastern restaurants we know very well how that food schould taste. This place was decent. Not anything remarkable. Could have been more for the price that we paid. Prices were a little bit high and the customer service was not the best. It was also hard to find the location and the parking was kind of hectic. The food tasted good overall but it was very pricey for that type of food read more

Kababbq Grill & Café - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Rafael, California

While in San Rafael, some colleagues found this restaurant on Yelp. Upon arriving, the gentleman who greeted us at the door was very pleasant. There were 7 of us that were dining together. The restaurant was small and there were many locals dining there and watching the basketball game, so he apologized for the wait. They put two tables together and we were seated. To start I ordered Mast-O Khiar. This is a yogurt mixed with Persian cucumber with a touch of fresh mint and salt and pepper. It came as a large serving and boy did it taste lovely! So good, I wanted to save it for later! =o) For dinner I ordered the Kababbq's salad with chicken. This salad came with mixed greens, tomato, cucumber, peppers, feta cheese, Mediterranean olives, and pepperoncini. I asked for the house dressing on the side. This too was incredible! The chicken was tender and juicy which went well with the combined flavors of the feta, cucumber and olives! The one reason why Kababbq lost a star was because of the check out at the end of our meal. They were very kind and allowed us to each pay our tab separately, but when my friend went to pay her bill, the gentleman who was doing the register could not get the card to run through the machine. He quickly ran the card through the manual (old school) machine. This normally would have been no problem, but he tried to have her provide her signature with NO total. He informed her that he would put the total in later. She told him she was not conformable providing a signature with no total. The man walked away from the counter without saying a word and got on the phone. We were not sure what was happening and my friend even offered to now pay in cash to make it easier, but he ignored us and continued talking on the phone. This went on for about 5 minutes until our waiter came up and asked what was happening. He apologized profusely and told the other man to ring us up so that we could use the cash. He informed us that they had a machine and were having a hard time with the training and use of it. Overall the food was amazing and the prices decent. I certainly would return for the food. Hopefully, they will work on their check-out system to make the experience a full five stars! read more

Kababbq Grill & Café - Kababbq salad with chicken. - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Rafael, California

Had dinner here recently and the food was amazing. I tried the various kebabs (sirloin, steak, lamb, and chicken) and all were cooked to perfection - which made it difficult to choose a favorite. The falafels were also delicious - perfectly crisp on the outside without being dry in the middle. Probably some of the best falafels I've tried in recent memory. Last, I had to try the dessert and all were delicious (yes, my family and I shared all of them - we had to try them all). The baklava and the ice cream were my favorites. Nothing puts an end to a mice meal like a good piece of baklava and a hot cup of coffee. Also, the service was great! This place is a little hidden gem in San Rafael and I will definitely be back. Kudos to the cook for knowing how to cook meat the right way. read more

One of the best persian restaurant in SF Specially very nice waitress JV She is very carring ,kind and polite read more

I have never had such amazingly juicy and flavorful kebabs before! I have had the minced beef and the lamb kebabs, and they are both amazing. The saffron rice is perfect, the greens are tart but good, the yogurt is thick and amazing, and the hummus is tasty. Also had their homemade tiramisu with rosewater in the cream for dessert. For me, it's worth the gas money and bridge fare to cross over from Richmond and eat here. Because WOW SO GOOD. I don't know what the spice is in the large shaker, the little dark red granules? But it is good on everything, too. read more

Kababbq Grill & Café - Beef special for lunch. This fed me all day long! Wow, so juicy. Also only $10. - Persian/Iranian Near Me - San Rafael, California

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The food here is shockingly good. We got at least one every week or two for the chicken and koobideh family special, hot eggplant dip with lavash, Persian cardamom tea and baklava. The prices are fair. The service is friendly and there is free parking in an outdoor lot. We always have leftovers so a $40 meal is $10 per person. So worth it because we can't make meat this moist or saffron rice this fluffy! Even the lemony salad dressing is tastier than ours. Highly recommend read more

The food is okay if you dont know what Persian kababs should taste like. But if you do, you realize that the wrong cuts of beef are used for the kabab ( barg), and the wrong ratio of meat/ fat is used for the koobideh or ground beef kabab. It is clear that this restaurant doesnt have a foodie behind the business. I hope more love and effort are put into their recipes, so that the taste of the food is satisfying. read more