I love me a good taco truck, but catering middle eastern / Mediterranean food from here proved to…read morebe an excellent option for my girlfriend's 50th birthday party. Patient and friendly ordering in the store, but go during off hours so you don't hold up the line. Allow three days' advance notice. We had a group of 50 mostly newbie anglos who didn't grow up on middle eastern food. This was our order and insights: - 1/2 lamb Kuzi- Impressive presentation, delicious and tender, with cardamom and other complex flavors in the rice along with raisins and almond slices. But too much quantity for us. Better to get the 1/4 Kuzi. - 12-20 Family Meal- with the best juicy and flavorful chicken kabob anywhere as well as Ground Beef Kabob. These went fast. Comes with tasty roasted tomatoes.. I would order an extra 6-12 family meal with the Kuzi savings above. - 25 Falafel- not nearly enough with all the vegetarians in SoCal. Order 50. I believe the tahini sauce was included for this. - Greek salad - large tray. Good. Family meals come with salad, but an extra 1/2 tray would have been better. - 5 lb hummus - delicious. 4 lbs would be would have been OK - 2 lb Baba Ghanoush - delicious, best ever, correct amount - 1 lb tzatziki (pint container) went fast, not nearly enough. 2 lbs would be better - Fresh flatbread. Super popular at the restaurant. Let them cut each one into 10 manageable pieces for you and be sure to try the yummy garlic sauce for dipping. Everything was delivered hot and on-time for only $25 within Poway. Definitely recommend!!!

Stopped by again for lunch with a friend while grocery shopping next door. They did not disappoint…read more We shared a roast chicken half with a nice cucumber salad, and it was more than enough for the two of us. So much so that we made it or main meal of the day. Consistently good food at low prices. So much better than fast food without having to pay higher prices. 4 stars for this price range. Best value around. Thank you, North Park!

Shiraz Persian Cuisine has been one of my long-time go-to spots in Rancho Bernardo, mostly for…read moretakeout, and it's overdue for a review. The owners are genuinely friendly and the food has been consistently solid for years. A highlight for me is the rice -- fragrant basmati with saffron and a golden, crispy tahdig-style layer that adds a really satisfying texture alongside the fluffy rice underneath. I've only dined in a couple of times, but it's worth it if you can. The restaurant feels warm and inviting, with lots of table seating and a cozy, traditional feel, made even better by the welcoming service. We started with Zeyton Parvardeh and Mirza Ghasemi, and both were tangy and packed with flavor. My usual entree favorites are Ghormeh Sabzi and Fesenjoon, and both have that comforting, well-made "slow-cooked" feel. The kabob combo with chicken and koobideh is also a reliable order: flavorful, well-seasoned, and a great match with the rice. All presented as sharable. If you're looking for dependable Persian comfort food in the area, Shiraz is absolutely worth a visit (or a takeout run).

Only tried the koobideh kebab which was good. Cook and flavour was great. Just one skewer by itself…read morewas $10. A skewer of chicken kebab just by itself was $17!! North Park Produce Grill gives the same for 7! And it's delicious! Overall this place is quite expensive. And it has always been. Maybe it might be worth it for a nice dine in dinner but it is cost prohibitive for take out or a casual dinner.

Extraordinary! I can't believe I hadn't discovered this place sooner. It's a hidden gem tucked away…read morein 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? 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. The staff were professional and personable. I will absolutely be back!

A hidden gem for great authentic Persian food! Absolutely…read morelove 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! Usually not very crowded either which is nice.

Overall, I enjoyed the food here: I had the eggplant dip to start and the salmon kebab plate. The…read moresalmon was excellent and extremely tender. However, I also ordered the bottled carbonated doogh (a yogurt drink) and was given a bottle that said best by January 2025 even though I ate here May 6, 2025. I did ask for the bottle to be taken off my tab and the elderly gentleman who was serving us agreed, but also said "for yogurt this doesn't matter." I realize that best by dates and expiration dates are differently, but I expect a bit more from a restaurant. I personally would hesitate to return. I also found the TV blaring to be a little distracting.

I've been a regular at Grill House Cafe ever since a friend (who shall remain shamed--Farzad the…read moreGreat--for keeping it a secret for so long) finally introduced me to this incredible spot. While I used to come weekly, I now make the trip monthly since moving--and it's absolutely worth every mile. The star of the menu for me is the beef koobideh--juicy, perfectly seasoned, and consistently delicious. The quality of the food here is excellent across the board, and the flavors have made me a genuine fan of Persian cuisine, which I didn't grow up with but now count among my favorites thanks to this place. The service is always warm and attentive, adding to the welcoming, casual atmosphere. As a small but appreciated touch, the NHL Network is often playing on the TVs--something that makes the experience even more enjoyable for hockey fans like myself. Grill House Cafe is one of those rare finds that combines authenticity, great value, and friendly service. I now eat here more than the friend who introduced me to this fantastic restaurant. Highly recommended

Best Persian flavors I've had in San Diego! They even pass the Baba test (aka my Iranian dad loves…read morethe food too.) Slim sad pickin's of Persian food in SD, but I spotted Orchid and its stellar reviews & had to give it a try. To my amazement, it's legit delicious! Not just good for SD; good for anywhere. Orchid is in an unsuspecting strip mall of Miramar, nestled in a mostly Indian area. Fortunately I'm in this neighborhood often & adding Orchid as a regular pitstop. The ghemeh is great & I love that they use some rose water in it; very original. Looking forward to dinning in eventually as well, it's a calm clean space and I imagine the food is even better when eaten hot and fresh.

Food: lamb shank must be the signature dish here. I see many people order this dish. The meat…read morewas tender, juicy, and easily came off the bone. The sauce that came with the dish was good for dipping the bread in. Chicken and beef kabobs were tender. Rice with dill was a good compliment to the lamb shank dish. The Persian(saffron) ice cream was a good finish for the meal. Decoration was nicely put together. Seating were comfortable. Why not 5 star? The restaurant serves bottled water only which costs $2 each. We didn't mind to pay but it would be good to know ahead of time that they serve only bottled water.

We stopped by Ali Baba for a quick dinner before a show at the Escondido Center for the Arts. We…read moreboth ordered the Lamb Kofta Kabob Plate, and when we asked to omit the rice and naan, they offered a salad to fill the plate. It was all great! The food was great, as was the service. The pickled cabbage was amazing. This is a great place! Huge dining room, that would be great for a very large gathering. We shall return! Looks like they were doing a pretty brisk take-out service, too. If I lived nearby, I'd be picking up dinner here a lot. Good option for people eating keto!

Been a long time since I've been here, but finally decided to come back as I had been craving their…read morebeef shawarma, and they have a great lunch special. Parking is very easy as the lot is very big. They are usually empty during lunch time, so not usually too long of a wait. My go too is the beef schwarma lunch special, it includes the schwarma, rice, salad and hummus. You can add on bread for an extra cost and it's a bigger than your head. The schwarma is seasoned very well, and not chewy. The rice is also very good, and flavorful. The hummus is one of my favorites, although this time it was a little thicker than usual. I love the dressing they use on the salad, I could eat a whole bowl of the stuff. The salad had a lot of cucumber, cut in big chunks, which is how i like it. The bread is enough for 2 people at least, so i would keep that in mind. 2 of us shared it and we still had some left over that we couldn't finish. The portions in general are very big, for me it was enough to dance leftovers of everything except the salad. I think this is a must to try if you live nearby, or even if you are just in the area, i don't think you will be disappointed.

This is one of our favorite local Mediterranean spots in our area. The staff is always courteous…read moreand attentive and the place is kept very clean. We usually order take out and all menu options are pretty affordable. Our go to item is the beef koobideh combo, but there's plenty of choices to please every palate.

De clarify, we got this for catering for a big party and it was just the perfect amount with really…read moretasty vegetables that feel grilled actually grilled and you have chicken and beef that actually is grilled. The rice and pita were very flavorful despite thinking that they're just starch plates, but you would be surprised that they contain a lot of flavor and it's not too oily like many saffron rice.

Amazing food and the staff are super nice! I cant stop yelling at people about how great this place…read moreis.

My godson and I tried Baba Kabob yesterday while we were taking a break from playing Magic at At…read moreEase Games near Harbor Freight. Baba Kabob is no-frills, but friendly, down-to-earth, and pretty tasty. I ordered a chicken shawarma sandwich and my godson ordered the Baba kabob, which is essentially the same but with gyro meat included. Both sandwiches also came with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, and tzatziki. My favorite thing about these sandwiches was how non-greasy they were. Sometimes halal street food can get greasy or overly oily, but these sandwiches weren't like that. Also, the meat tasted pretty high quality. The large bottle of sriracha at the table was a nice plus, too. Overall, pretty tasty, fresh halal street food. Prices are slightly steep, but the quality, atmosphere, and customer service offset that enough.

Another wonderful Persian restaurant discovered! My husband and I were looking for a place to eat…read morebefore going to the AMC next door and I'm so happy we found this restaurant. At first glance, we knew we were in for a true authentic and great meal when we saw other Persians dining at the restaurant ;D Vibes: Namino shares a parking lot with other food establishments but on a Tuesday afternoon, we didn't have trouble finding a spot. The restaurant gives a mom and pop vibe, where they warmly welcomed us in. I loved that the lady gave us a bell to ring when we're ready to order. There were more than a handful of 4 person tables available inside. No outdoor seats. The guy who took our order and served our food was welcoming and our food came out within 10 minutes. Food: -Beef Koobideh Kabob ($15.95): skewer of suuuper flavorful beef served on a bed of saffron rice with a side salad and half a roasted tomato. I saw one of the reviews here that said to put sumac powder on the rice-- thank you for that! I asked for tzatziki sauce on the side and it paired well with the kabob. -Beef Kabob Sandwich ($11.95): my husband ordered this and he loved it as well. If we weren't in a hurry to catch a movie, I would've loved to try the baklava. Overall: A great authentic Persian restaurant located in La Jolla. You won't be disappointed!

TLDR; A small, no nonsense cafe serving absolutely mouth watering Persian dishes. Quaint ambience…read moreand old school city service (you just gotta flag people down) but the food is highly recommended. Namino, located in the holiday court lot (next to the Whole Foods plaza) is a small space looking like an east coast diner. They have a small menu and don't mind if you help yourself to drinks and a seat. The owner literally just told me to shout out my order when I was ready. No nonsense, quick, and it worked well. No complaints there. Service 9/10 Fesenjoon: That day's special. This dish is phenomenal and a hefty portion. The stew itself was not shy at all about flavor; an appreciable sweetness and tart flavor coming from pomegranate, an earthy blend of spices (for sure can taste bag and cinnamon as well as toasted walnuts. I'm sure there's more) and the chicken is clearly well seasoned. The stew itself is not to thin or thick, resembling a texture slightly thicker than a Japanese style curry. The specials are served with a side salad and saffron rice. The salad is dressed with a yogurt based dressing. Light and refreshing. Nothing surprising. The saffron rice is lightly seasoned with saffron, mostly white rice. The big kicker here is tableside condiments include sumac, and that is a huge bonus. Pour a liberal amount in your rice and thank me later. Gotta love a Persian restaurant with sumac! Food 9/10. The tea served is a spiced black I believe. May be an acquired tasted for those used to English breakfast. I'll definitely be back. Namino is great for a quick lunch and the food is fantastic. Hopefully I'll be able to try more of the menu soon!

The restaurant is conveniently located near Little Italy in San Diego downtown. Place is nice and…read morewith enough room to fit large groups without any issue. Service is fast and very friendly. Staff is looking for you to have a nice time at restaurant. Prices are also very reasonable. Food Portions and taste is very good. Highly recommended. Definitely a place to visit if you like this kind of food.

I had the chicken Kano plate. It came with your choice of a salad, hummus, or 2 other options. The…read morechicken was moist. The rice was delicious - almost buttery-like. The service was alright. It was more like order up front and they bring your dish. It's a large restaurant but kinda dead inside.