Jason P.

A couple of weeks back, I returned to Rawa for the first time in a couple of years. I don't live in the area, but I've been a few times before and I love the food and the chill, cool atmosphere. While the food was as good as I remember it, my experience wasn't great. I arrived shortly after opening on a Sunday and I was the only customer. The lunch was off to a good start. My server was friendly and helpful, and then another employee arrived who seemed like she might have been a manager of some type. She became involved with working with a different person to check the sound system. Over the course of about 10 minutes, they frequently changed the volume and what was playing on the stereo. At times, it was unbearably loud. At first, I didn't say anything, because I assumed it was just going to be a minute or so. But it didn't stop, and after 10 minutes, I finally spoke up and said that their testing the stereo was affecting my enjoyment of my lunch. They stopped testing the stereo after I said something. I had been looking forward to my meal there for a couple of days, and I did not enjoy my experience. A nice restaurant like Rawa should not put a customer in the position of having to advocate for a reasonable atmosphere. I just saw Instagram content that leads me to believe that Rawa is going in a new creative direction. The event manager spoke of upcoming events like a yoga experience and a couple of other things. I'm sure there will be people who may enjoy this new direction, but that's not what I've enjoyed about Rawa in my prior visits. In any event, if you go to Rawa, you should be aware that it may not be how you remember. I'm downgrading my rating to 3 Stars in light of my experience.

Matthew L.

Rawa is a Mediterranean fusion restaurant that opened in New Haven, Connecticut in May 2017. It was founded by business partners Salam Al-Rawi and Fayez Al Hammadi. Al-Rawi is originally from Baghdad, Iraq. In the late 1970s, when Saddam Hussein's regime was particularly repressive, Al-Rawi decided to flee. He forged a stamp on his expired passport, hopped on a plane, and left the country. He could have ended up dead. He later worked at a number of successful restaurants in New York City. Hammadi is originally from Syria and co-owns Mosaic Nautural (a mosaic and tile art business) with his brothers. One of his other talents is cooking. Al-Rawi and Hammadi decided to partner up and found a space in New Haven's Westville neighborhood that had previously been home to Stone Hearth. At Rawa, the two have crafted a menu that features traditional Middle Eastern mezze platters (such as hummus, baba ghanouj, muhammara, labne), salads, soups, kebabs, falafel, biryani dishes, and even Mediterranean-inspired pizza served on pita bread crust. I recently attended Rawa's 8-Year Anniversary Celebration. This was my first visit to Rawa since their first year open and I was happy to be back. The place was all decked out with colorful decor. My group was treated to endless plates of various mezze platters, salads, falafel, biryani dishes, and Rawa's unique Middle Eastern approach to pizza. The bar tenders were also busy all night crafting delicious cocktails for the event. Some of the ones I enjoyed include the "Saffroni" (Hendricks gin, elderflower, ginger, saffron), the "Blood Orange Old Fashion" (bourbon, blood orange liqueur, bitters), and the "Up & Down Old Fashion" (bourbon, bitters). Attendees of the celebration were also treated to live entertainment with music by NYC-based Middle Eastern fusion band "Baklava Express" and a belly dance performance by Kelvia Mitri-Meda. I had an excellent time and I was so full by the end. If you love authentic Mediterranean/Middle Eastern food then look no further than Rawa!

Paul B.

We tried Rawa for the first time on Valentine's Day. The food, service and ambiance was excellent. My wife said the chicken wings were the best she's ever had. I had the lamb shank special and it was truly special. Fell right off the bone. My wife's family is from Lebanon and she was really impressed with the quality of the dips on the sampler. We can't wait to come back!

Suzanne A.

2nd time visiting and wanted to comment on the chicken birani. I'm not a big fan of birani and this was the best I ever had, we took it home and my son asked to bring it for school lunch the next day. Tried the rawa pizza special which was great as well as dips and kebabs. Really friendly service and casual atmosphere

Enxhi B.

My siblings came to visit so we came here for dinner. We made a reservation and were seated quickly upon arrival. We got a bottle of wine and the sampler plate as an appetizer, which included baba ghanouj, muhamarra, nivik, and labne. The labne was our favorite. For entrees, we got the lamb kebab, merguez, chicken biryani and chicken kebab. Everything was good. For dessert we tried the baklava, basbousa, muhalabia and another dessert I don't recall the name of. It was fun to try them all. We had a fun night.

Gene W.

Had a wonderful dinner here this past evening! We ordered the hummus and pita to start, and there was plenty to share for two. Theirs is done perfectly with some tomatoes and chickpeas and a high quality olive oil. The pita is scorching hot and meltingly lovely! The lamb kebab had just the right amount of spicy "kick" to it, complemented well with the seasoned basmati rice. The sauce was flavorful, and I enjoyed this different take on lamb, usually doused in yogurt sauce by other establishments. The Falafel was well balanced and crispy, served piping-hot, with a superbly-executed salad. I believe we'll be returning to try the shrimp biriyani and some of the more adventurous dips in the future!

Karissa D.

Chill vibes on a rainy Saturday early afternoon. Our server Emily was great, she made some pretty good cocktails as well! Everyone at the table enjoyed their food, from the chicken biriyani to lamb skewers to lamb chops and pizza. It was all savory and flavorful.

Olivia J.

I went to Rawa with my aunt for dinner a couple weeks ago and I'm really satisfied with my experience. I didn't know what to expect, but the food was extremely fresh and it was a great atmosphere. I got falafel with pita bread and hummus. The falafel came out very hot and was so tasty. The salad on the side was also very good. My aunt got the green salad with grilled chicken and was very happy with her meal. The service was a little slow, but it was very busy and it didn't bother me. Will definitely be returning soon, can't wait to try more dishes here! Hopefully they have the rice pudding next time.

Alisa W.

Amazing restaurant. Food is incredible & it has a cute ambiance with lots of unique art. They were extremely short staffed & our waitress not only had to attend to every table in the room taking orders, but she was the hostess, food runner, & bartender too. She did it all & it was a busy restaurant. She was pleasant & never appeared stressed despite the chaos & doing everything herself. That alone made me love this restaurant more. The dip sampler is to die for & so were the lamb kabobs, falafel & homemade pita. I wish I lived closer I'd be a regular here.

Rida S.

I've wanted to try this place for so long, it's a Mediterranean spot with different options like Moroccan/Turkish/ Syrian/ Lebanese and even Pakistani. We tried the lamb kebab with rice and the chicken kebab with rice and so good! The meat freshly cooked and so soft. The rise also was divine, I loved the flavor in it. We also tried a chicken soup and it was packed with flavor and soft chicken and lots of onions and garlic yum! They gave a free dessert on Valentine's day which was nice, only thing was it took time for our server to get to us , must have been short staffed but everything took a while. It wasnt to busy either. Loved the quality of the food next time I will try their dips!

Matthew V.

The espresso cocktail was delicious. My girlfriend was quite insistent it would be too much caffeine for me, that yet remains to be seen. The Depths were delicious. Though the amount of pita provided was paltry. Only two pitas for four dips? I think I deserve one pita per dip. The hummus dip was exceptional, the other dips were forgettable. I felt like the entree was very soupy and oily. I think it also would have been improved by being paired with pita. More pita please. Overall it was okay. A bit expensive for the quality.

Kersina D.

This place is such a gem. I loved it so much. It was nice an quiet and looked very clean. I loved the art decor on the walls and it gave the feels of Mediterranean without trying to hard. Service was amazing food was delicious and the portions were huge. We also got desert but i forgot to take a picture of that. Get the baklava and ask them to warm it up just a little bit, it will change your life! No complaints here!