Cafe Caspian

Everything was great and top of the line! Had the white rice with beef koobideh and it was delicious. Definitely recommend for an enjoyable evening experience.

We came here with our friend Daniel, and it was wonderful! It was our first time trying Persian food, and we loved it! The service was great, and the atmosphere was gorgeous. It's a beautiful restaurant! To start, we got flat bread and a the Shirazi salad and the sabzi khordan. Both were good, I preferred the freshness of the shirazi salad. We also got the grand sampler, and we tried the kashik-e bademjan (an eggplant dip), mast-o khyar (a cucumber yogurt dip) and the mast-o moosir (a shallot yogurt dip). Of those- our favorite was by far the Kashik-e bademjan. It had this incredible savory unique flavor! Next we had our main meal. We tried three kinds of rice and a few kabobs. The rice we had was the javaher polow, the polow, and the sabzi polow. They were all excellent! My favorite was probably the polow. We had the beef koobideh, beef barg, and a chicken one as well. We loved the koobideh and the barg the most! The barg tasted like a really nice steak, and the koobideh was a ground beef with plenty of delicious spices. To finish out, we had some tea and the saffron and rose water ice cream. They were delicious! We also had the baklava. My favorite was the ice cream. It was delicious! This place was excellent, and we loved to try a new place! We will be back.

We were visiting our mother in Houston, and she highly recommended this place for lunch... and also mentioned that she is a regular here. Just before heading out this way, some additional out of town guests showed up and joined in.... good for us as we knew we'd be able to try more dishes! So, this place is a very nice and impressive, open, and spacious classy casual Persian character restaurant.... looked expensive off the bat, but for the quality of ambiance, delicious Persian food, and excellent service, it's definitely worth the experience. Considering all this, the prices were surprisingly reasonable.... especially when compared to the Persian food prices in California. For appetizers, we started off with orders of freshly oven baked regular and sesame Persian flatbreads, which you can actually see being freshly made from the dining area, and they were absolutely delicious. To go along with the flatbread, we ordered some hummus, mast-o-khiyar ......cubes of chopped cucumber with yogurt, tabouleh.... basically minced parsley, sabri khordan.... basically chopped tomatoes, cucumbers, feta cheese mixed with herbs. The flatbreads went amazing well with all these... definite must tries!..... and none were salty at all, like many other Persian places I'd tried in the past. For our mains, we ordered a combination of skewered and other meats like cubed, with bone, and ground chicken, ground beef, salmon, and lamb chops.... along with this, we ordered a dill rice, regular saffron rice, and one called Javaher Polow..... an exotic mixture of cranberries, almonds, pistachios, carrots, orange peel, and sour barberries. I'm not much of a rice person, but I got to try a bit of each, and they all tasted amazing... so fresh, so soft, so fluffy, so fragrant .... with the latter having such a wonderful blend of textures and flavors that went so well with the meats and condiments. Ok, so I don't eat beef or lamb, but everyone else said they tasted wonderfully delicious. I enjoyed the salmon and chicken... so fresh, perfectly prepared, and not too salty at all. Everything ordered... that I got to try... was great! And then to top everything off at the end, we ordered the Bastani Sonnati.... saffron ice cream.... made with saffron, pistachios, and rosewater.....I don't eat dairy, but it sure looked like everyone else thoroughly enjoyed it very much.... it looked very sweet, though. Overall, it was a very nice first-time dining experience here.... enjoyed the food very much, in a very pleasant, clean, and interesting environment, with excellent attentive service.

All the options looked very good but I ordered the chicken fesenjan. Service was great and the interior is absolutely stunning.

Love it! On the west side but worth the drive. Traditional Persian food made delicious for all tastes. I loved the chicken and I rarely eat meat. Adore the fresh bread and eggplant dip. So many things to try! Atmosphere is beautiful with an enormous traditional samovar and other decor. Owners are lovely hosts.

Last time I went to this place was at least 15 years ago. Good quality wasn't good and their Laban's seemed more bread than meat. Never been back.

Excellent food. Lamb shank is wonderful. The service is excellent. Very attentive. The decor is very tasteful and elaborate. Quiet and intimate dining experience.

My fiancé and I visited Cafe Caspian while in town to see Beyonce. Everything was delicious. Service was great. My favorite is the shirin polo -- perfectly made. The atmosphere was inviting and fun -- will definitely return next time I'm in town.

Excellent food , ambiance very Persian. The quantity is as expected for the price. The flavors are on point.

Wo wow wow! The food here is delicious and the staff is very attentive. Ambiance is very nice and it give a stylish feel to it during dine in. Very clean overall and I recommend this place for a date or casual outing. Parking in the front is terrible though. Valet spots takes up like three rows which is ridiculous! Parking is 0/5 stars!

Still the best Persian restaurant in Houston. Quality of meat and flavor is exceptional. Spot on authentic Persian as best we can get in Houston. Excellent service and ambiance. Much better deal than Kasra & Avesta. Have to try out Rumi now.

Dear foodie readers, it's been a few minutes since I have done a review...I hope you didn't miss me too much...we were in the area, and were craving the spices of Iran. I have not been in over ten years...so I think it has been remodeled, because I don't remember all the authentic details they have sprinkled all over...it's a very cozy atmosphere, I loved it. The server was so welcoming, and extremely friendly...the complimentary cheese and bread is always so good...I then ordered the eggplant appetizer, this is where my stars went down a bit, I found it a bit too thick for my palette...I didn't enjoy that, but then my gourmet Sabzi came out, and that was excellent..the rest of the fam enjoyed their food as well... they also have a fabulous party room....

I love their food and their service. They have excellent Persian tea and freshly baked breads. I tried most of their menu items and all were excellent. I highly recommend this restaurant.

I really liked dining at Cafe Caspian! My friends and I came here on a whim after hearing about it briefly. We had just come from grocery shopping in the area, so we were not really dressed to fit the place, but that's because the interior is so beautiful!!! Wow they have gorgeous lighting and decor, and I think they even have a private room that you can rent out for events/special large dinners! Parking is also plentiful as there is a lot right out front. In terms of the food, I loved everything we had! We tried their hummus and bread (so good), the beef kubideh (my all time favorite Persian food), and an assortment of the rices! The rice game here is really on point - they have so many different options to try out. My friends had some of their other meat dishes which they really liked as well! Overall, I had a great time here. I liked the beef kubideh and while it may not be the *best* kubideh I've ever tasted, it hit pretty close! I would definitely come back if I were in the area!

We had a great experience for an early dinner. It was surprising how busy they were at 3:00pm on a regular sunday. The food was fresh and flavorful, and our waitress was very friendly and accommodating. My wife and daughter enjoyed the decor, and even though it was busy, it wasn't too loud. My Fesenjan was every bit as tasty as I remember from years past when I could drop in on a work lunch. I've had this dish at other places with a large unchopped breast that was a bit dry, but Cafe Caspian cuts the chicken into pieces. I think it really makes the chicken more moist and enjoyable. Although there were a couple dishes I didn't care for, they were all fresh with quality ingredients. My palette isn't trained for the herbs, spices and veggies that are traditional in Persian cuisine. I'm glad I got to stop in for an old favorite that continues to satisfy.

The decor and vibes are out of this world, but when we went the service could have been a bit better. The food took awhile to get to us. Also, the food is ok, but nothing that is memorable. I'd mostly go back just for decor. Might be better if you want to go with a big group for a birthday.

I've been going here for years! Best marinate, best price, and best service! Can't ever go wrong with the chicken, but they have so many combinations. I recommend the Barg or chenjeh in chicken, beef, or combo to try first. Of course they have vegetarian, salmon, shrimp, and lamb too! Super busy on weekends but you don't need a reservation unless you're a big group. They are really quick! You order your drinks and converse over the fresh complimentary bread with basil, radish, and feta cheese

Love the food here. From Hot tea To Faludeh for dessert, the flavors are delicious and original. The breads are home made, all day! Both, chicken Barg and Beef Barg are perfectly marinated.

Wow, such a great place with an intimate ambiance setting. Staff were really nice and the food was amazing. We were here for part of a wedding reception and we're seated in one of their private rooms which was beautiful and decorated with various cultural relics that adorned the room throughout. The food they offered was family-style which was very convenient. It was fresh and such an assortment of meats and appetizers. We all had a great time and I would certainly visit this place again with my family when we're in town again.

Food was amazing the staff was super friendly and so helpful on giving opinions and suggestions. Thank you all for a wonderful experience. I didn't get a picture of the Ice Cream but it was delicious too. You will have to have an open mind if you have never had it the rose water will surprise you.

The food there is absolutely divine. Healthy, fresh and delicious. The bread and herbs come along with the food and can be a meal on its own. They said they grow their own herbs, because you just can't buy such flavorful, aromatic greens at a regular store. Meat was juicy and tender. We had a few appetizers that were absolutely worth the try. The prices are very reasonable, which is a rare find nowadays. I will be back many times.

Wow. Hidden gem, forreal. I've strolled down Westheimer for years and I have never tried Cafe Caspian until recently. This is truly a hidden one and I've been missing out on this gem for decades...decades! When I first walked in, I was bedazzled by the decor. It is a wonderful spot to have dinner parties since I saw a few private rooms. *Memo to future self: consider reserving a spot for my birthday next year at Cafe Caspian* I ordered: Appetizer: Kashk-e Bademjan Entree: Beef Chenjeh and Chicken Chenjeh It was my first time trying Kashk-e Bademjan and I enjoyed it with the complimentary bread. It had a sweet flavor, almost like raisins. The Beef Chenjeh and Chicken Chenjeh was so tender and flavorful. I would definitely order this again in the future. I ordered it with jeweled rice and there was an upcharge of $3 extra. I was told it is amongst the favorite rice they serve there. Not only did I appreciate the ambience, decor, and food, the service was attentive and friendly on my visit. So happy I finally ate here after so long and can't wait to return soon!

I've been wanting to try this food for a while and am proud to say the food did not disappoint. We got a family entree where we were able to select a variety of rices and meats. The tea was excellent and the humus with the pita bread is a must try. The service was excellent and our waiter was so kind and patient and was even kind enough to give us several recommendations since it was our first time. Thus the vibe was really nice, the decorations were very stunning and the restaurant was very clean. And once again the service was excellent, the staff were willing to take pictures of me and my family which was so kind.

This place has good ambiance and exceptional service. The food wasn't great. Seemed under seasoned. I would still return for the service..it's next level..rice was kind of dry but the hummus and veggies with bread was awesome

Absolute Must! If you are in Houston you must check out this gem. Cafe Caspian. it is a Persian restaurant with rugs and all. Make no mistake, it is not a mediterranean spot with Turkish coffee that lost it's identity to stay in business. This is for reals! Interior is like a museum with a grand entrence and it's own Samovar! Place is very clean and proper. I hope you enjoy its ambiance and food fair! I often find myself in a restaurant with a large menu and many key items not available in the days you decide to dine. For an example, menudo is on Sunday's only, or we will have that Monday. We sold out of a hole fried fish today. Take it off the menu and offer it as a special on whatever day you choose. I was happy to find out that lamb shank was in style! Somehow, I did not get a yogurt shake with salt, dill and club soda. I drank it all, and was secretly unsatisfied with my choice of a drink. I would hold the yogurt and dill for my salad dressing. #houston #houstonfood #cafecaspian #chef #chefslife #dallasuniquefood #Videoleap #chef #pursian #pursianrugs #

The food it's always amazing and flavorful. We don't ever feel yucky or over stuffed after dining here.

Very good classic Persian dishes and ambience with very good service. Fancier than Kasra and much less expensive than Rumi's.

Eat here. The food, ambiance, and service is amazing. I can't remember the name but it's green beans in a sauce, I seriously dream about that dish.

It's is truly exceptional food , service , and atmosphere. Highly recommend! Will definitely return and bring family and friends .

Great ambiance! We celebrated a birthday here. i enjoyed the bread they put out for the table. their vegan options were limited and were not very flavorful other than this overwhelming bitter taste. I got the dish with red beans in this green sauce. Their Persian tea was very good.

Great food beautiful restaurant Aloof management It's like a daycare at dinner time: screaming children crying at the largest tables, parents as aloof as management. Several tables moved, management did nothing: 1.5 hours running around kids, screaming and yelling non-stop. Don't plan a business or romantic evening here. Maybe lunch, less day care and more attentive management. One table ruined the entire Resturant's atmosphere and peace, do-nothing management is part of the problem. To go orders best: the food very good, let do-nothing management have romper room with do-nothing parents disrespecting all others. I hope management does just that: manage their place. Incompetent parents are to blame, yet the Resturant should manage the zoo from screeching running around untamed "kids" instead of ignoring.

Cafe Caspian in Houston has been consistently great for years. All of their menu items are worth trying and their fresh flatbread is always memorable.

I came here for a work dinner and there is a lovely, small room up front that can be reserved and seat 10 to 12 comfortably with all dishes served. The glass windows allow some visual interest, while the doors provide the intimacy for discussion. Our server was attentive while allowing us privacy. We all ordered several dishes and everyone enjoyed theirs. The ones I tried were fantastic. Beef barg with javaher polow - meat was nicely grilled, tender and juicy. The rice was so flavorful! Each bite a new combination of the cranberries, almonds, sour berries, orange peel, carrot and pistachios. I was upset when I became too full to finish my whole plate lol Fesenjan - the stew was so rich and intense that the many chunks of tender chicken served as little texture carriers for each delicious bite. A total flavor explosion. Bastani Sonnati - we shared this dessert and it was not a unanimous table pleaser as the rose water was intense for some, and just not a preferred flavor profile for others. While it could have been toned down, as is - for myself and another at least - it was a delightful end to the meal. I actually worked here years ago during a summer college break! The family that owns it was so lovely and they appear to still own it. I was unable to enjoy the full menu back then as I was a vegetarian. I always loved the stews but I can now say I love the meats as well! Glad to return and even more glad to put this on my restaurant rotation list! Looking forward to the next visit!

Amazing place. Beautiful restaurant. Wonderful courteous staff and delicious food. Th ony tbing I regret is not asking for some warm tea at the end of my meal. 10 stars!!!

I wanted to give a special shout-out to this restaurant. It is a place that my family has been coming to for years. Literally, two decades. So many meals here, with my brother and parents. So many birthday meals, meals celebrating anniversaries and graduations. When it was time for my family to meet my now-wife for the first time, i decided to have a nice meal here, because I knew it would work out well, and of course it did. Just this past weekend, we celebrated my wife's birthday here with her family. And the service and food were wonderful, and I am just grateful for having such a great experience there with my extended family. As you may guess, neither I nor my family have ever hesitated about celebrating milestone occasions here. The food is great, across the board. But I am especially fond of the beef koobideh, which is always tender and juicy and delicious. While it's an item that you can get at many comparable restaurants in town, it is in my opinion the best here. I'd also recommend the eggplant appetizer, and really you can't go wrong with the humus or tabouleh either. Pro-tip: it is difficult to do, but don't get full off the excellent bread and herbs and feta that come to your table. They are delicious and you will find yourself reaching for it over and over.

The service was very slow even with the restaurant only having few customers. Had to ask for extra bread four times and still did not receive any. Our waitress messed up our order and I ended up with a very dry and well-done beef barg when I had asked for medium.

I went to this restaurant for years but recently, the food has become less than mediocre. The prices has increased substantially, portions have become a lot smaller and the quality is less than average. Their chicken is supposed to be marinated in saffron but it does not have any spices much less than saffron. It is just chicken thrown on the grill and a little salt is thrown on it. Their koobideh is half the size and it is just ground beef. Their barn is just a piece of meat cut to look like barn and thrown on gas grill. I am surprised the restaurant is still open with this quality of food. Never going back.

We have some friends who live in West Houston and this is one of their favorite places to meet for a great Persian meal. We order skewers with beef, Lamb, and Chicken and all very tasty and able to share with the table. They also have very rich hot tea served with small sugar cubes. It's a great family own business and well supported by the local Persian community. This restaurant represents the great diversity of Houston.

My bf and are from dallas, he's a moroc so of course we looked for Mediterranean food and stumble here. Omg!! We love the food. I mean everything there are good. And the service are amazing!! At there 2 days out of 5 days that we are here.

I came here for a dear friend's birthday. We had a room off to the side set up for our group. This was my first time trying Persian food and it did not disappoint. We shared some of the best hummus I've had. It paired well with the taftoon bread. For my entree I went with the Soltani and I chose to do the combo with the Kobbideh and Barg. Kobbideh is seasoned ground beef rolled into a skewer. It was very tasty and juicy. The Barg was beef filet on a skewer and it won out of the two. It was super tender and very flavorful. Both paired well with the saffron rice. I also tried some of the lamb shank which was one of the better lamb shanks I have had. Service was ok considering we had a larger group. I would definitely come back!

The food is good but they give you really small portions when you order out. They charge way to much for the small to go portions.

You cannot go wrong with an amazing cafe that serves fresh herbs , radishes and 2 kinds of pita bread as an appetizer. TODAY Cafe Caspian catered to my office 3 succulent dishes of rice including their famous jeweled rice with hints of pistachios and cranberries .They also brought 2 types of jasmine chicken with hummus , an eggplant dish and roasted tomatoes ,onions that simply melt in your mouth. As a place to dine in or cater this place really has the service down .The owner comes to greet you to make sure you are enjoying the food .That type of personal attention goes a long way and has the food to back it up.Give it a try .We were happy we did.

I went here with my colleagues from work in a 25+ group. Among the entire group, we ordered almost everything on the menu and I did not hear anyone complaining. I personally felt that the highlights were the generous food portions, modest pricing, quick and mindful service! In terms of food quality ..I would say.. order the lamb shank if you eat lamb and pick with this for large groups without worrying about food restrictions.. their menu is pretty comprehensive and everyone will find something interesting to eat which they'll like !

The food here is excellent! I've only been once, but can't wait to go back. The frozen noodle and shaved ice. Dessert was incredible- especially if you love cardamom!

Wonderful experience. All three entrees were very well prepared (2 kabobs and 1 rice dish) and the appetizer was excellently seasoned. Great mix of 2, 4, 6 and 8+ diners at tables enjoying the evening. Attentive friendly service too.

Wow is all I can say! This is the best Persian cuisine I've ever had. The atmosphere was amazing and very welcoming. The service was so attentive and explained all the new dishes we tried. The owners were very friendly and took time to make sure we were well taken care of. From the appetizers to the family style cuisine we had everything was spot on. The lamb was so tender and tasty and the baklava and pistachio ice cream put an exclamation point on an outstanding 5 Star experience. This is a must try & we'll definitely be back to enjoy on our visits to Houston.

The best Persian restaurant in Houston hands down! We had our feast delivered via Uber eats: koobideh (super tasty and generous portions), barg with baghali polo (the rice was nearly as good as my mom's which is the highest compliment I can give!), tahchin (incredible rice cake perfectly spiced with chicken!), and the baklava cake was the perfect ending, so moist and fresh! Thank you for delivering such a delicious meal!!

Great ambience, delicious food, and friendly waitstaff. We ordered several dishes to share family style and the kitchen was nice enough to create this beautiful presentation. Not shown in this phot was a delicious ice cream dessert.

I am not sure what happened to the quality of Café Caspian from my previous 5 star visits. This time around, I met some yelpers for dinner celebrating a birthday. It had been well over a year since I had visited Caspian. I guess I've been going to Avesta on a regular basis and that happens to be the best Persian joint available in the greater city of Houston (my opinion). I went ahead and ordered my regular go to dish, which was the beef koobideh that comes with a bed of rice and grilled tomatoes. The beef was very dry and there was no juice dripping from the kabob skewer. The rice was ok. It actually had no flavor to them. I went ahead and sprinkled tons of sumac powder on the meat and rice to give it some enhancement. As I've become a believer in Avesta, this probably would be the last visit to Café Caspian. We had a group of at least 22 folks and they only had 2 waiters assisting with orders. They were overwhelmed.

So many good entrees! I think my favorite is the KARAFS & KANGAR FARANGI, a savory celery and artichoke stew (I get it with chicken) served with rice. I enjoy the SABZI POLOW in place of the basmati rice, especially when I forego the chicken in the stew. Their CHENJEH and KOOBIDEH are also delish. I always prefer lamb whenever I can get it! Friendly and helpful wait staff and lovely decor...perfect for a Persian restaurant that has so much to offer with wonderful made to order warm TAFTOON bread with fresh herbs, feta and radishes served while you are deciding what to order from their large menu. I've enjoyed lunch at Cafe Caspian for many yearIs before I retired from Sysco. It's also the favorite restaurant of a Persian friend of mine.