Makarios Kabobs & Grill

Great service, very attentive to our needs Food was good… i ordered the lamb combo and my wife the lamb chops. We were up to the brim full… i really liked the food. Much better than other kebabs we ate at. Atmosphere is also reminiscent and feels like

The authentic Mediterranean place in Birmingham. We drove through town and looking for something flavorful and stumble upon this place. The price is incredibly inexpensive. The portions ridiculous. As we try to have a game plan to get to dessert, we couldn’t make it. The food is freshly made. Staff are friendly. You know it’s light when most people that walked in are Mediterranean.

Hit up Makarios on our first night in Birmingham on a weekend trip. Food was fantastic. I went with the beef kabobs with rice and the lentil soup, my wife with the Chicken Shawarma. Our son went with the chicken strips. The lentil soup was hot and flavorful. The Beef Kabobs were cooked perfectly, and the rice was seasoned really well. The portions were generous the price. My wife thoroughly enjoyed her meal as well. She went with rice and grilled vegetables as her side as well as the garlic sauce. All of which she loved. The chicken strips and fries pleased the child as well. 10/10 will be grabbing some to-go items before we leave.

Visited Birmingham on the way to Baton Rouge and tried this place based on the reviews. My wife and I shared the sampler for 2. Come here hungry because that thing can feed 4! The meats were flavored well and the baba ganoush has the perfect smokey flavor. Try this place and you won't be disappointed! Service was friendly.

This is a favorite restaurant of ours that we return to frequently. We always get the same thing because it is so good: Beef kebabs cooked medium-rare, Makarios salad with beets, and the soup. The quality of food is always fresh and delicious. The service is also consistently good. My only complaint is that sometimes the background music is a little bit loud. We tried the other location in Hoover and it wasn’t bad, but it did not equal the quality of this location. This is an excellent restaurant!

Hubby and I had some time to kill between dr appointments! We both ended up getting the gyro and fries and drink. Then ordered baklava and the creme caramel for dessert. The gyros were very good. Meat nice and tender with good flavor. Fresh tomatoes and onions. Tzitzki sauce was really good. The French fries were hot and salted nicely. The baklava was good. I did not care for the creme caramel. The flan was deflated and the texture was off. The homemade caramel sauce? Hmm.. didn't taste much like caramel and was VERY watery. We had arrived shortly by noon and there were maybe 8-12 people dining inside. By the time we finished, the original part of the building seating was full and they'd gone ahead and opened the larger added on room. (They were painting outside that room and it appeared they really hadn't to have to have diners watch them - but it quickly was filled! All-in-all? The dishes all sound great! If they taste like their gyros? Definitely a place we will hit up again!

Love Mediterranean food, was in the mood while in town, and hit this spot due to the reviews. Ordered a gyro and some hummus, ready in about 10 minutes. I was a bit disappointed. The gyro only has three slices of meat, two onions, and two thin slices of tomatoe. The taziki sauce was good, but that's a compliment to the sandwhich, not the entire meal. Every other place, even the chain places, serves a more plentiful helping of meat with onion, tomatoe, lettuce, and sauce. The hummus was creamy, but all I could taste was the tahini: no lemon, no garlic. I'm sure it was in there, but i didn't taste it. Like I said, I was a bit disappointed with the meal as I've had much more for less from other places. I enjoy supporting local places and not chains restaurants, but this time it didn't work out. Its wasn't bad, but i felt for what I received for the price, it wasn't worth it.

When we come to Birmingham for a doctors appointment we always love to eat here! This is the only place we eat. We got there around 4 and they were busy but got us a table quickly. They are all very nice and always seem to have enough staff to take care of you. We had Hummus and pita for an appetizer and both of us had the Gyro Plate. I asked for warm pita and they had no problem getting that for us. I recommend this place.

Food- The falafel is absolutely well seasoned. A delicious crispy exterior. A soft pillowy savory interior. To accompany their falafel is a small dish filled with hummus. Silky and creamy; just amazing. I had their gyro as well. The tzatziki is refreshing and tasty. Service- adequate. Ambiance- Tasteful. No negative perception of establishment. Really good food at a fair price.

I'm giving this business a low mark because they got my called in order wrong. I ordered hummus and taboli,and they gave us a hummus and taboli 'wrap'. I ordered fatoosh - warmed feta drizzled with honey (2) - didn't get those. We were disappointed because we were traveling down to Camden and bought this for pick up to eat later. We called for refunds on all the incorrect items and the refund process on the debit card wouldn't process. We didn't get our $$ back and this didn't need to be this complicated. I actually spoke to the person to give them the order and they still got it wrong.

Makarios is a late night fav when I want something more than french fries. My friend and I stopped by after the pride parade and it was business as usual. We were greeted and seated smoothly and placed our orders pretty quickly since we know the menu well. My shawarma sandwich hit the spot, I'm a fan of pickles and they added a tangy, crispy element I liked. The hummus always hits; thick and creamy with soft pita bread. I left full and satisfied once again!

Hanging out in Birmingham, AL on business for a few weeks and it's lunch time! How good can the Mediterranean be in Alabama of all places? Well, let's fine out! Atmosphere/Appearance: Set right on the corner of 20th Street South and 10th Avenue is this gem. It's well presented and looks super inviting. There is parking for a few cars in the front, but if I can remember there are more spots in the back or else, just park on the street since this is pretty close to downtown. Once inside the restaurant is pretty chill. There's LOTS of artwork hung up all over the place with plenty of straight up & down wooden booths to sit in. Once you walk in you can actually walk right up to a counter to place your order or you can choose table service of course. It was pretty chill in here the time that we came. Service: Service was just fine. Nothing crazy and he made sure that I had everything that I needed. Food: For my entree I went with the Shish Combo which comes with a shish kabob made of beef, shish tawook made of chicken and one kafta which is ground lamb, parsley and onion then served with a salad. Of course there's rice on the side. Everything was delicious, juicy, loaded with flavor and it felt authentic. The lamb was a lil' dry, but that was my only complaint. I loved the food here and it was SUPER filling for sure. Value: Back when I visited this combo was $28.59, but now it's $30.00. Not bad at all. Like I said, the food was filling so you could get more than one meal out of it and it was absolutely worth it. I'd certainly pay this place a return visit if I'm in the area. You should too!

The lamb combo plate was awesome. Plenty of food. Needs to add more sauce. Everyone was very friendly. But not very helpful. They don't deserve to ask for tips! Nice atmosphere. But it didn't feel very inviting to sit and dine in. Appeared more like a to go deli than a restaurant.

We stopped here for lunch as we saw it on our way to dinner the previous night. We were seated quickly. I got the ghallaba sandwich with lamb. It was so good! It looked a bit small when it arrived, but it was filling and very yummy. I'd 10/10 get this again! The restaurant itself was nice! Colorful and lots of fun images to look at. Service was quick. Food was extremely good.

We had a great time for one of my best friends birthday dinner, for him and his boo. Good atmosphere and the food was good! I had a loaded gyro potato, which was great! One of my favorite things to eat. For the size of our party, we had a great server. He was fast and remembered everyone's orders, no problem! This was my first time going, which is crazy in all of the years it's been there and that I've lived here, but I will go again.

I've been eating here for years! This place is a jewel on the Southside area if authentic Mediterranean food is your thing. My favorite dishes here are the zesty veggie ghallaba or the zesty salmon ghallaba. They have me in a chokehold and I haven't strayed away since I tried them! Warning-be prepared to wait. Everything is cooked fresh to order so don't come here if you're in a hurry. Sometime the wait staff is busy, sometimes they are talking amongst themselves. Either way...you're gonna have to wait. Overall, the service is fairly good but the authentic flavors are the real stars here.

Food was excellent. Check your order if picking up. They did miss some of the items we ordered. Otherwise, the portions were generous and the quality was excellent.

This was my first time trying Indian food and this place was recommended by a friend. The place is small and we sat ourselves after going to the counter. The service was great, our food and drinks came quick. The food was really good especially the grilled vegetables. I wasn't trying to be venturous since it was my first time here so I settled on chicken ghallaba. It was good, seasoned, and a safe option to start. The meat pies were good as well, it was seasoned beef wrapped in dough and baked.

Makarios is a hole-in-the-wall restaurant, but you will have a hard time finding better hummus anywhere else on planet Earth! It is some seriously good stuff! I like most things on their menu, but the chicken Ghallaba is pretty special. (Be sure to order it with fries and hummus so you can dip). YUM-MY!!!!

I have been eating here for years and they have the best greek salad with chicken. The chicken is to die for- seasoned perfectly, moist and delicious. I like their salad dressing alot too. The MakArios chopped salad is good, but I go light on the dressing, the lamb chops. chicken sajaii on hummus, gyro, fresh juice, lentil soup, basha- custard- I love all of the food and the service and owner and staff are so nice!!

The food tastes great with huge portions. We ordered the sampler for two - we could have split it four ways. I'm a big fan of mezze platters and all of the components tasted homemade and flavorful. The ambiance is not notable but the staff was friendly. Service was a bit slow to take our order (we were told it would be when we sat down - looked like a waiting staff shortage) but once the order was placed the kitchen got it out in a reasonable amount of time. The food is tasty enough that the little extra wait was worth it.

Makarios has the BEST food. If you like Mediterranean style foods, you need to make a trip to Makarios. My personal favorite is their Hummus with chicken. Freshly made hummus topped with seasoned chicken served with pita bread and olive oil is fire. Thank you Makarios for the most delectable Hummus and chicken. This dish is awesome. There are many wonderful tasty dishes on their menu. You really should make time to stop by and get some freshly made excellent tasting food. Your tummy will be happy.

Great lamb and hummus pita bread was not the freshest. But overall a nice spot and friendly !

Their service was great. Inside was really nice and I liked the decor and there was ample seating. The food was just ok however. I ordered the lamb gyro with fries.

Shish kabob plate & a chicken combo plate. Wonderful flavors and we loved the garlic dip. Sheesh. Overall incredible flavor in the meats. Mmm! Pita could be served warm... chicken could've been cooked a few mins less.

This is my second time ordering from Makario's for my husband's birthday. He has a love for lamb chops like nothing I have seen before. When I ordered lamb chops for delivery last year, he literally sucked the bones DRY. He was commenting on how good they were for days afterward, so I had to get him the lamb chops again this year (2/2/22). Unfortunately, this year, delivery was not available in my area, so I scheduled a pickup. I was able to place my order from the Yelp app, which was SUPER convenient. I got him the 5 lamb chops, and for myself, I ordered the garlic and almond rice ghallaba. Because they close early on Wednesdays, I had to pick up dinner earlier than expected, which I did not mind. The place is tucked on the corner of 20th Street and 10th Avenue South. There is a good amount of parking around the side and back of the building. When I went in, the guy was bringing out my food so he could bag it up.. He let me know that since I did not specify, he prepared the lamb chops medium and was willing to put them back on the grill if I was not happy with medium. I let him know it was fine and headed out with my plates. I took the food back home and waited until dinner time. When dinner time arrived, I found an online article showing me how to reheat lamb chops properly. I followed those instructions and served it on our nice China. The birthday boy was so happy and enjoyed every single bite. I tasted a small piece of one of his lamb chops and let me tell you - the flavors were BURSTING off the meat! The meat was very tender and flavorful and sooooo good! I did enjoy my ghallaba very much. I had beef added to my dish and it was so delicious. We will definitely be going back to Makario's for other Mediterranean dishes (because we do not mind the 20 minute commute for it). Well worth the time and money!!

The hummus with lamb was wonderful! The staff was kind and fast. The atmosphere was unique and middle eastern. I highly recommend!

Took a long time to get service to our table. We asked for fresh bread and hummus. We were told they don't but the man next to us got fresh bread. We asked for tea and they were out they gave us water. It was so gross. Don't drink the water. I asked for lamb vegetable stew and got chicken. Our server only came once to check on us. Overall we were disappointed.

Oh my goodness! First Adel, our server was amazing!!!! He made excellen suggestions and my daughter and I had the sampler platter. Every single item was delicious! We had desert and OMG !! Best ever. Highly recommend this spot, and ask for Adel!! He was the best part of the entire experience!

I have lived in Birmingham, AL for over 35 years. I grew up in Long Island, NY. The Greek places where I grew up were "Over the top" great. There was a taste I could not find elsewhere; Until Today!!! What drove me to try Makarios was the recent Greek Festival that just finished. The food was tasty. Then my wife and I passed by Makarios the other day driving to five points and she said, "I hear good things about that place. We should try it sometime." Let's break it down: Atmosphere: Clean, old, dated, and extremely comfortable. It was like a New York place was carried to Birmingham. I instantly loved the feel. Service: Good but a little slow. It did not detract from the experience. Price/Value: Excellent and completely fare. The Food: My Gyro was outstanding. I had an order of fries with it and those were some of the best French fries in Birmingham. You can tell, they change their oil every day. My son had a lamb plate and salad. He is gluten free and loved everything on his plate. He could not even come close to finishing it. We brought a Gyro home for my wife who said it was excellent, so it was not just me. Menu: Lots and lots of dishes. All with pictures just like New York. The next time we will get a loaded Baked Potato with Gyro meat. I love that kind of stuff. Lots of deserts also but I was way too full to consider it. This is the kind of place that I want to go to for comfort food. There are lots of Greek dining in Birmingham. This place is a gem. Just my two cents. Eat, Drink, and be Healthy.

Always great food that's authentic. Be sure to try the juices they offer as well as the Turkish coffee. Anytime we're in the area at lunch time we make our lunch spot.

I stopped here because I came to do a run in the area, but it started pouring down. I asked the staff for recommendations and was told to try the Shish Tawook. I regret it. It was extremely dry and the veggies were overcooked. I also got the lamb soup, which was actually good and hot. I probably won't give this place another try. The customer service was good and the ambiance was nice, but not nice enough to return.

Small , simple restaurant with quaint middle eastern decor. The food is good and service is swift. Definite great place for a quick lunch or dinner that's not fancy but delicious!!.

I love the food... the tabbouli and grape leaves were amazing. Normally Makarios would be 5 stars from me but the service was really bad tonight. I'm hoping this was just a one-off time but my tea glass was empty for the last hour of my meal. We didn't seem to have one waiter, which normally wouldn't bother me, but we had to tell 3 different people how to split up the checks for our group. I'll be back but I hope to have a better experience next time!

All around great food. This is one of my roommates favorite restaurants in Birmingham but I never tried it until this week. I started off with the hummus and pita bread and it was really good. I could tell the hummus was fresh. For my entree I got the Chicken Combo, which comes with one skewer chicken, chicken sajji and chicken shawarma. Overall it was really filling and had a lot of flavor. The Chicken Combo was $25 which I thought was fair for the amount of food they gave you. I had enough leftover for dinner and lunch the next day. I would definitely come here again.

Delicious food, kind and attentive service. Decorated beautifully inside. Loved my experience here! If I lived in Birmingham, I would definitely go again!

First time here. It's a small, casual place. The falafel and lamb shawarma were good. I liked the wrap because it was thin, and loved the arabic? music in the background.

Ever since moving from Birmingham I miss makarios a lot - the shawarma wrap, the basha - which for some reason I hv never seen in any other Mediterranean restaurant. Maybe I will take a BHM trip just to eat at makarios once.

Great food! Strange space. I love the baba ganoush! Try the garlic sauce (killer stuff)

Holy wow this place is good! They don't even mind that they don't serve wine. (It was that good!) It's a humble place, no fancy fine dining frills here. Thank goodness, because the food is absolutely delicious and the prices are very reasonable. This food tastes like it was made by the Middle Eastern grandma I never had. We ordered quite a lot, and there was nothing I wouldn't happily order again. The lentil soup was almost unbelievably good (so good I had to go back the next day for another cup). My guy's lamb, four generous chops, were perfectly cooked with a really nice sear and seasonings. You can easily pay more than double for lamb that isn't half as good as this (Yeah, I'm talking to you, Ruth Chris). Really pleasant and prompt service as well. I honestly have nothing but good things to say, and I love that! We happen to be staying at the hotel next door and just decided to wander in but from now on, whenever I'm in Birmingham, Makarios is a must visit!

Ordered takeout - zesty meat ghallaba (beef) and sautéed lamb with mushrooms (pictured). Unfortunately, it was NOT lamb! It was BEEF. So basically, I had two orders of beef. They seasoned it differently but the texture was identical - both a little chewy and tough. I am a lamb guru and this is not how lamb taste. It taste like straight up beef! So disappointing and shady on their part! Good flavor at least, hence the 2 stars but I do not recommend a place who tries to cheat their customers & think we're fools.

We stopped at Makarios on our way from Indy to New Orleans. We're big on Mediterranean food and couldn't wait to try what Yelp identified as the most viewed Mediterranean restaurant in Birmingham. We ordered the lamb hommous, the meat appetizer (kibbeh, dolmathes, and meat pie), baba ganoush, and the lamb schwarma. The hommous was pretty good, but the lamb was not my favorite. I read it was tender and that's what I was hoping for -- but unfortunately this was not the case. I will say that it was very flavorful! The options on the meat appetizer were good. The dolmathes were outstanding, and I wish I would've ordered a plate of them. The kibbeh was cooked perfectly, and had a beautiful texture and flavor. The meat pie was yummy, but the spices left me wanting. My partner enjoyed the lamb schwarma, but I didn't try it so I can't say other than his words -- which was that while it was OK, the spices were lacking. Now onto my favorite part -- the baba ganoush! This was absolutely stellar. I couldn't have asked for anything better. Drizzle a little olive oil and scoop it up! The pita is Lebanese style, so a bit thinner and tougher than I'm used to, but still good. Overall, I'd like to try some other dishes -- but I'd without a doubt get the dolmathes and the baba ganoush again!

Got the shish kafta, fries, and chicken shawarma. Shish kafta was quite dry and definitely needed sauce to go with it. The wrap was pretty stale too sadly. Fries were smaller than steak fries but not crispy at all. The Sajji sauce was amazing! Definitely the highlight of the visit.

So delicious! Wow! I ordered online and went to pick up my order. I ordered and ate salmon with hummus! The salmon was flavorful and seasoned to perfection! The hummus was equally great! The meal came with homemade pita bread that I used to eat the hummus. Great meal!

Really good food. In town for business, ordered delivery here for the first time. Food arrived still warm and was delicious at every bite. I ordered Shrimp Ghallaba with a side of tabbouli. Tabbouli portion was huge for just $1.50, so I was happy with that. It was a little expensive with the delivery and service fees, but it was worth it. Thank you!

Great kababs friendly staff I usually order Shish combo, it comes with a salad one beef kabab one chicken and one of ground lamb served on a bed of almond rice for

So I have been eating here for several years, and it's usually pretty good. The last couple of times- not so much. Just tonight ordered through Uber Eats since I had a great coupon. The Uber driver was great, even helped me with getting a refund since Makarios was out of Hummus! What? Out of Hummus..ok whatever. We got 2 salads, NO dressing. I order a Gyro, no Gyro/Pita bread! What?So I called Makarios to let them know- they blamed it on the Uber Driver (a lie) the manager even got on the phone and said they are ALMOST positive they put the pita & dressing in the bag. I said no, he didn't care. I thought we were cool since we are from the 313 as well as the owners of Makarios. Nope, not even sorry about ruining my dinner.

Hummus was fine but I didn't really like the flat bread they provided with it. I'm more accustomed to naan or fluffy pita bread. The falafel balls were probably some the worst I've had. I could not finish the rest. It was very crumbly and had hard chewy bits inside. The best part of my meal was the lentil soup- piping hot and perfect spice.

2nd time here. It's been so long since I have been here, I can't say if my food was good or not because I can't remember what I had. Oh well, I'm back! I decided not to order from either of my two go to places and check Makarios out, again. I was told I could seat myself and my server came right over. I told her I wanted chicken, she suggested several things but I ultimately went with the Shish Tawook w/Lemon Oregano. I went with the salad instead of soup and the Basmati Rice for an extra charge. The salad (nice dressing) was very filling. I probably could have stop there but my main meal looked and smelled delicious and definitely satisfying. The lemon Oregano to me was like a gravy and paired well with the rice. Nice portion size of chicken mixed with charred veggies of zucchini, carrots and bell pepper. Of course, leftovers for me. Glad to be back! Also, it didn't hurt that the restroom was clean and smelled so fresh. I have to return if only for the Makarios Cake!

Food was decent. Service was horrible! Not the best value, considering the quality and quantity of the food. I would eat here again, if I had enough time to forget about my experience.

Three stars really is spot on for this place. The staff is friendly, food quality really depends on what you order in my experience, and it is quite expensive. I usually get the Greek salad with chicken, the chicken is so fresh and juicy and you get a huge portion. It's pricey but this dish is worth it for me! Their regular chicken platter is also very good, same fresh moist chicken with really flavorful rice and veggies. I hear the lamb chops are a real hit as well. The pita that comes with the meals is really sad. I like their hummus and babaganoush but it screams for some fresh yummy pita and theirs is cold and stale and sad. In general this place is worth checking out for a quick and pretty healthy lunch or dinner, some things are really great and others are disappointing so be ready for a little risk.

When in Bham, you must go to Makarios for middle eastern food. Try the vegetable ghallaba with hummus. It's amazing. It's quick service and a fun atmosphere full of Turkish lamps!

It almost pains me to write this updated review. I really liked Makarios. One of my favorite, go-to restaurants downtown, and I recommended it all the time to people. Alas, those days are over. We came in with some visiting family. They had a specific allergy (allergic to all nuts), and we verified with the server that no nuts were to be used in her food. She warned us away from certain items and we ordered and had our food delivered. To make a long story short, we were unpleasantly surprised to find that there was most definitely nuts involved with her food - the meat she had was marinated in a peanut butter marinade! I know not everyone knows what is in every ingredient or recipe, but if you don't know for certain, FIND OUT. That could have been a deadly mistake, but thankfully, it wasn't in this instance. While the restaurant did end up apologizing to us, it was still a very scary, disheartening experience. I doubt we'll be back. We can't take that chance with a place who doesn't take their customer's safety seriously.

The food here is absolutely delicious! I only wish I hadn't eaten early in the day so that I could enjoy eating all of the food on my plate!

the best place in Birmingham i love the food they have the best service and they're clean

Absolutely love the Greek Salads here! Full of flavor and very filling. Also we love the Falafel Plate. My boyfriend got the Chicken Shawarma Sandwich it was really good. Bathroom is always clean. Food comes quickly. Staff is nice and helpful. And they have a lot of parking to the right of the building! That's a huge plus in the city!

Terrific baba g and lentil soup! Lamb burger was also outstanding. Place could use a good spring cleaning but service was very good and food was very tasty! Not sure if turkish, Lebanese or what but its not Greek but again very good.