Mohamed N.
Yelp
"Delicious Middle Eastern Food in Downtown Raleigh"
Came here on a summer Thursday evening at 7pm. We had a reservation (group of 3), but it would've been fine to have shown up without one. There's a large bar to the right and general tables off to the left. We were seated right away.
The setting was fine... some framed photos of people that were taken a very long time ago on the walls, and comfortably lit (I did appreciate the large windows in the front). Our server was excellent-- she provided great advice, she checked on us after each course was served, and she was generally helpful without being at all intrusive. We started with a vegetarian appetizer tray (falafel, cheese rolls, hummus, baba ghannouj, fattoush salad, stuffed grape leaves). I then had the shrimp kabob for my main, and I finished with a bit of berry sorbet for dessert.
The food was SCRUMPTIOUS! The stuffed grape leaves had a pickled flavor that was wonderful. The hummus & baba ghannouj were delicious, and falafel was good. One small awkwardness to the appetizer tray-- it gave "two" of each item (e.g., stuffed grape leaves, falafel), so that made it a little hard to share with a group of 3, and some of those seemed silly (e.g., giving more than 2 falafel would not break the bank). As far as main dish, my shrimp was amazing. I don't know what it was marinated or seasoned with but the flavor was amazing-- tiny hint of spiciness with excellent flavor. I liked the mango salsa and rice that came with it too. And the berry sorbet had whole berries mixed in as well as being delicious. I was STUFFED by the end of the evening.
The price was a little higher than I may have preferred, but given the quality and service as well as the central downtown Raleigh location, I won't fault them.
Overall, I'd give this 4.5 stars, but I'll round up given how happy I was with the good quality and service. Would happily go back.