Ali Baba is one of Dallas’ best bargains for excellent Middle Eastern food, despite a cramped location with odd hours. We especially like the golden chicken, a half-chicken baked on a rotisserie and crisped under a broiler. Boston Market take note: Whatever they do at Ali Baba, this is how you’re supposed to make rotisserie […]
Middle Eastern in Dallas Observer
Showing 1 - 22 of 22
Arabica is a family-owned restaurant that aims to offer different dishes from different countries in the Middle East. Try the mandi chicken on a fluffy bed of basmati rice, easily shareable among two. The aromatic, biryani-esque mandi was vibrant in a hawaij seasoning (a blend of Yemeni spices) and garnished with small, golden fried onions […]
The Iraqi restaurant Bilad is a neighborhood institution. The superb bakery got its start turning out excellent samoon bread from Iraq and trays of delightful desserts like pistachio puffs and baklava. Bilad has an excellent kitchen serving Iraqi specialties, including some of the region’s better shawarma and falafel, zhug (an acidic hot pepper sauce), fresh […]
Across from the taco truck, every street corner in America needs a Lebanese fast-food joint for falafel emergencies. Until that utopia arrives, we’ll all have to head to Plano, where Board Bites has been serving up a short menu of shawarma wraps, kebabs, spicy hummus and not much else since spring 2018. Of course, not […]
If there’s a better lunch buffet to be had in Fort Worth, we haven’t found it. Byblos lays out a delicious spread of Lebanese and Middle Eastern specialties in the Stockyards, including chicken roasted in lemon juice and herbs; a savory rice dish, Dajaj Bil Riz, with chunks of chicken, finely ground sirloin and a […]
advertisement
Dallas’ most popular Turkish restaurant opens in the suburbs, and it’s even better than the original. Designer space and classic Mediterranean fare, from dolmas to the famous Iskender Kebap.
The Silk Road-themed Casablanca sits like an oasis in the heart of the Bishop Arts District, just a few steps off the main artery. Here the mood is a desert oasis with sandy hues and a Moroccan aura. Like any cool desert hangout, it’s centered on a calming pool of water (which is not for […]
The Top 100 Dallas Restaurants, No. 47: One of the finest Iraqi restaurants in the Dallas area – and there is more competition than you might suspect – Chai Khanah is helmed by an owner who fled Iraq after hearing that Saddam Hussein’s henchmen had him on a list of targets. The breakfasts here are […]
One of the best restaurants in the area to feature foods from the Muslim cultures of the Indian subcontinent, Eat Street is tucked around the backside of a strip mall in Carrollton’s Korea Town. Here, even the lunch buffet is given unusual attention, but look out for super-tender tangri chicken legs with a bold spice […]
Ephesus is the kind of restaurant where the first impression is misleading. Its atmosphere is peculiar, and its appetizers can be shaky, but dig deeper to reveal a kitchen turning out delightful Turkish comfort foods. The best starter choice is a sample platter of meze, the small dishes and dips that introduce a traditional Middle […]
advertisement
Fattoush is tucked away in an obscure strip mall in the even more obscure town of Pantego that somehow earned squatters’ rights in the middle of Arlington. The chef here, Bashar Al Mudhafar, emigrated to the U.S. in 2010 after befriending American soldiers who frequented his Baghdad restaurant. One meal led to another, and after […]
This shop boasts it has the best hummus in Dallas, but what it really gives you is the option of teleportation to the Mediterranean or New York when you enter under the yellow awning. Customers can order myriad mezze at this sister joint to Caf
While it may look like an old 7-Eleven from the outside, dinner at the exotically appointed Kasbah Grill in Irving may be the cheapest, quickest way to take your taste buds to North Africa. Moroccan dishes like lamb tagine with couscous and bastilla — think pot pie but sexier and spicier — share the menu […]
The sleek, modern décor at Nora boasts whitewashed walls accented by a pair of long, dark wooden boards and chandeliers with thin, opaque, tinkling things that illuminate like ice sculptures from above. Middle-aged couples sit at the bar sipping wine, while larger groups fill out the dining tables and more tables spill onto the patio […]
This North Dallas spot defies expectations, going beyond typical Middle Eastern restaurants to give diners something new to chew on. And that’s not at the expense of authenticity. The scent of sumac wafts up from the plate of sirloin beef, and nuts and fruits are used effectively to create complex dishes with plenty of character. […]
advertisement
The specialty here is Mediterranean-style grilled seafood, offered in a weekday lunch buffet, but the real action at Sayyad is in the evenings, when grilled fish and seafood kebabs can take center stage. The seafood specialties here include singari fish casserole, in which a whole fish is split, butterflied and marinated, then topped with an […]
All of the menu items are crafted from 100% Gardein meat – a meat substitute made of soy, wheat and pea proteins – and flavored with the same spices and condiments as a typical kebab. Gardein is lauded for its unique ability to assume the stocky textures of meats ranging from more common ones like […]
The original Mesquite location of this charming family-owned mini-chain is a tiny dining room full of proof of chef Vasili “Bill” Kaprantzas’ Greek immigrant roots. There’s a poster of the chef’s grandmother, quotations hand-scrawled on the walls and, of course, a bottle of Windex displayed with pride. The Rockwall location, in a shiny strip mall, […]