Delicious well priced food with great service.We came across Tamra Mediterranean Grill when looking for local takeout during my recent trip to Saratoga. We ordered the dinner for 4 (beef skewers, rice, salad, hummus and pita), Branzino and Baba Ganoush. Everything was absolutely delicious. Beef doesn't always do well in takeout but it was perfectly cooked, seasoned and tender. You wanted to savor the flavors in every bite. My local friend wondered why they hadn't frequented this restaurant before.Typically in my travels, I want to try as many different places as possible but occasionally you have a meal so good that you need to go back one more time. So when out with another friend visiting the area, I had to go back - this time for dine in. In addition to some of my favorites from the day before, we tried the Lamb Moussaka. Moussaka is something I hesitate to order as the quality can really vary. But this was melt in your mouth delicious - a must order. Dining in service was above and beyond (see my side note on their accommodation of dietary restrictions).While there are many restaurants on the East Coast with similar menus (some better than others), Tamra Mediterranean Grill will top my list of restaurants to go to when in Saratoga.Dietary restrictions: After placing our order - I learned my friend had a recently tested positive for an allergy to sesame seeds - which we learned was in every dish we had ordered. Despite the late notification, the restaurant was beyond accommodating and in fact, unnecessarily apologized for not asking about dietary restrictions (like it was their mistake, not ours, which was not the case). They were able to make everything without sesame seeds and provided the omitted seasoning/sauce for me on the side. Still delicious.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Baba Ganoush, Branzino
Danny
So, so delicious and incredibly kind service!Love the lamb, pita bread, and lentil salad.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
One Of Us
If you are looking for authentic middle eastern cuisine...sadly, this is not the place.I always keep an eye out for middle eastern restaurants on my travels around the country. Which led me to stop by and try some of the appetizers at Tamra.The service was friendly and the place is cozy for a dine-in experience. But the dips were...well, I know what they were not. Definitely not authentic or reflective of middle eastern cuisine.My suggestion is to go with the pasta options, or something else that doesn't require an ethnic touch.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 5
Rebecca Castle
Delicious, authentic food in a quiet, relaxed atmosphere. We tried the mansaf (slow roasted lamb with freekeh and yogurt). My husband was Egyptian, so he has a discerning palate for this type of food, and he definitely approved. Wonderful service too.Vegetarian options: Falafel, mushroom soup
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Hummus, Falafal, Mansaf
Eran Lador
Great
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Andy Jan
The lamb shank was good, but one thing I’ll always come back for is the chicken liver hummus, a dish I’ve never seen anywhere else. I would love to try a few of the fish dishes next time.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Hummus, Mansaf
Mahsa N
Not very fond of the idea of adding too much spices on the chicken shawarma!!! It tastes like they added the spices on the moment of plating the food!’Service was even worse than the chicken shawarma tastes!! No one asked us if we needed anything after they brought us foodWe ordered the the 6 side samplers and out of 6, only Labne was fresh,This restaurant needs some real Mediterranean chef!!
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Veneta Cholakova
Small overpriced portions. I grew up eating this type of food and was very excited to go to a nicer restaurant offering the dishes my grandma used to make but was disappointed. Adding a picture of my $11 (w/o tax and tip) teacup of a soup. We also got the stuffed red pepper (1 pepper), and falafel starter. Sandwiches are not served at dinner (despite seeing a guy eating one on another table ? at 6.30pm).
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 3
HB Underwood
They have the best masaka and lamb shank around. I’ve been a regular for quite some time and haven’t had a bad meal yet. We tend to take out.
I firmly believe their hummus is Costco's hummus. Their Shakhshuka is as bitter as hell. Their Baba Ganoush is another cold condiment they buy from another store and tastes more like hummus!Their chicken kabab is as hard as rock with no specific taste, and dried out.Their kufta kabob feels like a combination of rubber+some meet+ some ground stone and a little touch of cement.On top of this, their prices will pack a serious punch in the end. Meaning you're not happy with what you had, you're unhappy by the check and yet they have a very kind service that will convince you to pay for the awful meal you just had.In the end, if you have ever tried any decent Middle Eastern cuisine, you will keep thinking about why you've wasted such a considerable amount of cash on such an awful meal.Once again, they are very kind and very hospitable but their food is completely the opposite. Please try Dish Dash, Dish n Dash, there's a Palestinian restaurant in downtown redwood ( I don't know the name) and another recently opened restaurant in San Leandro called Tio's Mediterranean. If you just try any of these, you won't even call this place a restaurant.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Pravallika Raj
Food was way below average, we ordered fish fried- which was nothing but fish dipped in flour and fried, it was chewy and no taste at all. It was not even seasoned with salt and pepper. The falafel was better in all of the dishes we ordered, even though it’s not cooked through the middle, so you can think how bad the other dishes were. For main course we ordered Mansaf, the lamb shank. It was served with rice which is dry and under cooked and the lamb shank was very very dry and SWEET??I gave two stars as the staff were friendly, checking on us frequently and the atmosphere was fine too. Very disappointed with the food, not sure where all the positive reviews are coming from.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 1
Service: 4
KC C
Found this restaurant Yelp and it was a GOOD find.The food is AMAZING and the service beyond great. Ambiance is just a tad lackluster, but I don’t go out ‘to be seen’; I go for the good food and this place serves up some delicious foods. I can see this as a cute little date night spot, or a lowkey, quiet girls’ night. I don’t think there is a bar, but they do offer wine; alternatively, corkage is $25 which is very reasonable these days. Chris was our server and not only was he able to help us make some decisions, but he was also very friendly and very attentive.Some of our favs were 6-side sampler dips, branzino and the ribeye steak which I believe was a special that night. I must go back and try the lamb shank.Parking is easy as there is a dedicated standalone lot.Looking forward to another good meal there, and soon!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Hummus, Branzino
Preyas Popat
Great food and service. Everything we ordered was tasty. The sampler, chocolate mousse and affogato were particularly amazing.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chocolate Mousse
Dipesh Sonawale
The service was disappointingly slow, and the food, despite its high price, was only average. My lamb skewers were undercooked and overly chewy, leading to the need for a return and additional wait time. Overall, it wasn't worth the experience.
tasty! and nice server!Perfect!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Delicious well priced food with great service.We came across Tamra Mediterranean Grill when looking for local takeout during my recent trip to Saratoga. We ordered the dinner for 4 (beef skewers, rice, salad, hummus and pita), Branzino and Baba Ganoush. Everything was absolutely delicious. Beef doesn't always do well in takeout but it was perfectly cooked, seasoned and tender. You wanted to savor the flavors in every bite. My local friend wondered why they hadn't frequented this restaurant before.Typically in my travels, I want to try as many different places as possible but occasionally you have a meal so good that you need to go back one more time. So when out with another friend visiting the area, I had to go back - this time for dine in. In addition to some of my favorites from the day before, we tried the Lamb Moussaka. Moussaka is something I hesitate to order as the quality can really vary. But this was melt in your mouth delicious - a must order. Dining in service was above and beyond (see my side note on their accommodation of dietary restrictions).While there are many restaurants on the East Coast with similar menus (some better than others), Tamra Mediterranean Grill will top my list of restaurants to go to when in Saratoga.Dietary restrictions: After placing our order - I learned my friend had a recently tested positive for an allergy to sesame seeds - which we learned was in every dish we had ordered. Despite the late notification, the restaurant was beyond accommodating and in fact, unnecessarily apologized for not asking about dietary restrictions (like it was their mistake, not ours, which was not the case). They were able to make everything without sesame seeds and provided the omitted seasoning/sauce for me on the side. Still delicious.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Baba Ganoush, Branzino
So, so delicious and incredibly kind service!Love the lamb, pita bread, and lentil salad.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
If you are looking for authentic middle eastern cuisine...sadly, this is not the place.I always keep an eye out for middle eastern restaurants on my travels around the country. Which led me to stop by and try some of the appetizers at Tamra.The service was friendly and the place is cozy for a dine-in experience. But the dips were...well, I know what they were not. Definitely not authentic or reflective of middle eastern cuisine.My suggestion is to go with the pasta options, or something else that doesn't require an ethnic touch.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 5
Delicious, authentic food in a quiet, relaxed atmosphere. We tried the mansaf (slow roasted lamb with freekeh and yogurt). My husband was Egyptian, so he has a discerning palate for this type of food, and he definitely approved. Wonderful service too.Vegetarian options: Falafel, mushroom soup
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Hummus, Falafal, Mansaf
Great
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
The lamb shank was good, but one thing I’ll always come back for is the chicken liver hummus, a dish I’ve never seen anywhere else. I would love to try a few of the fish dishes next time.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Hummus, Mansaf
Not very fond of the idea of adding too much spices on the chicken shawarma!!! It tastes like they added the spices on the moment of plating the food!’Service was even worse than the chicken shawarma tastes!! No one asked us if we needed anything after they brought us foodWe ordered the the 6 side samplers and out of 6, only Labne was fresh,This restaurant needs some real Mediterranean chef!!
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Small overpriced portions. I grew up eating this type of food and was very excited to go to a nicer restaurant offering the dishes my grandma used to make but was disappointed. Adding a picture of my $11 (w/o tax and tip) teacup of a soup. We also got the stuffed red pepper (1 pepper), and falafel starter. Sandwiches are not served at dinner (despite seeing a guy eating one on another table ? at 6.30pm).
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 3
They have the best masaka and lamb shank around. I’ve been a regular for quite some time and haven’t had a bad meal yet. We tend to take out.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Baklava, Hummus, Beet Salad
Restaurantji Recommends
I firmly believe their hummus is Costco's hummus. Their Shakhshuka is as bitter as hell. Their Baba Ganoush is another cold condiment they buy from another store and tastes more like hummus!Their chicken kabab is as hard as rock with no specific taste, and dried out.Their kufta kabob feels like a combination of rubber+some meet+ some ground stone and a little touch of cement.On top of this, their prices will pack a serious punch in the end. Meaning you're not happy with what you had, you're unhappy by the check and yet they have a very kind service that will convince you to pay for the awful meal you just had.In the end, if you have ever tried any decent Middle Eastern cuisine, you will keep thinking about why you've wasted such a considerable amount of cash on such an awful meal.Once again, they are very kind and very hospitable but their food is completely the opposite. Please try Dish Dash, Dish n Dash, there's a Palestinian restaurant in downtown redwood ( I don't know the name) and another recently opened restaurant in San Leandro called Tio's Mediterranean. If you just try any of these, you won't even call this place a restaurant.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Food was way below average, we ordered fish fried- which was nothing but fish dipped in flour and fried, it was chewy and no taste at all. It was not even seasoned with salt and pepper. The falafel was better in all of the dishes we ordered, even though it’s not cooked through the middle, so you can think how bad the other dishes were. For main course we ordered Mansaf, the lamb shank. It was served with rice which is dry and under cooked and the lamb shank was very very dry and SWEET??I gave two stars as the staff were friendly, checking on us frequently and the atmosphere was fine too. Very disappointed with the food, not sure where all the positive reviews are coming from.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 1
Service: 4
Found this restaurant Yelp and it was a GOOD find.The food is AMAZING and the service beyond great. Ambiance is just a tad lackluster, but I don’t go out ‘to be seen’; I go for the good food and this place serves up some delicious foods. I can see this as a cute little date night spot, or a lowkey, quiet girls’ night. I don’t think there is a bar, but they do offer wine; alternatively, corkage is $25 which is very reasonable these days. Chris was our server and not only was he able to help us make some decisions, but he was also very friendly and very attentive.Some of our favs were 6-side sampler dips, branzino and the ribeye steak which I believe was a special that night. I must go back and try the lamb shank.Parking is easy as there is a dedicated standalone lot.Looking forward to another good meal there, and soon!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Hummus, Branzino
Great food and service. Everything we ordered was tasty. The sampler, chocolate mousse and affogato were particularly amazing.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chocolate Mousse
The service was disappointingly slow, and the food, despite its high price, was only average. My lamb skewers were undercooked and overly chewy, leading to the need for a return and additional wait time. Overall, it wasn't worth the experience.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 1