It's been a while, and I'm glad to know that catering is still available. We had a great meal at our last visit months ago. We enjoyed: Gyro, Kabob, Spanakopita, & Coffee!
THEE BEST Mediterranean food. HANDS DOWN. The staff is absolutely lovely, and the food is totally authentic, full of flavor, and cooked with love. Yes, you can taste the love!We complimented the chef, who we learned was our servers mother! They even gave us a free dessert. What a wonderful experience.I ate here over a year ago (twice in one day) on vacation and forgot to leave a review. I purposely sought out this restaurant again just to leave this review now.I would go back to Jacksonville just to eat here.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Fattoush Salad
Zara Sf
I ordered 3 shawarmas today through DoorDash for my coworkers to let them try it since they never did, I’m from the Middle East, and I was embarrassed in front of them , it is looks like tacos using different bread , and they charge almost $16 each and it come with 6 pierces of fries , lol, please make real shawarma and stop charging shawarma price for a taco . Plus they use that dirty black plastic to send the food , disgusting ?.
Anil G. Singh
The food is great. The ambiance is good. I think the waiter was the owner, lovely older gentleman with some nice jokes. Definitely coming back here.Parking: Parking lot.
Lashaunda Peguese
My daughter and I actually went to the Tai spot next door, but they were closing in 30 minutes. My daughter saw Haretna Mediterranean and we gave it a shot! The scenery was nice and we were greeted with a warm and welcoming greeting. Not to mention the attentive staff and the food was delicious!! We will definitely visit again!!!
Rachel Raulerson
My husband and I came in for lunch today. All I can say is, WOW wonderful flavors (chefs kiss) we started with their house made hummus and fresh puffy bread AMAZING…. my husband had the gyro burger and I had the chicken shawarma pita. Everything cooked fresh, delicious and seasoned perfectly. We ended with baklava, so delicious. Jack gave us wonderful service and the place a peaceful relaxing feel. We will be back.
Dwight H.
A little gem tucked away in Regency. I went there for lunch today, in mood for some Middle-Eastern cuisine and was not dissapointed. My order included: Falafel, Tabbouleh, Hummous with some added lamb with a puffy pita, and a Beef Shawarma wrap with a side of French fries, some unsweet tea and some Kanafeh to go. Everything I ordered was very good. The Falafel was very tasty, crispy and not overly dense. The Hummous was tasty. The Shawarma tasted good. The Tabbouleh was nice and fresh and balanced. I had never tried Kanafeh before but have wanted to, so I when I got home with it and tried it, it was still a bit warm and also quite good. I liked it because it's not overly sweet, compared to Baklava, which has often been cloyingly sweet, in my experience. The older gentleman who served me was taking care of the whole front of house, but they were not very busy. He took good care of me, was friendly and checked on me several times and kept my tea refilled when I asked for some. I'd come back again. Show them some love and make the trek. I came from the Northside, and there are no Middle-Eastern restaurants over there, except perhaps in Riverside. Maybe one day there will be. We got our first Indian Restaurant over there recently (See my Masala Mantra review).
Christopher Reyes
Perfectly prepared and proportioned. Delicious, one-of-a-kind, and absolutely wonderful! This was my first experience with Mediterranean Cuisine, OMG!... I've been missing out! This location made a lasting impression on me. This restaurant's positive reviews were not exaggerated! I highly recommend this place!!
Ala Boes
Best Middle Eastern food in town. The food tasted like my Palestinian’s mom cooking. George and his wife were so attentive and were awesome to my little 2 year old. The kanafa was so delicious. Will definitely go back again!!
I love this place. Dinner was absolutely delicious, I got the Mix Grilled and left my plate cleaned. You must indulge yourself with Baklava, its homemade by wife's owner. Owner/host name is George, he is super sweet and kind. We'll come back
Nadine A.
If I could leave 0 stars I would, first we ordered the veggie platter and the portions were so small, maybe two spoons of hummus and tabula. Then we ordered the chicken sandwich and they brought us chicken platters. We told them this isn't what we ordered and he tried to argue and say it was. Never fixed the order and we got stuck with the platter, on top of that the chicken was cold and the portion size was so small. The falafel taste frozen and the server was extremely rude, didn't smile once, not even a nice greeting walking in. Do not recommend at all.
John Baumeister (slakker9)
Tasty food. Suspiciously empty whether lunch or dinner time. Maybe it's the location, but I think people should give this place a shot. Great spot to grab a bite before or after catching a movie at AMC Regency.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Chicken Shawarma Platter
Jenna H.
What has happened to Haretna? This was one of our favorite restaurants. They used to be swimming in to go orders but tonight the Door Dash drivers were non existent. Second red flag: canned soda . Third : no cheese for the flatbread. The $20 mixed cold appetizer platter that used to be so big and plentiful we would have leftovers was about a quarter cup of hummus , baba ghanouj and fatoush; and the light and fluffy puffy bread that was so delicious was flat like a matzoh. The appetizer falafels were good unlike my falafel burger. The burger was crumbled onto a hamburger bun with a tomato and enough onion to kill a horse. Small portion of lukewarm fries and no ketchup. We also had the lamb chops. 4 in the order, one had no meat ; with a huge scoop of rice, about $26. The bill was 62$. So disappointed. This place used to be so good.; it's not going to last another month at this rate. The writing is on the wall.
Laila H.
Stopped by this place for a quick bit to eat in the middle of a road trip back to Maryland. Few places were open new years days, and I had high hopes based on the pictures, but boy were we sorely disappointed. My first cue should have been the fact that the place was nearly abandoned and the owner seemed to be training the single line cook in the back and that there was no shawerma spit to speak of. Regardless I held out hope. Our order arrived and the "skewers" were more like two pinky length sticks with 1/2" overcooked pieces of beef -not lamb as we ordered; the shawerma wrap came as a fistful of stir fried tiny pieces of chewy over cooked beef (1/3 of which was fat) next to a mound of rice. The owner then told us he doesn't have a Shawerma spit (might be helpful to have announced that before and remove from menu??) and got the order wrong , and proceeded to serve us Hummos from a can. And all this for $46!! Unacceptable. Food was almost inedible. I want this place to do well but they won't stand a chance at this rate.
It's been a while, and I'm glad to know that catering is still available. We had a great meal at our last visit months ago. We enjoyed: Gyro, Kabob, Spanakopita, & Coffee!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Baklava, Spanakopita, Beef Shawarma, Grape Leaves with Meat 6 Pieces, Fries, Gyro Platter, Kabobs
They don’t answer the phone
THEE BEST Mediterranean food. HANDS DOWN. The staff is absolutely lovely, and the food is totally authentic, full of flavor, and cooked with love. Yes, you can taste the love!We complimented the chef, who we learned was our servers mother! They even gave us a free dessert. What a wonderful experience.I ate here over a year ago (twice in one day) on vacation and forgot to leave a review. I purposely sought out this restaurant again just to leave this review now.I would go back to Jacksonville just to eat here.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Fattoush Salad
I ordered 3 shawarmas today through DoorDash for my coworkers to let them try it since they never did, I’m from the Middle East, and I was embarrassed in front of them , it is looks like tacos using different bread , and they charge almost $16 each and it come with 6 pierces of fries , lol, please make real shawarma and stop charging shawarma price for a taco . Plus they use that dirty black plastic to send the food , disgusting ?.
The food is great. The ambiance is good. I think the waiter was the owner, lovely older gentleman with some nice jokes. Definitely coming back here.Parking: Parking lot.
My daughter and I actually went to the Tai spot next door, but they were closing in 30 minutes. My daughter saw Haretna Mediterranean and we gave it a shot! The scenery was nice and we were greeted with a warm and welcoming greeting. Not to mention the attentive staff and the food was delicious!! We will definitely visit again!!!
My husband and I came in for lunch today. All I can say is, WOW wonderful flavors (chefs kiss) we started with their house made hummus and fresh puffy bread AMAZING…. my husband had the gyro burger and I had the chicken shawarma pita. Everything cooked fresh, delicious and seasoned perfectly. We ended with baklava, so delicious. Jack gave us wonderful service and the place a peaceful relaxing feel. We will be back.
A little gem tucked away in Regency. I went there for lunch today, in mood for some Middle-Eastern cuisine and was not dissapointed. My order included: Falafel, Tabbouleh, Hummous with some added lamb with a puffy pita, and a Beef Shawarma wrap with a side of French fries, some unsweet tea and some Kanafeh to go. Everything I ordered was very good. The Falafel was very tasty, crispy and not overly dense. The Hummous was tasty. The Shawarma tasted good. The Tabbouleh was nice and fresh and balanced. I had never tried Kanafeh before but have wanted to, so I when I got home with it and tried it, it was still a bit warm and also quite good. I liked it because it's not overly sweet, compared to Baklava, which has often been cloyingly sweet, in my experience. The older gentleman who served me was taking care of the whole front of house, but they were not very busy. He took good care of me, was friendly and checked on me several times and kept my tea refilled when I asked for some. I'd come back again. Show them some love and make the trek. I came from the Northside, and there are no Middle-Eastern restaurants over there, except perhaps in Riverside. Maybe one day there will be. We got our first Indian Restaurant over there recently (See my Masala Mantra review).
Perfectly prepared and proportioned. Delicious, one-of-a-kind, and absolutely wonderful! This was my first experience with Mediterranean Cuisine, OMG!... I've been missing out! This location made a lasting impression on me. This restaurant's positive reviews were not exaggerated! I highly recommend this place!!
Best Middle Eastern food in town. The food tasted like my Palestinian’s mom cooking. George and his wife were so attentive and were awesome to my little 2 year old. The kanafa was so delicious. Will definitely go back again!!
Restaurantji Recommends
I love this place. Dinner was absolutely delicious, I got the Mix Grilled and left my plate cleaned. You must indulge yourself with Baklava, its homemade by wife's owner. Owner/host name is George, he is super sweet and kind. We'll come back
If I could leave 0 stars I would, first we ordered the veggie platter and the portions were so small, maybe two spoons of hummus and tabula. Then we ordered the chicken sandwich and they brought us chicken platters. We told them this isn't what we ordered and he tried to argue and say it was. Never fixed the order and we got stuck with the platter, on top of that the chicken was cold and the portion size was so small. The falafel taste frozen and the server was extremely rude, didn't smile once, not even a nice greeting walking in. Do not recommend at all.
Tasty food. Suspiciously empty whether lunch or dinner time. Maybe it's the location, but I think people should give this place a shot. Great spot to grab a bite before or after catching a movie at AMC Regency.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Chicken Shawarma Platter
What has happened to Haretna? This was one of our favorite restaurants. They used to be swimming in to go orders but tonight the Door Dash drivers were non existent. Second red flag: canned soda . Third : no cheese for the flatbread. The $20 mixed cold appetizer platter that used to be so big and plentiful we would have leftovers was about a quarter cup of hummus , baba ghanouj and fatoush; and the light and fluffy puffy bread that was so delicious was flat like a matzoh. The appetizer falafels were good unlike my falafel burger. The burger was crumbled onto a hamburger bun with a tomato and enough onion to kill a horse. Small portion of lukewarm fries and no ketchup. We also had the lamb chops. 4 in the order, one had no meat ; with a huge scoop of rice, about $26. The bill was 62$. So disappointed. This place used to be so good.; it's not going to last another month at this rate. The writing is on the wall.
Stopped by this place for a quick bit to eat in the middle of a road trip back to Maryland. Few places were open new years days, and I had high hopes based on the pictures, but boy were we sorely disappointed. My first cue should have been the fact that the place was nearly abandoned and the owner seemed to be training the single line cook in the back and that there was no shawerma spit to speak of. Regardless I held out hope. Our order arrived and the "skewers" were more like two pinky length sticks with 1/2" overcooked pieces of beef -not lamb as we ordered; the shawerma wrap came as a fistful of stir fried tiny pieces of chewy over cooked beef (1/3 of which was fat) next to a mound of rice. The owner then told us he doesn't have a Shawerma spit (might be helpful to have announced that before and remove from menu??) and got the order wrong , and proceeded to serve us Hummos from a can. And all this for $46!! Unacceptable. Food was almost inedible. I want this place to do well but they won't stand a chance at this rate.