10/04/09

Disgusting

by allo2222

I ordered a couscous. What they served me had nothing in common with couscous. It was a stew made with tomato paste, thickened with a ton of paprika. It had the consistency of a mexican chili. The semolina was so overcooked that it was soggy and gross.

My dining companion ordered one of the "Shish Kebab" meals. Again it beared no ressemblance to any known meal. I did not taste it myself but it looked horrible and my companion said it tasted gross. It's been more than an hour since we left and she is still complaining that it left her a bad taste in her mouth. As for myself I have a headache from the industrial quantity of paprika they dumped in there.

Please don't encourage this place!

• Pros: Waitresses were friendly and good looking
• Cons: Food is disgusting. Carpet is old and dirty.

02/20/09

Blander than goulash.

by didomonster

We tried this place with hopes high- the menu looked nicely varied and tasty. But everything we ordered was just so bland. The tabouleh was unbalanced- about 5% cracked wheat, 75% parsley, and 20% cucumber and tomato. I thought they gave me fatoosh by mistake, but no, that is their idea of cracked wheat salad. The hummus and baba ganoush weren't bad, just totally lacking in seasoning. Who enjoys can eating mushy tasteless food?- got plenty of that to look forward to in old age, so I don't need to be eating it now. The artichoke salad consisted of canned in water artichokes dumped in a thinned out tahini- gee thanks. Could have done that myself, except I would never, because I have more sense than that. The lamb and mushrooms in brown sauce was blander than goulash, and the mushrooms were clearly from a can. Come on!!!! How lazy and tasteless can you get?!!! My husband proclaimed it the most tasteless lamb dish he had ever consumed, and it looked gross, too. I guess we will have to stick to Kassab's.

• Pros: Didn't have to pay much to be underwhelmed.
• Cons: My mother-in-law's food is more flavorful, and she doesn't even season anything.

04/13/08

Affordable Arabic Food

by PhilipMarc

I had built my hopes up pretty high a few nights ago when a few friends invited me to Ali Baba for some Arabic food. I can't say that I was entirely disappointed, but it wasn't what I had hoped.

The hommous could have used less tahini; the muhammara was overly spiced; the kibbeh was slightly bland and had very little meat; the tabouleh was more tomato than parsley, and the chef may have juiced one too many lemons in the fatoush. The service was also a bit inattentive and I found the wait-staff to be unprofessional.

The atmosphere is very nice though. The music was very relaxing (they were playing traditional Arabic music which is beautiful to hear), and the decor was very much authentic and comforting. Although as I said before the service was inattentive, the man who I presumed to be the owner was very hospitable (even for an Arabic person), and that's saying something.

I did enjoy myself, despite the short-comings. I would not neccesarily reccomend it to all my friends, but I would not deter anyone from giving it a shot either.

• Pros: Hospitality
• Cons: Most of the food )=

01/26/08

Good food, pleasant service and vegetarian-friendly!

by Vududoll

We have been dining here since the early '80s and have enjoyed every meal. Last weekend, the baba ganoush was especially good, and our friends -- first-timers -- raved about the stuffed grape leaves and the rice with pine nuts. The hummus was a bit garlicky for their taste, but even so, they said they liked it and none went to waste. Even though there are numerous meat-based items, vegetarian selections are clearly identified, and there are quite a few choices. Warning - the Turkish coffee is ultra-strong -- definitely not for sissies! -- but the 'regular' (American) coffee is outstanding and goes well with the excellent bakalava for dessert.

08/15/07

Average Mediterranean cuisine

by funnel_clouds

For some reason, this restaurant is very popular. Not that it's terrible, but it's simply mediocre. The Mediterranean Grill is better, as is Pinati's.

The food at Ali Baba is a mixed bag. In the times that I've been there, I've ordered different things. The omelet, a 3 egg creation with feta cheese, was pretty good, though a bit too greasy for my tastes. The falafel didn't come in a pita, and tasted pre-prepared, like something you would find in the frozen section. The meat pie was good, tasty and flavored nicely. But the dessert I had, with a bland honey topping, made my stomach queasy for a day.

The service has been pretty good, though the size of water cup they give you seems like it'd be fitting for a four year old. They're not an especially great bargain for dinner.

• Pros: meat pie, service
• Cons: dessert, falafel

08/01/06

Fast food undercover

by florentina_s

Ive only been to this place one time and I was very disappointed.

I had similar food before, in Houston, and it was very flavorful and not greasy. I am not very good at remembering the names of the dishes, but I had no. 3 on the dinner menu, which is a lamb stew with mushroom sauce and rice. It was tangy and the rice was extremely soggy. I don't know why people said they have great rice. Also, it hardly had any lamb; it was more like a mushroom and rice dish. On top of this the plates were very small, and it made it very difficult to eat and not spill rice all over the place. Oh, I also had a "salad - some leftover iceberg lettuce w/ a weird lemon sauce...and they make you pay extra for the cheese which was actually good but a very small amount. Also, you only get one basket of pita bread.

Personally I would not recommend this restaurant. I guess if you are a student and you want to grab a quick lunch for not very much it works out. I actually went out for dinner craving a fulfilling meal with tasty meat and this did not touch the spot at all, I was still hungry when I left and pizza looked like Paradise in my mind, you can almost never go wrong with itI know they dont even compare, but I dont think this place has anything to do with good Lebanese/Iranian food either. Btw, my boyfriend had the ground lamb on skewers and it was a better dinner than mine, but it was on the heavy, greasy side. We both had this dish before, and it had less fat and more taste.

• Pros: maybe the cheap lunch prices
• Cons: bad food

Pittsburgh once supported at least eight Middle Eastern restaurants, now there are only a few still around.

by Contributor

The Scene
Ali Baba has been here for many years, supplying traditional fare to an appreciative audience in the Pitt and CMU communities. It's located on N. Craig Street, a small commercial street situated between the two schools. There's one long dining room, decorated simply. Service is friendly and quick, provided mostly by local students working their way through school.

The Food
The menu offers traditional Middle Eastern dishes; hummus and baba ghanoush are good, and the salad offers a great lemon-based dressing, though it's occasionally overdone.

If You Order One Thing
One perennial favorite is the shish kabob of seasoned lamb or beef. Cubes are marinated and roasted, served with salad and rice with pine nuts. The sleek and baked kibbee are also worth checking out.

12/19/02

the best

by julespgh

Get the maza platter, you'll never be disappointed. It's been one the very best restaurants pittsburgh has had to offer for years now