Al Aseel Restaurant Parramatta — Restaurant in Sydney

Summary: The food here is top tier, but expect poor service.

For context, I have been here 4 times and have had bad service each time. I return back because the food is great each time I have dined, the menu is exceptional, and I like the atmosphere, so have given a rating of 3.

Food: Exceptional each time I have dined. Juicy meat, entrees are always cooked perfectly, salads are dressed well and balanced, dips are delicious, Lebanese bread has always been fresh and soft, and great selection of food on the menu. This is bay far my favourite Lebanese place to eat it in terms of food quality, deliciousness and menu options.

Service: Service has been poor each time I have dined here. Servers are exceptionally slow to take our order, and unreasonably slow to bring the drinks. I also noticed on the numerous times that I have visited that surrounding tables are left unkept with food remnants and are unclean. The servers don’t seem to wipe the tables down once customers leave. Once I ordered a black tea, and the teapot it sat on the bar for 15 minutes (I saw it just sitting there and had been following along when the server brought it over to our table), the tea was extremely dark and bitter.

Price: On the pricier side, especially considering the poor neglectful service. The food quality is great so I am content with the prices. Prices aren’t as exorbitant as dining at a Lebanese place where they have shisha available (what I mean by this is that I have noticed every shisha joint serves extremely expensive food and drinks, for some weird reason).

Atmosphere: Decor is welcoming, modern and feels upscale. Large dining space which fits quite a few customers but doesn’t feel cramped when full. I have seen a private dining room space which would suit functions.

Parking is on site, which...

I went to Al Aseel expecting a good meal, but it turned out to be a letdown. The place was pretty empty when I got there, which was a bad sign. Most of the staff didn't seem too interested in helping out.

Outside, the manager was just standing around, smoking and trying to get people to come in. It felt a bit desperate, to be honest. Once I got inside and sat down, the service was super slow. It took forever for someone to even take my order.

When the food finally came, I was pretty disappointed. The portions were tiny, and I felt like I didn't get my money's worth at all. Plus, trying to get anyone's attention to ask for stuff like napkins was a hassle.

The place didn't seem very clean either. The water they gave us was left uncovered and wasn't what we imagined for the price we payed that it would at least be protected, which seemed kinda gross. And the tables didn't look like they'd been cleaned properly either. I also requested for 7-up and they instead served me sprite without my knowledge and claimed that it was 7-up and still charged me for it.

On top of all that, the music was way too loud, making it hard to talk to people. And the prices were way too high for what we got considering it was me and 2 kids and the bill was $160 it definitely kept me hungry even after finishing all the food. The food wasn't even that good. The meat was tough, and the salad looked like it had been sitting out for a while.

To make matters worse, the owner was pretty rude when we tried to talk to him about our experience.

Overall, I wouldn't recommend Al Aseel to anyone. It was a big letdown, and I don't think I'll be going back...

$52 for the mixed plate. I thought it was expensive but it was the only plate which had a mix of meats. I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best. Besides the kafta (which was max 8/10) the chicken and lamb were dry. The Onion parsley mix on the plate was not seasoned. The garlic sauce was fine. Medium strength. For $52, VERY disappointing. Honestly based on the flavour, it shouldn't have come to more than $35 for this plate. Even that is expensive for how dry the meats were. Also a tip, you should offer half the meat size for half the price.

Fattoush: bland. Lacking flavour and strength. After the meat plate arrived, I carved the fattoush which craved a lot considering the fattoush was a max 6/10. And very small for $19 I think it was.

General atmosphere: it's a nice looking restaurant. There's a strong smell of something in the air though. Like a fragrance or air freshener. Which is very strong and off-putting

The mocktail was also nearly flavourless for almost $15. $6 for a coke. Highest I've seen any restaurant charge for a coke. And it was a smaller cup too. Not even though tall long cups. And 30% filled with ice.

I actually wanted to come again to try the other plates but after spending so much money, I can't risk wasting more money a second time. There's so many options around these days. The restaurants may not look as flashy, but people always go back for the food. Not how nice the hanging lights look.

Overall...