Armani Restaurant — Restaurant in Sydney

As a married couple visiting from Los Angeles, my wife and I eagerly chose to dine at Armani during our visit to Sydney. Having observed a day of fasting, we were especially excited to savor a delicious meal at what was hailed as the finest Lebanese restaurant in town. We had heard great recommendations and were looking forward to experiencing an authentic Lebanese buffet feast together.

Opting for the banquet menu, which was typically meant for a minimum of three people, we decided to pay the extra amount for an additional person, even though we were just a party of two. We were eager to indulge in a lavish meal, and any leftovers would serve as a delightful treat for later. As we settled into our seats, we admired the inviting ambiance of the restaurant, with its stylish decor, soothing music, and warm lighting.

Our enthusiasm soon waned when our drinks arrived at the table. As someone who had been longing for the refreshing taste of mint lemonade, reminiscent of what we had enjoyed in Lebanon, I eagerly took my first sip. However, to our dismay, the drink lacked any trace of mint, resembling a generic fountain beverage instead. The absence of mint was disheartening, as I rarely find myself compelled to send anything back to the kitchen. Nevertheless, I felt compelled to bring this matter to the attention of our waiter. I kindly requested that they add some fresh mint to enhance the flavor. To my surprise, a kitchen staff member returned, expressing uncertainty about what to do, as they usually used syrup in their preparation.

Not to be overlooked, we were also disappointed by the lack of understanding among the waitstaff regarding the menu. It was disheartening when the customer knows the menu better than the waiters themselves. As someone who appreciates the nuances of Lebanese cuisine, it was frustrating when the waiters couldn't differentiate between dishes like baba ghannouj and batata harra. These are basic distinctions that one would expect the staff to be well-versed in.

As the plates from our chosen banquet began arriving at our table, we found some dishes to be quite enjoyable, such as the flavorful chicken shawarma and the enticing variety of entrees. However, our anticipation quickly turned to surprise and confusion upon tasting the chicken tawook, which resembled more of an Indian chicken curry rather than the expected Lebanese flavor. Given the Lebanese management and chefs, we found it puzzling that such a dish would deviate from its traditional preparation.

In addition, the hummus lacked the expected depth of flavor, and the fried kebbe turned out to be dry. On the positive side, the muhammara and cheese sambusek were delectable highlights. However, the waraa enab, which should have consisted of grape leaves, were unusually large, resembling Turkish dolmeh rather than the slender, cigar-sized grape leaves characteristic of Lebanese cuisine. Another notable shortcoming was the absence of table water throughout our meal, and we found ourselves repeatedly requesting additional take-away containers for our leftover food. The situation became increasingly frustrating, to the point where the manager had to intervene and assist us in managing the containers on our table.

Despite our reservations, we perused the dessert options, ranging from tiramisu and halawet al jibn to chocolate fondue, creme brulee, Arabic ice cream, and cheese kanafeh. After consulting with our waitress, we decided to try the cheese kanafeh, which she proudly mentioned was made in-house. Excitedly, we ordered the dessert. Upon its arrival, we discovered that while the kanafeh itself was fresh and pleasantly cheesy, it was excessively drenched in sugar syrup. Ironically, the plate also came with an additional side of sugar syrup. This excessive sweetness overshadowed the true flavors of the dessert. It became apparent that the establishment still had work to do in order to achieve an authentic Lebanese culinary...

I had taken my friend to Armani for the first time on Tuesday 31 January 2023 because she was visiting Sydney from abroad. I myself am a customer of Armani restaurant since 2012. My friend and I (two young women) placed our order to a female waitress for the Armani mixed grill ($40) and the meat shawarma ($36). After placing the order, a man approached us, even though we had not called to have a waiter or waitress come to our table, because we had already placed our order. This man asked us "how are you?" and was lurking around our table leering at us. We said we're good, and we order a Moroccan tea. This man then left. Later, this man and the female waitress brought our food and tea, then left. Immediately, the man returned to our table again (now for the third time), he then murmured something not providing a clear explanation as to why he returned to our table, then he grabbed our plates and our food. I then told the man to not touch our food. He then said "I'm the manager, I'm allowed to touch your food." I said to him, "the food has already been served on our table and we're getting ready to eat. Why have you come back to our table". He then said that he had mistakenly given us a mixture of chicken and lamb shawarma instead of the meat shawarma that we ordered. I told him that "You did not tell us that first, or apologise, before doing so, you already starting grabbing our food and plates. Please have another waitress deal with us. You are very unprofessional". This man then got angry as to why I was giving him feedback and said "I don't have to serve you, I will ask you to leave the restaurant". I told the man to leave our table and that he was disturbing us and being unprofessional. After that, the lady waitress returned offering to re-make the meat shawarma because the man wrongly gave us the chicken and lamb shawarma. We informed that we don't have enough time to wait for the meat shawarma to be re-cooked. But the man after that kept lurking around the restaurant, leering and staring at us with a smirk on his face, with no remorse or apology for his unprofessional behaviour. My friend and I were very put off by this man's behaviour and the atmosphere was disturbing. This man claimed to be the manager by the name of Bessam. We are giving feedback and hope the owner reads this and holds Bessam accountable for his bad behaviour. Bessam the so called manager was unprofessional, rude, unwelcoming, gave us the wrong food, and was unhygienic in touching our food and plates. This was unacceptable and unprofessional service. I do not recommend this restaurant under the...

the worst $2,000+ i’ve ever spent – absolute embarrassment of a restaurant

just got back from amarni restaurant in parramatta after dining with family, and honestly, i’m still trying to wrap my head around how we just dropped over $2,010 on what was easily the most disgusting, unprofessional, and straight-up embarrassing dining experience we’ve ever had.

first of all, the food? an actual joke. the meat was so tough and chewy it felt like we were gnawing on rubber. we found a hair in our kebbeh nayyeh, which is not just off-putting, it’s disgusting and completely unhygienic. how does a restaurant that charges this much let something like that slide? it’s not just gross, it’s unsafe.

then there’s the seafood. we ordered prawns and had to send them back because they smelled off. yes, they actually stank. nothing fresh about them, and when we told the staff, they didn’t seem the least bit surprised—which tells me this probably isn’t the first time.

don’t even get me started on the banquet portions. for what’s listed on the menu and the price we paid, the servings were a complete scam. tiny, barely enough for the people at our table, and they looked like they were thrown together last-minute. presentation? non-existent. taste? bland and forgettable. and the most ironic part? we left hungry. after two grand.

now let’s talk service. the waiters looked like they were either new or just didn’t care. they didn’t know where or how to place plates, brought things out in weird, random orders, and made everything feel awkward. we weren’t treated like customers—we felt like we were just in the way.

this restaurant markets itself as premium, but everything about it screamed overpriced chaos. zero professionalism, zero attention to detail, and zero accountability.

save your money, your time, and your dignity. you’d be better off eating from a food court than coming here and getting scammed in a fancy outfit.

absolutely...