Samaras Lebanese and Mediterranean Restaurant Woonona — Restaurant in Wollongong City Council

I had the pleasure of dining at Samara's this past Saturday night to celebrate my friend's 40th birthday. Our group consisted of my family of four and her family of four. While the restaurant wasn't particularly busy, we initially experienced some delays in service. We had to actively seek the attention of the wait staff to place our orders and request crayons for the young kids. Love that they have paper table covers to keep the children entertained while we waited.

Once we placed our orders, everything promptly arrived at our table and was cleared away efficiently. Opting for the banquet menu for the four adults, we were delighted by the generous portions that even the kids could enjoy. The food itself was simply delicious, normally garlic dip is overpowering, this one was subtle and perfectly balanced. The food had well-seasoned flavors that satisfied our palates.

What truly made this dining experience exceptional was the owner personally taking the time to engage with us. The owner was an absolute delight—warm, generous, and patient. As we were leaving, we asked him to capture a picture of our families, despite his evident busyness and stress. He graciously obliged and took several snapshots for us. We are truly grateful for his kindness and would like to extend our personal thanks to him.

The level of customer service we received was brilliant, and it has definitely earned our loyalty. We will not only be returning to Samara's but also recommending it to our friends. Thank you for providing us with such a delightful...

Last straw with this restaurant.

We've had a number of bad experiences over the years and I've held off reviewing them but enough is enough.

First experience was around 5 years ago when they failed to book in our large group of people. I went to pay a deposit of $10 for each person around 2 days before the booking as I was instructed to by the person who supposedly took the booking. When I turned up they said that there was no booking made. Well I obviously called to make the booking initially as how would I know to turn up with a deposit? When we all turned up we were told it was a set menu as there was so many of us. This WAS NOT mentioned when making the booking or when making the deposit. We had two people with special dietary requirements & they had to be accommodated for.

Second time was when my partner & I made a new year's eve booking. Turned up at the restaurant & was waiting for the menu. Upon asking we were then told that it's a set menu for the night. Once again was not informed of this & my partner did not eat half of the food as she is a fussy eater. Didn't even hang around for dessert as service was slow.

This time we ordered take away & they forgot some of our food & we felt we were utterly ripped off. I've could have gone to Woonona Circle chicken shop & got two chicken kebabs & some chips for $10. See photos.

We won't be...

500/5 ☆ Words are not enough to express this incredible HALAL Mediterranean restaurant. The food forces you to "sing while non-stop eating in a dreamy balet dancing". "CHAPEAU FOR THE CHEFS" Extraordinary cooking with a perfect marinating, special dressings and sauces. The restaurant is elegant and clean. Service lady is so polite and friendly. Customer service is wonderful. Chicken parmigiana is Outstanding, the only note is ( Mansaf) was cooked with Indian spices , leading to miss the Arabic cuisine Manasaf cooking style but tastes super wow. Generous portion sizes, Lebanese tea also is perfect after eating. Thanks alot for finally finding a real meaningful food satisfy me after years of searching. Hope to open in...