Shishalicious Cafe & Resto — Restaurant in Kitchener

Great restaurant for authentically prepared middle Eastern food!! Part of a family of three stores in Mississauga, Oakville and Kitchener.

We went during Sunday brunch. The naming of the Saturday 'lunch' buffet from 3-6 p.m. and the Sunday 'brunch' buffet from 12-2 p.m. is quite confusing. Brunch at most local restaurants is typically assumed to be from 9 or 10 a.m. until 12 p.m., while lunch is normally from 12-2 p.m. so for us to attend a 12-2 p.m. meal we would have expected lunch items and no breakfast items.

Logistics aside, food was good quality and definitely made fresh and not simply reheated canned or prepackaged meals. The falafel was outstanding!!! ... Among the best we've had in Canada and comparable to what's typically served in the middle East. The hummus and egg plant dishes were similarly excellent!!

Meats were few and far between due to 'breakfast', restricted to some nice beef-based sausages mixed with potato's, a liver-based dish that noone seemed to be touching, and some slices of what appeared to be Mennonite summer sausage over top some sort of omlette-type dish. Some other western foods were available including pizza, french fries, etc. which I'm sure will go over well with kids or those whose Canadian palates are less adventurous.

Vegetarian fare made up for the lack of meats, as such quality sauces and dishes are uncommon in the KW region.

Drinks available for self serve included mango juice, water, coffee and tea, with paper cups available. Would have made more Spence to use ceramic mugs for hot beverages and plastic reusable cups for the cold drinks ...less waste of paper.

Desserts in the buffet were bhaklava and halva ... both were outstanding!

When we come back we will likely decide to try a la carte instead of buffet. The menu showed some great Mediterranean dishes and we were somewhat disappointed to have chosen two buffets rather than simply ordering off the menu.

Service was good and the staff were especially friendly. Waleed was very helpful.

We...

If you’re looking not just for delicious food, but also a unique dining experience, the new Shishalicious restaurant at the former Boston Pizza place in the Alpine Centre plaza at Ottawa & Alpine is a place to try out!

The owners have done a ton of work in there to make it a beautiful dining area reminiscent of a Middle Eastern eatery. Colourful lighting, comfortable seating, and ethnic music playing in the background serve to enhance the atmosphere. Hookah smoking is permitted so there is a smoking side and a non-smoking side. My wife & I don’t smoke but the smell was not very strong and was pleasant enough, so we opted to sit in the smoking section just for the experience.

We were very impressed with the service. Service was polite and attentive from the moment we walked in the door until we left again.

And the food was simply delicious! We started with a Fattoush salad that had the tastiest dressing we’ve ever had on such a salad. For a main plate, we shared the mixed BBQ platter that featured a kebab skewer (VERY flavourful, seasoned meat!), barbecued beef cubes, barbecued chicken cubes, a barbecued lamb rib, and some pita bread with tasty toppings and a hint of heat. The dish came with a choice of salad, fries, or rice and we opted for the rice, which turned out to be very colourful and good-tasting in itself.

To be honest, this is one of those places where you wish your stomach was bigger so you could try some of their other offerings too! They all look and sound so delicious! I guess we’ll just have to plan to come back at least a few more times to do that. And we’re really looking forward to it!

In short, a great dining experience all around. Highly...

Wow! I don't write reviews but I was blown away by the service at Shishalicious. I have an annoying allergy to eggs and dairy, which only recently developed. It's just the protein in dairy so I can have butter/ghee, but having to explain it at a restaurant is so boring and annoying, but so necessary for me. Our server, Ibrahim, was so incredibly accommodating, and did not show any displeasure in my repeated inquiries into the ingredients of each dish. He made sure that the flatbreads I requested were milk-free, even calling the head chef who was not there at the time to double check. When he discovered that it did indeed contain milk, he substituted that flat bread with another which was dairy-free so I could also enjoy the same flavours as my friend.

My friend and I ordered the mixed bbq and fattoush. The meats were cooked beautifully, tender, and so flavourful. The rice was fragrant, and the pitas had some lovely spices and pickled onions. We seriously enjoyed every mouthful. The sauces that they provided, tahini, pomegranate, a spicy sauce for the rice, also added to the flavours. The salad was so well-seasoned and you could drink the dressing if you were so inclined. Seriously good food.

I was eager to have baklava and we were escorted to the sweets area and saw a stunning presentation of a variety of baklava and Lebanese sweets. I ordered a little box and each piece was mouthwateringly good. Try the date squares with candied nuts. Try all of them.

The food alone is enough to go. The outstanding service means I will come again and again. The decor transports you to the Middle East, and the chairs look like thrones and are oh so comfortable!...