Laziza Mediterranean Cuisine — Restaurant in Toronto

Horibble place & Racist. If your black save yourself the humiliation. Disrespectful staff. Needs to improve their customer service & payment system. Orders should Aways be taken and the payment is confirmed and complete ;hang on to your receipt especially if you are a marginalized group (already not accepted and wanted in their spaces) I was charged $16.06 for an order that was suppose to be $15.81(since I paid with debit with all the commotion the guy there manipulative and overcharge me thinking I won’t realise. ALWAYS GRAB YOUR RECEIPT. If you are ordering food make sure to PAY UPFRONT. MAKE SURE TO PAY EVEN if you are sitting in or taking away. REGARDLESS OF THE TENDER. I was humiliated for not paying I came the day before was served Infront of the same staff and couldn’t peacefully have another visit without having to be targeted for not paying. I paid the day before and sat and waited as they prepared the same order. Ordered and sat and waited for my food. Decided to sit in and eat then left. I was chased outside and humiliated. You didn’t pay. I was so shock I was thinking what’s all this. I pay for my stuff anywhere I go. I took a second to make sure my purchase history didn’t show I paid and was willing to pay not a problem for me. I went on to explain there should be a system when a order is taken, the customer pays and then you start to prepare the food. I was rudely interrupted “yay, yah just pay for My Burger”…. So disrespectful, wasn’t wanted in the space in the first place so I surely will NOT be going back. It’s not my first experience I. This area either not being accepted, have Snapchat videos with racist slurs shouted in this same area so It’s clear. Wont order here and if your black woman save yourself most of them don’t even like you or want you around. I should have just stuck to what I’m use to where it’s predictable and safe and just ordered my Jamaican jerk chick and rice and peas. My fault for trying...

I’ve never seen a place go downhill like this.

I ordered the 2 for 1 shawarma plate and it was a joke. The “salad” was an insult - huge pepper slices, brown lettuce, and a chunk of tomato that was ridiculously large. Like, 1/4 of a tomato (see the photo). Clearly no effort was put into this. Salad should be edible without cutting anything, that’s the entire point. I shouldn’t have to say that.

Even worse, though, was the chicken - gristly, stringy, low quality meat. They must have changed suppliers because a year ago, it was so good that I gave them a 5 star rating - but I would give a zero now, if I could.

The real problem, though, is that I could have very badly injured myself on the piece of dried out, rock-hard “chicken” that I found in my meal. Photo attached (it's sitting next to the tomato). Seriously, it was so hard I could barely stab through it with a fork, using a pretty decent amount of strength. I'm still not even sure how they managed to do that to a piece of chicken to be honest. I'm concerned that it sat out for a few days or got stuck somewhere and then thrown in with my food.

I didn’t give up though, knowing this place was at one point very good, and so I kept eating. Then I found (with my teeth) two small, flat, sharp bones that, if chewed the wrong way, could have EASILY chipped or cracked a tooth (also see photo). You have a responsibility to serve food that is safe to eat. You failed.

The portions have also gotten way smaller, most likely because, as another reviewer pointed out on doordash, they are simply splitting a normal size portion in half for the "2 for 1". So not only are they ripping you off, they're lying right to your face. And now I don’t even feel safe eating their food (I threw the other portion away just in case), so I guess I’ll be finding another shawarma joint!

Seriously, do...

We had a couple minutes before a lengthy show, so we stopped at Laziza for some Middle Eastern quick eats. Laziza is a small restaurant with minimal seating. The idea is mostly takeout, for pre-made or ready-to-cook dishes that are displayed Subway-style on the counter.

I recently developed a love affair with falafel, so I treated myself to their falafel plate. They fill a styrofoam container to the brim with a variety of good stuff including: falafel, chick peas, fried rice, fried eggplant, fried cauliflower, and what I'll call a zesty salad for lack of a better name. So let's break it down. Obviously most of the plate didn't taste exceptionally fresh since it's not made-to-order, but it was plenty good with that in mind, and everything held up well. The fried eggplant and cauliflower were light, yet savoury. The fried rice was sufficiently seasoned and solidly average. Without question though, the highlights of the plate were the falafel (duh...) and surprisingly the salad! Please forgive me for not recalling the exact ingredients in the salad, but some notables included romaine lettuce, red cabbage, and bean sprouts. In any case, it was delightfully zesty, with inviting sweetness. Lastly, the falafel. I've had a fair bit of falafel in my life, and I can honestly say that this one was pretty unique. Once you bite through the super crispy outer shell you're exposed to a soft and unexpectedly bright green inner patty. The shell has a bit of a bold flavour, reminiscent to a samosa, while the inside greets you with a tangy twist on your generic falafel. If I had to pick between the standard falafel and this for the rest of my life, I'd go with the standard, but Laziza's variation is a welcome interpretation.

In conclusion, you'll get good fast food quality Middle Eastern food at Laziza. Seal of quick...