Fabulous from start to finish! I can't say enough good things about my spectacular birthday dinner last night at Sahel. I'm still shaking my head in wonderment about the beauty of it all.

Seriously, from the moment I walked in to find gorgeous red roses on the table in my honour (placed there by a server) to the moment we left with two lovely servers smiling, blowing kisses and saying "Happy birthday, Mommy!" with such warmth and sincerity, the whole experience was gorgeous.

I was there with my daughter and granddaughter and it was the first time dining in at Sahel, although I've ordered delivery several times. Sahel was my choice for my birthday dinner because of favourable prior experience with the food. Also, I knew they offered options for our varied dietary preferences.

When my granddaughter and I arrived my daughter was already seated and had ordered a side of roasted potatoes ($4.99) and sides of Greek salad, yogurt dip (basically tzatziki) and pita. We all agreed that the roasted potatoes were the best we'd ever had. So much so that we promptly ordered another plate. I imagined their long slow roasting, bathed in exquisite lemony garlic sauce, served hot and golden with a garlic dip.

The mains we ordered were: chicken kebab with basmati rice and roasted tomato; chicken donair plate with basmatic rice, Shirazi salad, hummus and pita; and the falafel plate with 8 falafel balls, basmatic rice, hummus, Shirazi salad and pita. All were around $18. The portions are enormous! We knew we'd never eat it all and all three of us took home a good-sized take-out container packed full.

The chicken kebab was huge! Large pieces of marinated boneless chicken breast, grilled over hot coals, declared out-of-this-world yummy. Swoons all around, in fact, as every item was absolutely delicious. I ordered the chicken donair plate because I wanted to try something I hadn't had. Previously I've ordered kebabs and they've all been great, and was a bit hesitant to order the donair as I'd never tried it and I knew the chicken kebab was divine. Well, the donair was also divine and, despite how I kept eating it because it was so tasty, I took home about half of it. The rice is perfect: light, fluffy, with a hint of saffron, and sumac on the table for sprinkling.

Hummus, although very cold just out of the fridge, was creamy and flavourful. The Shirazi salad was a bright surprise, same veg mix (I think) as the Greek salad, but with mint and a crisp grape juice dressing (according to the menu). I suddenly recalled that in my long-ago days of backpacking around the world I visited Shiraz, but that's another story...

The service was perfect, as there were two friendly, smiling ladies who made sure we had what we needed, inquired as to our satisfaction with the food, and generally took care of clearing plates and keeping everything in order without even appearing to be there. I really appreciated their welcoming me, wishing me happy birthday, and generally being superb at their jobs.

Even though the place was full, food came quickly, each order perfect, and none of us had anything to complain about. It was, seriously, our best dinner out in a very long time. We walked home, talking about how much fun it was, how spectacular the food, the service and the whole experience.

I did not see the bill, but I think the whole thing, food, drinks (no alcohol for us), tip (and enough food going home for another couple of meals) was about $100.

I just read an article about the dire situation in which many restaurants find themselves these days, with so many closing due to skyrocketing costs of ingredients, rents, wages, etc. Places like Sahel, which offer a warm, family atmosphere and spectacular food, deserve to stay in business. I highly recommend you treat yourself, family, loved ones to a fabulous meal at Sahel.