Za'atar — Restaurant in Utrecht

Was very excited to try this place as I love mezzes and this is literally all I want to eat when going to a middle eastern restaurant. We ordered the Special platter for 2x, and waited for over 30min to get it (they had forgotten to put the order in). You have to order at the counter, and help yourself to all drinks, make your own tea /coffee, and get your own cutlery / napkins. There is no table service apart from the food being brought to you. Food was disappointing, way too much salt in everything, no spice, and some dips were just flavourless. Only one dolma cut in half for 2 in this platter and 2x pitas. The decor is not in sync with the cuisine, lacks colours, soft furnishing, and general vibe. Even the music was latino rather than arabic.. we sat on the little stage on the side which has low tables and bench with cushions, but the chairs/bench are too high for the low table, meaning it's quite uncomfortable to eat as you're bent in half... Overall disappointing, and will...

Entering the restaurant you will find a little card on each table with a message from the owner wishing you feel like home in Za'atar - and Za'atar did do this magic! The chef was quick-paced but very friendly. He introduced to me different dishes. As someone who often has troubles choosing I went for the "plate" option (13 EUR) which I was surprised in delight. The plate served around 8 varieties of dips and snacks. They are served modestly over baking paper on the big plate but the chef paid attention to details in putting them neatly (e.g. topping some snacks in pomegranate seeds, not only for the looks but as combinations of tastes and textures as well). With cheese and olives the plate is very good to go with beer or wine. So all in all it is a place that you can chill and relax with a book or with...

It has a good vibe, chill music and I needed to have a place to sit for a few hours and eat before a date. The food wasn't really my taste unfortunately, it was alright the first few bites but after a bit I struggled to keep eating. I don't often eat this kind of food so it might just be personal taste. Some things were a bit bland while other flavors were too strong for my liking. I do appreciate that it was all vegan, eating out with IBS is hard enough as it is and this place had plenty of options. Pretty okay place, if you like the taste of tahin you might enjoy the food more than I did. It's a little overpriced, you have to get your own drinks and order at the bar but the prizes don't show it. Next time I'll just get a burger somewhere, might be less fancy but at least...