Palmyra Syrian & Lebanese restaurant — Restaurant in Birmingham

If you like waiting absolutely ages for less than mediocre food and you also like being charged for items you didn't order, then this is the place for you.

We arrived at this "cosy" little place at about 2:30pm and were promptly seated and had our orders taken. My son wanted the English breakfast, my wife had lamb mandi and i went for the mixed grill. We also ordered a vanilla shake for my son and 2 cans of coke at £1.50 each!

Almost immediately after, the waitress said the breakfast wasn't available and directed us to order the kids chicken burger meal. It came with a drink so she cancelled the milkshake at our request. We specified the burger should have no salad and just a bit of mayo.

Over 45 mins later and our drinks now at room temp, my wife's mandi arrives. No sign of my sons burger meal or my mixed grill. These arrived another 10 mins after and instantly I noted the chips had been overdone. I also noticed my sons burger was oozing mayo.

I'd have no issue with the wait but the meat pieces were totally unseasoned. The mandi was only slightly better but the burger was not nice at all. Plus they'd used garlic mayo on everything, which you'd expect to have been asked about. The salad garnish was also not nice and had pickled gherkin and carrot pieces.

Finally we came to pay and that was a disaster too. I was billed for the original order despite not having had the milkshake or the English breakfast. The waitress then said it would be easier to give me a cash refund as I'd paid by card already, and handed me £4.01p. Clearly lacking basic maths skills she tried to cover her blunder by giving me the £1 she owed me but there was still the charge for the breakfast and not the kids burger meal. I left the difference with them because by that point I'd had enough.

So many better places serving similar or the same and getting it right that you could avoid this place and not be missing out.

Overpriced,...

So, we craved Middle Eastern magic, and Palmyra's "Special Offer for 3" seemed to cast a spell of deliciousness. Unfortunately, the only magic trick they pulled was vanishing any trace of flavor or freshness.

Let's start with the "red meat." Imagine a sunburnt brick that still shivers – that's the level of doneness we're talking about. The chicken shawarma, meanwhile, resembled a mummified parrot, whisper-dry and ancient. And the kofta kebabs? More mystery meat than Middle Eastern delight – I'm pretty sure I saw tumbleweeds rolling out of one.

The salad? It was there. That's about all I can say. And the rice, the precious, promised rice for three? Enough for a peckish hamster, maybe. We begged for more, but even Aladdin's lamp wouldn't have conjured another grain.

But wait, there's more! Palmyra, in their infinite generosity, threw in two expired beers. Like a bad punchline to a terrible meal. Thankfully, we dodged that bullet faster than Indiana Jones in a tomb – those suds weren't touching our lips.

Now, here's the kicker: I have a sneaking suspicion this feast wasn't fresh. It had that "leftover from another table, reheated one too many times" vibe. The dryness, the reheated sighs of spices – everything screamed "secondhand meal."

Delivery was fast, though. That's... something.

Look, Palmyra, your "special offer" was anything but. It was a culinary crime scene masquerading as a meal. For the love of hummus, save your hard-earned pita and avoid this place like the plague (or any other unappetizing metaphor that comes to mind).

Unless, of course, you're a culinary daredevil with a cast-iron stomach and a taste for the questionable. Then buckle up, grab your antacids, and bon appétit! Just don't say I didn't warn you.

(P.S. Deliveroo, you rock! Thanks for the refund and the...

I took my family yesterday 15 April 2023 to this restaurant to enjoy the Iftar. One word to describe the experience is ‘DISAPPOINTMENT’. I drove all the way from Berkshire to Birmingham hoping to get the same experience I’ve had before Ramadan. I was wrong! My first good experience were with the presence of ‘Fatima’ a very nice, comforting, clever, and professional Moroccan host that took your order and make sure you get everything you need like you are home. Yesterday we have been hosted by ‘Hannan’ and she successfully managed not only to be very rude, ruthless, dishonest and unprofessional to us but also to the other family that were sitting in front of us, and they had to leave the restaurant angrily after waiting for 1.5hrs for their food!! The way she threw the cutlery at our table, and tissue is disgraceful. We had some left over from the meal that arrived 45mins late, and asked to take the rest home, she simply went inside and came back and dump it an empty sac and empty plastic box on our table!!!! I had to go and talk to her about her rudeness and understand why she is behaving this way, as she put us completely off, and asked my family to get ready to leave. She apologized and offered me a tea and dessert and said this is for free. I was surprised she still charged us for the tea and dessert when we paid for our meal!!! Honestly I never seen a rude, and unprofessional host like her. It looks like they prioritize their home deliveries over the people that done in. I’ll never come back to this...