Zait & Zaatar (Aliso Viejo) — Restaurant in Aliso Viejo

I’ve been a loyal customer of Zait & Zaatar in Anaheim for many years and was thrilled when a location opened in Aliso Viejo because it’s so much closer to home. Unfortunately, my experiences the past two days have left me extremely disappointed.

I am hosting a breakfast this morning at 11 AM. To save time, I went into the Aliso Viejo location yesterday to place my order in advance for pickup today at 10 AM. I spoke with Abdullah, who was very dismissive and gave me a lot of attitude when placing my order. Still, he assured me my order would be ready by 10 AM today. I also speak Arabic so there was no miscommunication.

When I arrived today at 10:05 AM, not only was my order not ready, but it hadn’t even been placed in the oven yet. The whole point of ordering ahead was to avoid waiting, especially since I am on a tight schedule. Because of the delay, I had no choice but to cancel my order in tears. Now I’m left without a vital item for the breakfast I’m hosting for my aunt‘s birthday and I feel completely let down.

What makes this so frustrating is that the Anaheim location has always been outstanding, reliable, kind, and consistently hospitable. That’s why this level of carelessness and lack of professionalism at the Aliso Viejo location is so shocking. Running a family owned business is hard enough, but service like this drives customers away.

I sincerely hate leaving bad reviews, but after such an upsetting experience, I feel it’s important to share. I expected the same quality and reliability I’ve always experienced at Anaheim, and instead I’m left disappointed and empty handed on a very important morning. I will...

I’ve been waiting for this place to open for many months, I’m a huge shawarma fan and love middle Eastern food, I’ve been eating all my life . I’m going to help out the restaurant owner early on since he recently just opened up this place .From the start the girl at the counter is not personable, seemed confused and really shouldn’t be customer facing in my opinion. I ordered a shawarma plate and a cup of water, I don’t do sugar drinks. No water cups here or an ice machine so they make you order a bottled water, the plastic ones. The food came out and I was extremely hungry and food usually taste better when you’re hungry, right? Well not this place ,the beef shawarma tasted more like dry over seasoned beef jerky , very dry and probably been spinning for a while on the spit. The salad was old and wilted, not crunchy or crisp. The rice didn’t have any taste , the hummus was fine but it was buried under my salad on the plate, that’s a no no for me.

If I am going to pay 25.00 for a meal I expect freshness, quality ingredients and a smile from the service staff and my water bottle being cold or at least offer ice

I’m not sure I’d come back here again, first impression is important and I’m unlikely going to trust a 2nd chance.

Anyway that’s me , but give it a try and see...

My new favorite restaurant. Wow, cannot say enough good things! The service was over the top friendly. We ordered a Falafel Plate to share, which comes with hummus, pickles, tomato, and lettuce. The owner heard us comment about wanting to try the Baba Ganoush on our next visit, and offered to give us “half and half”. That was perfect. While waiting for our meal, he came by with samples of several other dishes, including a flatbread and a delicious spinach pie.

The meal came out with extra pita, and a side of tahini, lemons, and hot sauce. Everything you could want to enjoy Falafel. And wow! It was the best I’ve ever tasted. Which is saying a lot, as we’ve had great middle-eastern food in our travels to Egypt, Israel, Jordan, and Dubai. The hummus here was beautifully presented and so smooth and creamy, I devoured it. The Baba was perfectly seasoned, just a little bit smoky, and super fresh tasting. The pickles and veggies made each mini sandwich a delight. I am so happy to have this great restaurant close to home. Can’t wait to try...