Leila — Restaurant in Detroit

Ugh where do I even start.... I had such high expectations for this place! When you walk in the decor and ambiance is beautiful- so that's one thing they did right.. the hostess was also very polite and friendly but once you get past the host stand it all goes downhill. We arrived for a birthday dinner early so we sat at the bar to grab a drink prior, the bartender came over and was visibly frustrated when at our request for a menu / wine list before knowing what we wanted to drink. Finally when we were ready he took forever to come back. Drinks were okay and the wine list was bleak. Once we were seated at the table the server took forever to take initial drink orders and they took 30 minutes to come out after we ordered them (yes I actually looked at the time). Finally drinks came out and we asked the server to run these separate from the food bill - even offered to just close out then to avoid bill confusion at the end. He agreed to put out group of 5s initial drinks on a separate tab and close out before food. Then out fo no where the manager comes over and rudely says "I hear you want to split your bill and yeah we aren't doing that." He continued to say that it's just too time consuming for his server"... the server who was never around to take orders or refill drinks ... cool okay whatever. Could have looked over the rude GM and his inflexible policies if the service and food were good... but service sucked and food was terrible. Okay the hummus was good but everything else terrible. The lamb shoulder looked great but tasted like and entire cup of salt was used and don't even get me started on the $20 chicken tawook that was served with no rice or veggies... literally 5 tiny pieces of chicken served on a dried stale piece of pita. This is quite honestly the worst middle eastern food I've ever had - save...

On Wednesday, July 26th, I went to Leila for a work dinner with five of my coworkers. This was my third time at Leila and each previous experience was great. I was excited about the dinner and beforehand told my colleagues about how fantastic the restaurant is. However, it became evident that the customer service no longer matches the food's quality.

Our waiter, who went by the name "V" or "Vee," came to our table and asked if he should go through the menu. Since it was the first time at Leila for most of my coworkers, they asked him to go through it. The restaurant was very loud, making it challenging to hear "V's" description of the menu. As I couldn't hear properly, I turned to my coworker (who has food sensitivities) directly next to me and quietly suggested a couple of items that would fit within his diet.

Later, "V" came back to take individual orders. When it was my turn, I inquired about a couple of his favorite menu items. He responded instantly in a sharp, annoyed tone, saying, "Well, if you were listening when I went through the menu, you would have heard all of that." Not only the comment itself but the way it was delivered was one of the most unprofessional and inappropriate examples of customer service that I have ever witnessed. It was also embarrassing to be treated so poorly in front of my colleagues (who were all shocked by this as well). Had it not been for the work event, I would have left the restaurant immediately after such an insulting remark.

I had hoped to resolve the matter by speaking with a manager, but after waiting on hold for 10 minutes following the hostess's assurance that she was getting a manager, I had no choice but to hang up and write this review. It appears their customer service is consistent at least. I will never return nor will I ever recommend...

I have celiac disease and have to follow a very strict gluten free medical diet. When I was seated at the bar, one of the servers came to explain the full menu to me. Really appreciate that and made me feel safe. He told me how they make the pita’s on the left side of the kitchen (open kitchen so also quite useful) and the cold mezzes are made at a separate area on the left side as well, so if I was worried about airborn flour I should maybe opt out of those (which I did). On the right side were all the warm mezzes and entrees made, there were just a few I could chose from but they all cooked great. I ended up getting the grilled branzino with chickpeas and some Lebanese veggies like tomatoes etc, which the sous-chef was going to make for me differently to prevent any cross-contact from the coals. Again, the server was amazing, as soon as I put my order in he ran to the kitchen to talk everything through. The food was amazing as well, I really enjoyed it. Super yummy. Unfortunately, hence the three stars, I did get sick after. I think it might have been the chickpeas as those need to be supplied from a gluten-free source. As someone who eats chickpeas very often, I always need to be sure that they are gluten free and not processed along any gluten containing grains. I forgot to ask them if they were and I know I’m really sensitive to cross-contact. It could have been something else as well that went wrong, but just in case you are a sensitive celiac make sure that you ask! It was such a bummer after being...