Original Kabob Factory — Restaurant in Glendale

I would not recommend going with Original Kabob Factory for a catering event, especially if you are doing a wedding. The phrase "over promise and under deliver" is a key theme in how our overall event went.

After our wedding and before writing this review I did send Nick, the owner, a detailed email to discuss the below issues outlined in this review and received no response.

What went wrong: Two of your servers were late - this meant that the assistant cook was helping our coordinator set up linen, plates, etc. Once the late servers arrived they started working on the appetizers, but even with our coordinator's help the appetizers could not get out fast enough (we also received this feedback from our guests). Additionally, one of the servers was off on her phone for 30 min when everyone was hustling to get the food out. Our food service was late, not brought out in a timely manner or replenished. Additionally, plates that were brought out had mountains of rice and barely any meat (this, in particular, was disappointing as it was important for us to have food on the tables and replenished in a timely manner, and incredibly disheartening knowing how much was left over at the end of the night). We essentially paid for a ton of food that was never served. I am Armenian and one of the main reasons we selected a caterer like Original Kabob Factory is because it was very important that the tables not be left bare and food be replenished throughout the evening which did not happen. Another issue was the cake cutting - the cake was cut but not distributed to guests. My mother had to step in and pass out the cake. The servers were also intoxicated, which is unprofessional and guests witnessed them taking shots with guests. That is unacceptable (they were not hired to party, but to perform a service which they failed to do). Guests had to ask the servers on multiple occasions for additional food to be brought out, which was either done with a long delay or not done at all. One of our guests asked one of the lady servers for a glass of Rose, in which she poured a glass of Red wine into White wine and presented it to the guest. This is horrifying and incredibly unprofessional. This leaves a bad taste in our mouths as these are just nuggets of information received and we honestly can’t imagine what else happened that night that was untold.

I do want to highlight that there was one challenge that caterer faced. The fridge we rented did not work and I appreciate the effort Nick put forth to help the food stay cool. However, were surprised that he never shared with us post-wedding that the fridge didn’t work so that we can recoup costs for something that wasn’t functional - luckily our planner shared this with us. The service provided was not at all what we expected or what Nick assured us we’d be getting, and we’re highly disappointed with the overall experience.

Nick is a kind person and easy going. However, there were red flags along the way that should have been indicators - throughout the planning process he was unresponsive and we often had to follow-up, waiting weeks on end to even hear back on simple things or provide us with items we needed from him to execute other aspects of our wedding with vendors. Last thing I will say is when Nick was engaging with our rental company we identified that they had the wrong date for our wedding so I'll give him brownie points for helping...

We read FAKE ‼️reviews and pictures of kabobs cooked over charcoal and went to the Original Kabob Factory hoping to enjoy our food, but food was nothing like what we expected: there were just 4 pieces of shish kabob over unseasoned tasteless rice, meat had no grill flavor, definitely it wasn’t wood-fired, not sure why they even have those pictures posted here. Onions were just slightly seasoned and barely had any salt on them. Two pieces of charred vegetables, they were alright, the vegetables sauce that came with meat was great, I assume it was ikra or something similar. Would have been better if there were some pickled vegetables, marinated onions, sliced grilled vegetables, pita bread, some hummus or something like that to come with a platter over 4 pieces of meat and rice. Comment about “the best in town” is sure is an exaggerated lie. Or a paid review. Not to mention we were talked to like we were babies and our cashier confirmed 4 times if we want shish kabobs saying each time “it is gonna be pieces” “pieces” and showing gestures with her fingers of “pieces” - it was our first time in that place, not our first time seeing kabobs. It was ridiculous. What commons many ethnic places is that they their food and menus represent their cuisine with love, like if they were making it for their families. There was no love put into dished we had.

What is said on their web site: “Our recipes have been passed down (for years) from expert chefs dating back to the former Avetis Blikian – a famous “khasab” (butcher) in Armenia that facilitated the country’s entire domestic livestock market.” - recipes of unseasoned rice and onions? If this is Armenian food then I’m ...

Last night and today a few minutes ago, I placed an order online through chownow. I ordered brown rice with my order. Both times they sent out white rice without telling me. Brown rice is more expensive and they failed to adjust the amount of money they charged me & did not inform me of anything. This happened twice , and it's very dishonest. This restaurant charged me more money for something I didn't order, TWO TIMES. What's even more sad is my receipt today said SUPERVISOR on the top. I'm guessing the supervisor was present at the time I placed my order today and still this problem occurred.

Of course, I called the restaurant to complain and Col. hung up on me. I called back and she redirected the blame on the new guys she was teaching . I explained the issues and was told that brown rice was unavailable so white was given instead. Yes that is true, but i want to know... why was i still charged for the brown rice? I asked to speak to the supervisor, but was ignored. It was all so convoluted, unnecessary, and hysterical that I just ended the call to take the time to write this review and express my sincere concerns.

Don't misunderstand me THE FOOD IS GOOD, I've been a customer for over 3 years. The service I received today was unprofessional and the business practices seem dishonest. Check your order when you are picking up food here. I am dissatisfied and feel cheated. I will not buy anything from this location for a very long time. I'll just get it elsewhere.

Ticket #269157 and last night Oct 11 i ordered for a friend...