Pomegranate on Main — Restaurant in Greenville

Initial 5-star review Nov. 2022: My husband and I recently dined here for our anniversary. We thoroughly enjoyed every minute of our time at Pomegranate on Main! Our server, Taylor, was a sweet delight and helped make the night just right.

I had the Pomegranate Martini (strong! and flavorful); husband had the Pamarita (house version of a margarita - delicious!) We started with appetizers: Shirazi Salad, Roasted Red Pepper Hummus, and Mast Khiyar (not far off from Indian Raita), each served with a generous helping of really yummy pita-style bread. They were all excellent and surpassed my rather demanding palate!

As a picky vegetarian I was able to modify the veggie kabobs, which were incredible (and VERY charred - just as I love it! If you're not a fan of heavy char, let them know.) My husband raved about the combination of Tenderloin Torsh and Koobideh kabobs. Both dinners were served with a choice of three rices, and served with a whole oven-baked tomato. Extra points for the sumac on the table (a delightful citrusy crushed berry spice that is divine sprinkled on rice!)

AND, since we'd mentioned in our reservation through Open Table that it was our anniversary, Taylor unexpectedly brought us complimentary champagne to close out our meal! 🥂

Thank you, Pomegranate on Main, for a truly lovely & satisfying dinner on our special night! UPDATE, AUGUST 2023:

The manager and MAINLY THE KITCHEN LEAD working the night of August 24, 2023 are the reasons we will not go back to Pomegranate on Main ever again.

I made a simple request. There are 6 items over rice on the vegetarian kabob. I asked that 3 of those be left off. I asked that the other 3 be doubled, or at least increased so that I would not be paying full price for less food. A simple request. A fair one.

Also, the 3 items I didn't want were the more expensive ones!

The waitress was immediately pretty sure she could not make that happen [Translation: Kitchen is run by a miserly, ill-tempered dictator with a god complex.] I told her to send over the manager if it was an issue. The manager came over, told me essentially that every cube of vegetable had been cut, weighed, inventoried, and pre-prepped down to the nickel and that he could take away 3 items but not add extra of the other 3. RIDICULOUS. I told him that a restaurant must always be flexible. I told him he was risking any future business from us. He apologized but didn't care. What a tiny refused request just to ruin our $130 dinner!!!

He left. After we were upset about this, discussing it at our table for 20 minutes which should have been happy time spent, he comes over with the lukewarm dinners (which I observed sitting in the kitchen window for 10 minutes) and he says, "Oh, I really had to fight with the kitchen to get them to do this, but here you are!" If he was going to fix it, why didn't he put us at ease earlier?? And then to discover that the dinner STILL contained 2 of the 3 items I didn't want, so it wasn't actually fixed!

The fact that Pomegranate on Main was willing to upset its clientele for virtually no reason will be remembered a LONG TIME. I hope the pennies and seconds they saved in pre-portioning and pre-skewering every vegetable chunk will make up for all the dinners we would have eaten there, and now WILL NOT.

Additionally, my drink this time (Strawberry Mojito) was 80% ice. $10 for ICE.

When the food finally arrived we didn't enjoy it at all because we'd been so upset by basically being shown that our business didn't matter, and by extension, WE didn't matter. *When you put yourself in the hands of any restaurant, their aim must always be to have you leave happier than you arrived. Pomegranate on Main: YOU FAILED.

Owner's response: "We recognize there are limitations to the menu modifications we are able to provide and for that we are truly sorry."

In other words: We know we're inflexible and unyielding and we have zero plans to change.

☆Lousy and thoroughly unhelpful response to my review. You shouldn't have even...

By far the blandest meal I’ve had in recent memory, and ambiance/service that didn’t make the meal much better. At least the location and wine selection was decent, but we satiated our desire for quality cuisine at two bars with appetizers afterwards.

Let’s jump right into details:

We had a reservation, and we’re surprised to find that there was a fairly empty restaurant as the peak hours ramped up (~6-7:30pm).

We were seated right next to the door and some loud kids, which is fine but a date night note definitely went unnoticed. We asked to move because it was freezing and wait staff consistently bumped into my seat. This was honored as we shifted a table, but we watched 2 couples after us get seated there and also ask to move. One was reseated at the bar, the other simply left.

Our waiter was polite, the French wine overpriced but fine.

We cook up a variety of Lebanese, Greek, Croatian and Turkish food at home, and compared to our smoked eggplant dishes the Mizra and Borani tasted like crushed tomatoes and wet spinach without seasoning.

The main courses were boiled lamb, chicken and shrimp. Lamb was severely over cooked and unseasoned, chicken tasted like something you’d make someone with a stomach bug and the shrimp was well cooked but not seasoned at all. The two rice choices were fine, but again had nearly no flavor. I tasted cranberries in one, but nothing else. We agreed a yogurt sauce or something with spice would help a lot. We were brought some Texas Pete when asked if a chili based sauce or seasoning was available, we had a good chuckle from that. The spice on the table was bizarrely flavorless as well; it was red but had absolutely no heat or warmth or even bitterness, it almost seemed like red food coloring and nothing else.

The tea was simple black tea in a cute pewter set, but nothing special.

For a pretty penny we left with disappointment.

We didn’t finish and left some room for some incredible bone marrow, dumplings and desert at cozy and upscale local bars and restaurants we visited after. Our bartender’s opinion of the place was “you can get better kabobs for a lot less.” We we’re in agreement.

No, we didn’t have covid and lack of tastebuds, and watched a table next to us have similar reactions as a gentleman put half a shaker of salt on his lamb shank.

We agree Greenville isn’t a melting pot of diversity, so flavors are largely tapered to appeal to the masses, but we wondered if the chef was a sub or forgot the recipes.

There’s a long list of places we’ll need to go through...

Pomegranate on Main is a classy but comfortable establishment just west of Falls Park in downtown Greenville. I enjoyed dining here with colleagues, appreciated the excellent service, but found the entree I had needing just a touch more seasoning.

My table ordered the hummus and mirza ghasemi for starters - delightful dips for the provided flat bread. While both were tasty, I was especially loving the hummus. The server also provided us with a platter including some cheese, butter, and herbs - described as something that would be placed atop the bread to make-up a light breakfast-like dish for Persian cuisine. All of these items arrived incredibly fresh and were simple, but brilliant.

For my entree, I ordered the lamb kabob, which is served with a mild basmati rice and lentils mixture. The lamb was certainly the star of the entree for me - prepared expertly such that it was deliciously tender. I loved the marinade, but was wanting for more. I appreciate the subtle, nuanced flavors of my meal at Pomegranate, but am admittedly a fan of more intense flavor. Offering a small dollop (or container) of the marinade on the side would've helped me here. That said, I've found lamb a hit or miss deal at many restaurants. The chefs at Pomegranate on Main are to be lauded for so expertly preparing the entree I enjoyed.

One final note - I found their iced tea absolutely fantastic (unsweet, yes I do originally come from the north).

Overall, Pomegranate on Main is a great restaurant for some food that's decisively distinct. The Persian cuisine shines here and the hummus is an absolute must enjoy. The portion size is quite adequate for a lighter dinner compared to what one finds at many of today's popular restaurants. If you're dining with a heartier appetite, then definitely opt for a couple (or trio) of starters - they have a special on the menu if you order more than one starter. Combine that with some good wine from their respectable selection and you're set for a fantastic evening out with friends,...