Ali’s kitchen — Restaurant in Lakeport

I hate reviews like this but someone needs to see this so they can fix the issues...

The food at Ali's Kitchen was quite tasty and definitely felt more authentic than most of the fare served in Lake County. Their salsa had nice kick, their beans were velvety smooth and well seasoned, their Carnitas was flavorful and even had the diced skin chunks AND they serve their plates with grilled jalapeños which is always a treat.

The service on the other hand was not great. My server was not remotely friendly when taking our order. Other than bringing our drink and food she never revisted the table at all. If it was packed and busy that is understandable and I can deal with that. It was not. There was one other table of three people and a few to go orders trickling in and out and that was it. We had to get up and track down a server to ask for a to go box. She gave us a tiny box that wouldn't fit my food and my mom's leftover burrito. My mom ended up wrapping up her burrito in a few napkins and tossing it in her lunchbox at the car because she didn't want to deal with asking for another box and having to hunt someone down. Even after this we still didn't get the check at the table and so we got up and paid on the way out. Again if it was busy, sure. If staff wasn't the friendliest but was attentive, sure. This was neither.

The interior space is cramped and noisy but very cute. If you do eat in I recommend going upstairs if it is open for seating.

Honestly though I would recommend Ali's Kitchen for takeout/delivery only unfortunately unless they improve...

Has anyone ever gone to an Italian restaurant and ordered an entree and then didn't get any bread and butter before your food came? That's kind of how it felt when I learned that chips and salsa were not included in the meal. Just a quick point about the view of the lake. Obstructed by street and playground . It is however very close to the lake which is a plus. I should have taken some more time to look at the menu before coming to a decision on a $15 burrito supreme that was actually quite huge, but unfortunately bland in taste for a choice of shredded chicken, that actually reminded me of boiled chicken. I split the burrito with my mom and we still managed to both take home a quarter of it each. Menu had said that it had pretty much everything in it, yet it clearly did not since it was so bland in flavor. A friend of mine had recommended a bean dip that had cheese and something else quite delicious in it, I probably should have listened. Perhaps then I wouldn't have had such a bad taste in my mouth after I learned that chips and salsa were not included. *That's probably the third Mexican restaurant I've been to in Lake County since moving here about 6 years ago. If anyone else has had a good experience in Lake County with Mexican restaurants could you please share it...

There’s a lot I love about Ali’s like the fact that they are family own and operated I remember when I would see her selling her food on line it all looked so amazing! Then when she opened up her eatery in lakeport and I got to try it we were not disappointed I love that everything always looks smells and taste so fresh nothing sitting in pots all day in her kitchen you can tell the dishes she serves her clients and how she prepares it’s is no different then how she feeds her family and nothing can speak more highly of a restaurant! I like ve my michalada drink, we always get great friendly services leave full and satisfied looking forward to the next time...