Kabab City — Restaurant in Merced

I’ve been a regular at Kabob City and have always loved the quality and taste of the food. The owner is amazing and super friendly, but unfortunately, our most recent experience was disappointing due to poor customer service.

My fiancé and I came in to order burritos (with French fries inside), and while we had no issue paying upfront, we asked immediately after paying if we could build our burritos step by step. The girl working at the counter flat-out refused, telling us to just list the ingredients and sit down because the line was getting long. We politely moved to the side, but after 10 minutes of being completely ignored, we approached the counter again for an update. Instead of assisting us, the same employee rudely told us we’d have to get back in the long line—just to check on the food we had already paid for.

Her attitude throughout the entire interaction was unacceptable. While we love the food here, customer service matters, and this experience was enough to make us take our business elsewhere. We ultimately requested a refund and left, extremely disappointed. Again, the owner has always been great, but this particular staff member was unprofessional and completely disregarded basic customer service.

We hope this issue is addressed because we truly love the food, but as of now, we won’t...

Any, all of the falafel places we have gone to are better than this. Where do I start? Great hopes at the menu, oh my oh my. Baklava! Samosa! Falafel! Clean, friendly girls behind the glass serving it all up, but they have gobs of room for improvement from ordering to buying. Only at the cash register do you see a typed sign that says prices on the wall are for cash, all others add 4%. You have to tell each person walking down the line (employees are should to shoulder) repeatedly what you ordered as they build your plate. $46 for two falafel plates, and extra humus, samosa and a baklava. Ouch. I had to confirm the baklava three times to the same girl, ditto on the samosas. Home to open our plates. . . the hummus is smashed in there so tightly they came out with the lids!!! So much for the hummus. The salad is literally drowning in what appears to be a vinegar dressing? Well, I have absolutely no idea what dressing that was. None. The rice? Boring. boring, boring. No flavor. The falafels? Even worse. No taste but lots of burnt exterior. Hope holds out for the samosas which are far too hot (spice wise) for us Mediterranean freaks to eat. So very sad. Not going back. Headed to the place in Turlock instead,...

Nothing close to Mediterranean food with poor service

While the ambience was decent, the overall dining experience left much to be desired. We ordered the Spicy Chicken Plate, expecting bold Mediterranean flavors, but the dish resembled a very bland Indian curry—completely lacking in seasoning or authenticity. The rice was equally underwhelming; Mediterranean-style rice is typically long-grained and aromatic, but what we received lacked both the texture and flavor we anticipated.

The falafel was not ready at the time of order, which is understandable; however, after being told it would be brought to our table, I had to return and ask for it myself while the staff appeared more engaged in gossip than service. Although an apology was offered, it felt insincere and dismissive. The falafel, though crispy on the outside, was partially uncooked inside, raising concerns about preparation standards.

The portion sizes were underwhelming for the price, and the $3.29 charge for a basic fountain drink felt particularly steep given the rest of the experience.

Not a place I would revisit...