Markook Authentic Mediterranean Eats — Restaurant in North Strabane Township

The food was mediocre, but regardless—I will never step foot in this place again. My husband, teen son, and I were in town for a baseball tournament, and as frequent travelers and self-proclaimed foodies, we’ve seen our fair share of dining experiences. This one? Truly disappointing from the start.

Immediately upon entering, we were met with an odd sense of tension—as though we were inconveniencing the staff just by existing. No one else was in line, yet there was an uncomfortable urgency to order and move along, as if our presence was somehow a burden. First red flag.

Then came the ridiculousness. My son asked for tomatoes on his shawarma. A simple, harmless request. The female staff member curtly refused, saying, “those tomatoes are for a steak meal because they bring out the flavor of the meat.” Seriously? They couldn’t spare a few tomatoes for a kid’s sandwich? Second red flag—and it left a sour taste before we even got our food.

I ordered a bowl and requested a quarter of a pickle and a few chopped cucumbers. Again, I was told no—this time by the male staff member. The bins were overflowing with vegetables, clearly visible, but apparently those are reserved for salad orders only. The absurdity of it all was laughable. Third red flag, and by then it was painfully clear that this place values rigid rules over basic decency and hospitality.

The total came to \

50 for three entrees—\\

And then, to top it off, we were stared down for the rest of our meal by the owners themselves. It was uncomfortable, unprofessional, and frankly, gross behavior. After reading other reviews, it turns out this kind of treatment isn’t uncommon here.

I rarely write negative reviews, but this experience genuinely disgusted me. The lack of customer service was appalling, the attitudes were unwarranted, and the overall experience was one I wouldn’t recommend. Save your money—and your patience—and go somewhere else. ————————————————————————— Entitled- lol! We ate it because we were hungry and spent $50 on our meal. My review was about your lack of customer service abilities and stinginess. You claimed we ignored you when we walked in- that doesn’t make sense- communication has to take place in order to get my order. The tone of your rebuttal validates the point of my original review. Your example of a grocery store is dumb- you’re comparing two different services. If I went to McDonalds and asked for no ice or extra ice in my coke- my request would be honored. If I went to Subway and asked for no onion or extra pickles- my request would be honored. I’d gladly pay for the “extras”. I never asked for them to be free- my son and I were just told “no”. My review is about your customer service and it needs significant...

If I could give you zero stars I would. When I first came here I loved this place and would tell everybody I met how great it was and how they should check it out. Fast forward a couple of months and a handful of visits... I will NEVER return, nor will I ever give this place another penny of my hard earned money. Each time I have eaten here, I’ve asked to add feta and cucumbers to my meal, and each time, I have been lectured that those ingredients are for the salads. I always politely offer to pay extra (which they do charge) and explain that I just like the mixture of flavors. This time as the owner was putting my cucumbers into a small cup I suggested he just toss them on top and save himself wasting 2 containers. At this point, he becomes belligerent and yelled at me that every time I come in there, I ask for these extra things, and if I don’t like his food, not to come back. He added some colorful language actually cussed at me and told me he was sick of me.

Well, let me tell you something, you are rude, mean ignorant, belligerent and condescending, and have no business working with the public. You should be ashamed of yourself for coming to this country and treating Americans the way you do. I feel bad for your wife, because you probably beat her at home or in the back room. And, why is your dining room always empty and never able to be used? Is this restaurant a cover-up for drug dealing, human trafficking or something of the like? How can you possibly stay in business and treat customers like this is what I’m wondering???

I work very nearby and I come in contact with hundreds of new faces every week from the area as well as visiting. I am going to make it my personal mission to tell every person I come in contact with what a horrible experience I had, and not to spend their money at this place. There are too many other options with wonderful people, and wonderful owners who know how to treat their customers like gold. This place does not deserve a penny from any hard-working American, no matter what the food taste like.

Go read the comments and the one star reviews about how others were treated. I believe EVERY word they say. We all have pretty much the same story. THE OWNER IS A COMPLETE PSYCHO!

I should’ve read the reviews first and never would have walked in the front door. The owners responses to the reviews are even worse than the original experiences, and show you exactly who he is. It’s no wonder you can’t find help. Who in their right mind would ever work for you. Shame, shame shame on you! Maybe you’d be better suited for a food truck outside of a construction site. I’m sure one of those guys would eventually correct your bad attitude.

I will also be posting on Next Door, Facebook, X, Instagram, as well as a Yelp review. Thankfully, I’m an Elite Yelper and my reviews go straight to the top and stay there for years. I feel bad for your family. You are a pathetic excuse for a human. I hope you go out of business because that is EXACTLY what...

I've hesitated to write this review because I know the owner's response will only upset me further. My husband and I have sung the praises of this restaurant to our friends for years. We love their food and have always looked forward to going back. Throughout this time, we've read the one-star reviews and the owner's responses and have been alarmed, but we also just gave the owner the benefit of the doubt. Sometimes customers suck. But after our most recent experience, it's clear that these reviews are pretty spot on. When we visited last, we weren't aware that the dining room was closed until we walked in the door. And actually, we were there at 4:35 p.m. on a Friday, which, according to their website, means the dining room was technically still open. Anyways, we were immediately asked if we were aware that the dining room was closed and if that was okay. We had been planning to eat in, but because of how much we've loved this food over the years, I said that was totally fine and that we'd take it to go. Truly, this didn't bother me that much. But after we ordered, there was such a weird vibe. I had a cup of water placed on the ledge a table away from where the owner had his computer. I was standing there motionless, patiently waiting for our food when the owner harshly asked me to move the cup because his computer was nearby. I obliged. But then I felt like I had nowhere to go. Was I allowed to sit at a table and wait for my food? It really didn't seem like it. Everything was cleaned up for the day and I felt so out of place, like I wasn't fully welcome in the restaurant. According to the website, their dining room is closed between 2 and 4 p.m. and then again from 4:45 p.m. until close. Closing the dining room twice is not typical for most establishments (I'm aware of others that close their dining rooms an hour or less before close, only closing it once/day) and I think this is just confusing for customers. If you want to eat in the dining room during the 4-4:45 p.m. window, it seems like they'd want you there right at 4 p.m.

This place has the potential to be phenomenal (good food, clean dining area), but when the owners make you feel like one wrong move can land you in the dog house, it's off-putting and makes us not want to go back. I wish this place the best, but I fear that they're going to continue to upset customers and scare them away. I've been as kind as I can be here, but good food and a clean dining area don't make up for a tense,...