Damask Rose — Restaurant in Oakland

Here's my experience. I ordered a rose latte and a matcha latte and a cheese flatbread. The drinks came out promptly: awesome. More and more customers start entering and 20 minutes later I ask about the flatbread. The woman behind the counter explains the man in the kitchen had dropped the flatbread on the floor and needed to re-do it. She offered a refund and I accepted with gratitude. A family ordered after I got my refund. 20 minutes later, that family is served multiple dishes, including several flatbreads. I go in to check on my order, the woman hastily boxes up my flatbread and offers kind apologies. The cheese flatbread is, meh. Not worth a 45 minute wait. Not worth the frustration if having multiple orders fulfilled after the kitchen flubbed mine. Advice for the restaurant: if you mess up a customer's order, prioritize making it right for them before fulfilling other orders. Get an order system with numbers to help you manage the flow of business. Advice for customers: stick with ordering from the pre-made case and save yourself the long wait for anything...

The pistachio baklava here are made locally by the owner/manager of the cafe. These baklava are fantastic! While they are definitely a dessert pastry, they aren’t overwhelmingly sweet like most other baklava I’ve had that are drenched in honey (which can be good but can also be “too much”). The baklava at Damask Rose don’t overdo the sweetness so you can really enjoy the flavor of the pistachios too. They are now my favorite baklava to get in the East Bay.

There are also other tasty treats on offer at this cafe. I’ve also enjoyed the dolma. I haven’t yet tried the hummus or baba ganoush, but the owner told me that those are also made in-house.

It is a pleasant place to sit and enjoy, with both inside and outside tables. Only 3 blocks from Ashby BART, La Peña Cultural Center, and the Starry Plough, and 5 blocks from Gamelan Sekar Jaya. This business is owned and managed by an immigrant woman...

Truly, what is better than baklava and coffee?! Nothing? This place is great! Delicious coffee, tasty rose lemonade, an incredible selection of baklava and treats, delicious hummus, and I highly recommend the lamb flatbread, mana’eesh. It’s super fresh and they make it to order, it’s delicious! I’ll be back to try more flavors soon. I love the finger baklava, great texture and balance of flavors, but really you can’t go wrong with any of the options. Also, the rose latte is really good! I was surprised because I thought it might be too floral, but it was really balanced and not too sweet. A great spot and I feel fortunate to live so close. I’ll be back...