Aladdin's Eatery Boardman — Restaurant in Ohio

Please understand, my review of this restaurant is biased, based on my having lived in Dearborn Michigan, pretty much considered the Middle Eastern capital of the United States for many years and have a defined taste for Middle Eastern cuisine, from about 6 or 7 different countries. I, alas, am very picky.

Sadly, not without an attentive staff and a pleasantly decorated establishment, the food was far too bland for my tastes. Portions were grossly small for the price and the flavors were very toned down, almost weakened for American tastes, especially given that this is the FIRST time I've EVER had to pay seperatly for rice or a salad with any Middle Eastern dinner since leaving the Detroit area. That's just plain sad and chintzy in my opinion. Plus, what Middle Eastern restaurant doesn't serve Fattoush salad (especially with chicken shawarma)??? This is a first for me too.

All in all, if your not familiar with this type of cuisine, give them a shot. You'll be impressed with the differences in textures, seasonings and flavors. But for someone like me, VERY familiar with his cuisine, I was thoroughly disappointed. --

To PROVE to friends, who went with us for dinner to Aladin's just what I was bragging about from back home, I brought a family size platter back from Dearborn last trip. After we dined, I then told each person just how'd they'd had the exact same thing at Aladdin's but weren't nearly as impressed! I received a lot of "you lie" and "no way". They couldn't believe the difference in taste, flavors and portion size ($40 platter fed 4 people with enough left over for a small dinner again for 2! That...

I am so dang mad in the best possible way right now. I'm vacationing in the area for a wedding and you just simply cannot get Lebanese food where I live, so I JUMPED at the opportunity to gorge myself on Middle Eastern food as soon as I realized Aladdin's was here. I'm MAD because I live 12+ hours away from here and I'm not going to be able to get Aladdin's again for ages! Everything I ordered was spectacular. The kibbeh... Oh my gosh. That was my first time eating kibbeh after wanting to try it for years. The FLAVORS. The SPICES. The TEXTURE. My goodness gracious, I've never had anything like it and it was incredible!!! The kafta platter was unbelievably excellent. The rice, the accompanying sauce, the grilled beef was just impeccable. It smelled outrageously delicious and tasted 10x better. The worst thing I could say about this place is that the tabbouleh was good. "Just" good. Haha I loved everything I ate here and I look forward to coming back to town and eating here again...

My husband and I were visiting from out of town/state for a baby shower just a few miles away and I was thrilled to see there was an Aladdin's we could have dinner at on our way home. We have some in our area (Pittsburgh), so I already knew the menu. This location was fantastic. It was busy, but not overly crazy, there were many staff members there to cover all the tables. Our server, Krista, was fabulous. She was all smiles, the entire time, attentive and not overbearing, kept us informed and brought everything in an extremely timely manner even though she was running a lot. I haven't had such a bubbly and polite waitress in years. Our food was top notch. I recommend that hummus/pita appetizer! Our meals were delicious too, and unfortunately no room for dessert this time. We will be back! Thank you for a great meal. (And leftovers for...