Al-Basha Take-Out — Restaurant in Paterson

Al Basha is one of my favorite Mediterranean restaurants in New Jersey. They serve fabulous flavorful vegetarian/vegan friendly food at very reasonable prices. It seems to be very popular among the locals, especially among the Arab community and who can be a better judge?!

I have visited them a few times, mostly with a group and these guys have never disappointed us. The food has always been pretty tasty and flavorful, served with generous portion sizes. The service was warm and the staff is very accommodating. The ambience and the seating kinda give you a middle-eastern vibe to the atmosphere.

Once you get seated they serve you fresh pita bread straight out of the oven with some pickled olives and radish. They have a pretty large menu and definitely more than a few vegan/vegetarian dishes. I have found their falafels as one of the best I have ever tried. The falafel was fresh, moist and not so greasy. I would highly recommend their stuffed falafel which are stuffed with some onion and tomato relish to pack some punch. I also go for the Al Basha Mazzah which includes about 5-6 small sharable plates of different sides like hummus and baba ghanouj. Baba ghanouj - mashed smoked eggplant served with olive oil and some seasoning is a must try. Mhamarah - ground tomato and pine nuts sauce is one of the most unique dipping sauces I have tried. All dishes are generally served with fresh pita bread and I tend to make a falafel sandwich and stuff it with a bunch of sauces. The mint lemonade served here is another crowd favorite, it is light and very refreshing after a heavy meal.

Recommendations: Al Basha Mazzah (vegetarians can replace Kibbi with falafel) Appetizers: Baba Ghanouj, Hummus, Mhammarah, Tabbouleh Mains: Stuffed Falafel, Falafel platter Drinks: Mint Lemonade

Note: The place can get pretty crowded during lunch and dinner hours, make sure to call them 30 mins early and reserve a spot before you come. There is parking available just behind the restaurant.

A must visit place if you live around NJ to try some good...

Stopped in on a Saturday at around 1 to pick up some lunch after another place nearby that we wanted to try wasn't open yet. We ordered at the counter but it looked like most people were waiting for pick-up orders that they called ahead for. And I can see why. When placing our order, they told us it would take 30 minutes but it was closer to 40. I guess they're either really popular or really understaffed because it doesn't even take 30 minutes for food to come out when you dine in at restaurants in general. The menus on their screen doesn't have prices, which was kind of shady to me. Luckily, I found one on Google. The person taking our order wasn't too helpful when we asked how much food was in the MIx Mashawi for four people - he just said, "It's enough food for four people." We had six people so we just ended up getting the four people platter, and ordering an extra chicken shawarma plate and some falafel.

The Mix Mashawi comes with kofta kebab, chicken kebab, shish kebab, and beef or chicken shawarma, served on a bed of rice, and shepherd's salad. It also comes with fresh pita that they make in house. This was more than enough food for 6 people. We had enough leftovers for another lunch for all of us the next day, so we didn't even need to order the extra shawarma. The portions are very generous. My favorites were the kofta kebab, chicken kebab, and chicken shawarma. The beef shawarma and shish kebab were a bit dry. The falafel was good but we ordered that halfway through waiting for our initial order, and that tacked on another 10 minutes to our wait time.

I'd come back but next time, I would either order ahead, or dine in at the dine-in location, so at least if I end up waiting that long, it'll be hot/fresh when the food...

I called the restaurant at 8:46 AM and placed an order with Omar for a Mix Mashawi with rice, Mazzah, and a side of French fries for pickup at 10:30 AM. I specifically asked that the order be ready on time, and was given order number 24.

When I arrived at 10:28 AM, I paid for my order, but the restaurant was already serving order 63. The screen showed my order as “almost ready.” After waiting 10 minutes, I asked and was told “2 more minutes.” At 10:52, I spoke with the manager who told me they were just making sure my order was fresh. I reminded him that I called 90 minutes earlier precisely for that reason. He then claimed only the fries were missing and would be ready in a minute.

Instead of rushing the order, the manager casually got on his phone. After another 10 minutes of waiting, I asked again—this time another worker said they were still waiting on the kofta. At this point, I lost patience and demanded they rush the order and refund the 18% mandatory gratuity, as they clearly did not deserve it.

After 8 more minutes, the kofta finally arrived. The manager initially apologized and promised to refund the whole order, but later only refunded the tip. To make matters worse, I later discovered the real delay was with the Mazzah, which had been sitting untouched near an employee for over 40 minutes. By then, the restaurant was already serving order 102.

What should have been a smooth pickup turned into nearly an hour of unnecessary waiting, excuses, and dishonesty. The manager was unprofessional, the staff were careless, and the experience was unacceptable.

I will not...