Meat Moot NJ — Restaurant in Paterson

This place rates high, and I have no idea why. went there midweek and saw 4 tables were filled , 2 people manning the ovens, 1 host, and 2 other people I will refer to as "waiters". It was me and my 2 sons, both teenagers. we were shown a table and no one -- I mean no one - acknowledged our existence for over 20 minutes - meanwhile the 2 "waiters" had visited the other 4 tables at least twice. I finally walked up the counter and the host, who showed us the table suddenly knew no English when I asked for drinks and service. I had to repeat myself several times until he finally waved to one of the waiters and spoke in Arabic for her to set the table ( I understand a little, cant speak a lick of it) . The waiter came back and all but dropped the salads and sauces on the table before sneering and walking off the a corner to stare at their phone. I went back to the host and asked if the kabobs were lamb or beef. 4 tries before he said "you want lamb kabobs?" "No, my son wants beef kabobs" "only lamb, no beef" - ok, fine...went back to my table and and my son opted for beef ribs, my other son wanted the lamb shoulder. informed the host and he said he could only serve shoulder as no less than 3 lbs servings. my son ordered lamb shank instead and the host then told me no order can be less than 1 lb for any meat)

I opted for nothing since 2lbs of meat would be more than enough for 3 people.

the meat took 40 minutes despite other tables coming in and getting immediate service, and we witnessed individual kabobs, smaller and much smaller portions being served of lamb shoulder to people who entered after us -- not like we could do much else since we were getting no service. Finally the meat came out, and again the waiter sneered, dropped it on the table and then went friendly chatter to another table. The meat was "ok" at best, there was no seasoning, only some hint of smokiness -- it was basically just meat. other tables were getting sides of potatoes and rice, so I spoke up again--- and our host again knew no English - even tried "AIza" and "albatatis" in my best attempt at Arabic before he finally waved at the waiter again who shrugged and came back with the sides. We were never offered drinks and the waiter never even looked back to the table

When I went to pay, we were upcharged over 150 dollars -- despite their site saying 45 lb and when I showed the prices from their own site, the host suddenly spoke no English again. but asked me if I wanted to leave a tip in perfect English.

I went and got a bag and container from the back table myself and took our...

Responses to the owner response points First Ahmed is spilled with capital A

1. not impressed how many branches you have as long as they provide same poor quality

2. I have 3-4 sets of eyes of your waiters watching me how much tip will I leave. I can see they are not looking at me they are looking at the machine to notice how much tip. Very unprofessional. Plus the tip before the service. Cheap way to collect tips.

3. $45 per pound is way too expensive specially with the food quality

4. Think again before you believe meet moot is a leading brand in the smoked meet business.

5. No no… never again! But thanks for the offer.

I rarely leave any reviews but this restaurant provoked me to leave a negative review. Will not return for many reasons. The staff is pleasant and inviting, but that’s all. Here is why I am giving only 1 star: -The food wasn’t really hot, it is more like in warm/cold side. -You pay before you eat and you are expected to pay tip before you sit and eat. What if the service wasn’t good, which wasn’t good, and still paid 15% tip. How can a sitting expensive restaurant ask for the payment and the tip before you sit and eat?! Big negative. Everyone works there staring at you to see what tip % you will select. Another big negative. -Lighting is super bright. -They say, you only pay for the meat and everything else comes with it (salad, rice, small servings of sauces) plus you can ask for more rice or salads…etc. So, we asked for more rice and 2 small sauces and no one served them. They said ok, coming out now but they never served it. Now I remember the tip I gave before they provide the service! Who cares, they already got tipped!!! -Asked for to go box, they gave me the box and no bag…. Had to ask for a bag. -After we sat, service was ok, you have to wait until someone notices you need help or you have a question. Of course, they already got tipped before they deliver the service!!! -Food was ok not great. It didn’t have the smoky taste, rather it was like any piece of meet you slow cook it in the oven. -Finally, it is way too expensive. We paid $167 inclusive for the food in the picture. We overpaid and we didn’t enjoy it and got a sucked service. There are many much better options at Paterson and another smoked meet restaurant with lower price and much more menu varieties. By far, meet moot is my worst experience dining...

I rarely leave reviews, but this experience was so unacceptable that I feel compelled to share it. This was, without a doubt, the worst dining experience I’ve ever had.

To begin with, the restaurant ran out of drinks entirely—yes, completely out. When we asked about beverages, our server casually suggested we walk to a nearby gas station to buy our own drinks. And we actually did. We left the restaurant, bought drinks from a gas station, and returned, hoping things would improve. While still sitting at our table—with our gas station drinks—we witnessed a waiter bring out drinks for another table. At this point, it became hard not to feel disrespected and even racially discriminated against. Why were other tables being served what we were told didn’t exist?

The sides were another disaster. The menu listed mashed potatoes and rice as the two available options, but they had run out of mashed potatoes entirely. We didn’t even get the chance to try them. When we asked for more rice, we were told they had to “save it for other customers.” I don’t understand how a restaurant can advertise unlimited sides and then tell us we can’t have more because they’re trying to preserve stock for others. Are we not paying customers too?

The food itself was underwhelming. When it finally arrived—two hours after we were seated—it was cold and clearly not fresh. The sauce portions were tiny compared to the amount of meat on the plate, and we had to repeatedly ask—almost beg—for more sauce just to make the food palatable.

On top of all that, the atmosphere was uncomfortable. The music playing throughout the restaurant was loud, vulgar, and completely inappropriate for a family setting. It added to the chaos and lack of professionalism that defined the entire evening.

It’s also worth noting that the place seemed completely understaffed and disorganized. At one point, a man in a full suit—who appeared to be part of management or ownership—was behind the counter preparing food. It felt like they were just trying to get by with whoever was available.

In summary, the service was shockingly poor, the food was cold and unremarkable, and the entire experience felt chaotic, dismissive, and at times, discriminatory. I would never recommend this place to anyone. Dining out should be enjoyable, not something you walk away from feeling disrespected, ignored, and...