Taza Grill — Restaurant in Raleigh

We were greeted with a very friendly “Hello Friend!” If you are not familiar with this style of cuisine, everyone is extremely helpful and suggestive in guiding you towards choosing a meal you will love!

This place has been an institution for thirty plus years - since 1988 according to the owner! Once you go once, you will understand why.

We ordered the lamb platter and chicken shish kabob platter with a shawarma wrap to go. Everything was fresh and delicious. Seriously, my boyfriend and I could not get it into our mouths quickly enough. The hummus was creamy and super flavorful without any overwhelming flavors of garlic. The tzatziki was mild and refreshing - very well balanced. They do not skimp when it comes to toppings on anything.

The chicken shish kabob was grilled to order, with that grill flavor everyone knows and loves. The lamb was crispy yet juicy and succulent. They have a pepper relish that is good enough to eat on a shoe and fresh garlic sauce that rivals any place I’ve tried in the states and abroad.

Don’t miss the Taza spice blend - conveniently in shakers for customers to take with them or to shake on top of everything and anything. It is spicy yet full of flavor. You can even buy containers of it to take home!!

Oof - and the cherry on top - the free baklava that was gifted to us for being first time customers. Now, my family is Armenian. I grew up on baklava and make a mean baklava myself. This baklava was buttery and flaky yet moist and sweet. I love desserts that are not overly sweet and that is hard to achieve when it comes to baklava. This place has got it figured out.

Go and pay Sam a visit - day or night. This is a great spot and one not to be missed. I will be back again and...

I figure I get right into this than wait until I got home to try their food (for the first time)...I placed an online order so I then headed into the restaurant because my email indicated it was ready; I get to the counter to say 'l am here for an online order/I placed an online order'. Well the exchange didn't go as excepted because this young looking guy (likely part of the established restaurant) first thought I was DoorDash then Uber Eats...and when I stated "I" placed an online order then he basically started asking me to show him proof...because I look "glossy". So I began to say let's not go there...saying I'm a professional, been in my career for over 30 years (I make six figures and am not in a position to be some dam* con artist). Well he goes it's not like that...it's not like that; I go yes it is like that! In closing and so be it, I refuse to alter my style/appearance (DC) especially after work for the "establishment"! Period. I'm a cool cat...I have given my last for the less fortunate which I felt SO misunderstood and disrespected by this individual! This will be my first and last time ordering from this restaurant/business!! Facts.

Part II: I ordered the Falafel platter (the cheesesteak sucked)...I would have been better off just ordering the sides because the falafels were extremely dry as if it were leftovers from the previous day; my experience was SO not worth my time and...

Incredible! The food is outstanding for a reasonable price, but as good as the food is, (somewhere between really good and really really really good) the service is even better. The owner, whose name I don't know but I should, always greets me and everyone else who walks in the door with a smile and calls us "boss," but there is one visit in particular that stands out to me. When I was in high school my mom gave me some cash for dinner, and that was all I had. I decided to come here, but I underestimated the cost by a couple bucks, and asked the cashier to drop the mozzarella sticks (even though they're amazing) to stay in my price range. The owner asked me what my budget was then told the cashier to make my order come to that total! On top of that, he even had some extra fries and threw those in for free. So on top of dropping the original cost by a couple of bucks he even gave me some extra food to go with it! A man who gives me extra food is my friend for life!

To wrap it up, this is a fantastic restaurant! Great food, decent prices, and genuinely good people who go out of their way to please you and make your experience enjoyable. Would...