Yalda — Restaurant in Sandy Springs

I love Yalda (Sandy Springs)! Upon approaching the spot to grab my takeout, I could hear the patrons laughing and enjoying themselves tremendously. From the huge, lovely wooden door, to the glistening chandeliers, the clinking of the glasses and the silverware, the lively conversations... the patio, the cozy upstairs area, and wide open indoor seating area accommodates a slew of foodies- I love everything about this place! And yes, the most important part was the food. I ordered the hummus with lamb shawarma (and pieces of the freshly baked, soft pita) and the lamb kabob with raisin rice and a roasted tomato. I loved the hummus dish and was extremely excited about the "garnish", which I ate as a mini-salad (with my favorite vinaigrette) and I loved that so much that I paid for an second one upon my return (please make it into a salad- all of those ingredients, especially that mint hit just right).

Sorry- not so sorry to say---I had to return within the same week because somehow, I left my debit card (and upon picking it up, I realized there must be some workers who hastily close or remove the bill holder because there was a huge stack of credit/debit cards in their possession. This is something they need to address- please ensure this doesn't happen to another customer- your food is such a great experience, we promise to be back soon. It was inconvenient as I reside near the airport, but the idea of returning so soon was still good because I placed yet another order. This time--- I fell in love with the lamb wrap with the spicy aioli and I ordered some tzatziki sauce (and mixed them)- it was divine. The fries were exotic and delicious, too- they were dusted with herbs and seasoning (and lightly salted) cooked to perfection. Kudos to these talented human beings in the kitchen!

So sad that I didn't get to try the saffron vanilla ice cream sandwich with rose water and pistachios. I've seen the rave reviews about this dessert. Unfortunately, they were out of the wafers. Next time, next time...

The guy at the bar was so nice, he made sure I left with my card. Overall, they deserve 5 stars (the food, the ambiance, the decor, the everything)... but Yalda reps, please find a way to make sure your beloved patrons leave with great memories and their cards... :)

Until...

The food at this place was out of this world! It was so good, even my cousin who is an extremely picky eater loved the food and even got some to go! Perfect place to meet up with family and friends and enjoy an exceptional meal. As soon as you walk in, the decor is very inviting and gives off a relaxing vibe. We ordered quite a bit and ended up sharing!

We ordered a few mocktails which were excellent! 1 was a pomegranate ginger and another was a cucumber mint drink. Both were not overly sweet and were quite refreshing on a hot day! We started off with trying 3 different spreads to get more bang for the buck. We had the mast kheyar, Mirza ghasemi and zatar zabneh with pickled mushrooms. Our favorite was that smoked eggplant. Omg it packed so much flavor and quite frankly, I could have eaten a bowl of that! Both of the yogurt spreads were excellent too, but that smoked eggplant was sensational! In addition, those pickled mushrooms were so good! Between the seasoning on them, then eating it with the yogurt and nan truly elevated that spread. Very delicious food. For entrees, we had the fish and rice, lamb kabob, veggie kabob and veggie stew. Let's just say it was very quiet while we were eating and a lot of hmm this is so good happening! I had the fish and rice, which was a pan seared trout with a roasted pepper sauce and dill and fava bean rice. That fish was so crispy on the outside and tender inside, it was cooked to perfection. When eaten with the pepper stew sauce, it truly just took that whole dish to another level! Every component on that plate was delicious! Everyone else also enjoyed their food and commented on how perfectly seasoned it was and how tender the meat was! To finish off the meal, we tried the Persian ice cream sandwiches which was a great dish to end the evening. It was sweet and it was so light, you could have eaten so many of those sandwiches and not be full afterwards! The rose water in that ice cream wasn't overpowering and it blended well together with everything else in the sandwich. If you come here for a meal, you will not be disappointed and will be more than thrilled with your meal! I will definitely be returning again in the...

I heard about this restaurant from some friends so we planned a dinner with another family here. We made a reservation and I highly recommend doing that. The restaurant was jam packed and it took them 30 mins to get our table ready after our reservation time. The restaurant is quite well managed but very packed as they have to serve lot of people in a small space. We ordered food for everyone and it really came fast. The online menu availability and the payment option was good. Our server was super nice and she will go places. Now let’s talk about food, we liked almost everything. I ordered Sultani and it was good, my son got chicken kabob wrap and he liked it as well. But the winner was Beef Sheesh Kabab which my daughter ordered. Now let’s talk about things we didn’t liked, first I am really against mandatory service charge and it was 20% which I don’t know why people charge. Also they charge $2.99 for online payment option, like bro why ? You put the system for your facility and asking us to pay for it. Also since server was nice and we didn’t know if the 20% service charge will be going to her or not so we had to add her tip. Ended up paying $45 extra on a $180 bill. Though I like the food, environment etc but I am not spending that much on a single meal so won’t be coming back again. Wish them all the best.

Flavor - Star - 8.0 / 10 Authenticity of Flavor - Star - 8.5 / 10 Cleanliness - Star - 8 / 10 Service - No Star - 6 / 10 Value for Money - No Star - 5 / 10

Suggestion for owner: You guys are doing great in term of food service and management. But please this mandatory tip and digital charge to customers because you need a system for your convenience is really uncalled for.

Suggestion for customer: Reservation is must, you will love the food but just add 20% to every price because this is mandatory service charge here.

Above format would be best to justify my review so i will hopefully continue to keep this for all my...