Habibi's Cafe & Pizzeria — Restaurant in South Carolina

My wife and I were beyond excited to try this place because we have been missing out on flavorful Mediterranean food ever since Peno closed.

We heard really good things about this place and finally got the opportunity to try it today for lunch.

Upon walking in, it's a small, simple looking spot & visibly clean. We look past decor of the food is on point.

Once we came in, we were greeted by the owners young child. She must've been about 10 or 11 years old but was well-spoken & polite, so we entertained it. Typically this would be a turnoff as it's often viewed as unprofessional.

We looked over the menu and loved all the authentic options that Habibi's offers and decided on 2 safe choices because if they could hit these 2 menu options out of the park everything would be amazing.

We ordered the gyro platter (with hummus & fries) and the chicken and rice platter (with hummus and fries).

After ordering the 2 entrees, we decided to add an order of mozzarella sticks to our meal because Habibi's also offers pizza.

After a few minutes, the mozzarella sticks came out, with 5 or 6 in the order. They were generic restaurant supply house mozzarella sticks with no flavor. They weren't even seasoned with salt after coming out of the fryer or garnished. They were also served with a cold marinara. These totally missed the mark.

My wife ordered the chicken and rice platter. Her meal had seasoning on top of the chicken, but that was it. Very bland, underwhelming and room temperature at best which makes us believe that both the rice and chicken were prepared beforehand. This entree was also served with tzatziki sauce. Unfortunately the tzatziki sauce was way too runny and also lacked flavor. The hummus that we chose as a simple was also lacking freshness and seasoning. We do believe the hummus was homemade.

On to my gyro platter.

Of everything on the table that we ordered this was probably the best thing we ordered but was still lacking the ethnic season that we are used to when ordering a traditional beef and lamb gyro! This platter was served with roughly 6 or 7 pieces of gyro meat, 2 pitas, tzatziki sauce and the 2 sides.

Given the fact that this was a gyro platter, I felt this platter should have included lettuce, tomato & raw onion so one could build their own "complete" gyro. Temperature on the gyro meat was also an issue.

At the time we went in, we were the only customers in there.

We ended up spending $57.00, including tip.

For what we got vs what we paid for, this will be the very last time that we support this small business. If this business wants longevity, they need to do better.

Don't be scared to season your food, because Mediterranean has some of the most flavorful spice blends in the world that more people need to expose themselves to!

This place unfortunately...

Too Good!! It will break your brain!

I got the Habibis Sampler w/Tabbouleh and Chicken over Rice with double chickpea salad! A total of four pita!

I split all quantities into two seperate plates.. one for the next day!

Get some Pomegranate Moleasses and Tahini from their rack while you are there and drizzle both onto the falafel and chicken and rice! Add the complementary tzatziki to the chicken and rice and complementary garlic sauce over the falafel as well! I add some top shelf evoo to the baba and hummus too! Your favorite olives can bring some extra razzle dazzle here as well.. totally not needed! Sprinke fine ground sumac over everything and enjoy the best meal!! Might want to visit their internation market on 501! Personally, I like to kind-of mix everything together so that each bite has a lot going on!

The best baba and hummus you will have ever tried! Even if you dont like either, give them a try as this place sets the standard! And I am in no way stretching the truth when I say that! Its wonderful...

I came here yesterday around 4pm and the lady cashier was very rude with how she spoke with me. I ordered a lot of food and enjoy it but I won't be returning due to people like her ruining the experience for me. They also changed a few things and I didn't like the drinks.

I came here for the first time today with my kid. We both had the beef kabob meals and U got to try the salad and fries. They ran out of the tiramisu which is homemade but had baklava and I tried the Turkish coffee which was delicious and I'm usually not a fan of dark roasts. We had flavored aloe Vera drinks which were each delicious with the strawberry and mango. The couple were nice and the gentleman said his mom owned the place so it's a family business. I even got another meal and baklava to go for my dad. We will return to try other items off the menu, especially the...