Dalia Mediterranean Grill & Cafe — Restaurant in Texas

⭐️ 1 Star – Discriminatory, Dishonest, and Unwelcoming Experience

I found Dalia Mediterranean Grill & Cafe when I googled “Kunafa near me.” I called ahead — the first man said they had it, then when I called back a lady confirmed they did but said it would take 25 minutes because they were busy. I agreed to wait.

When I arrived, the staff looked at me but didn’t greet or approach, so I said “table for one.” I ordered tea while I waited for my to-go Kunafa. The waiter asked if I spoke Arabic (which was an odd question for a paying customer), and when I said no, he seemed dismissive.

A few minutes later, another employee brought out two to-go containers of Kunafa and placed them on the table — no bag, no utensils. He then asked if I needed a bag and utensils; I said yes, and instead of bagging it for me, he simply handed me the empty bag in my hand. That told me everything I needed to know about the level of service here.

When I asked for the check, the waiter entered something into his handheld device and told me the total was over $28 — which immediately raised a red flag since online the Kunafa is listed at $7.99. When I questioned the price, he went to get a lady who came over with an attitude and said, “It’s $11.99 now, it’s not on the menu anymore.” Then she tried to negotiate the price, saying, “The best I can do is $9.99.”

Moments later, she snatched the containers and said, “You don’t have to take it if you don’t want — I told you we didn’t have any more, this is what we had left over.” That confirmed it — they were trying to sell me something old, and overcharge me for it.

I told her no thank you and left. I’ve never felt so discriminated against in a restaurant. If you’re not Arabic, prepare to be treated differently here. The price was never the issue — I love good food and have no problem paying for it. But the lack of respect, honesty, and basic customer service was beyond insulting.

I’ll gladly keep driving to Golden Roastery for FRESH Kunafa and respectful service. This review has nothing to do with ethnicity — it’s about how poorly this staff treats customers who aren’t “one of them.”

Do...

Horrible service, subpar food, expect to be there for a while.

My friend and I visited on Friday night at 8:30 pm. The patio was busy but inside there were maybe 3 or 4 tables with people. The kid who sat us became our server, and he had no idea what he was doing. My friend ordered a tea and when he brought it back I ordered a Coke and a small Turkish coffee, I also ordered Classic hummus. He brought my coke and I asked for sweetner for my friend's tea. When he brought the hummus later, no sweetner, no coffee, no silverware, no small plates. We tried the hummus and it had a kick to it, the next time he came by I asked if it was the jalapeno hummus because there was green stuff on top and it was spicy, he said he put in the classic hummus, so it wasn't the jalapeno (he couldn't even tell by looking at it!). I had to looked on the website for pictures and sure enough we had the jalapeno hummus. The next time we saw our server I mentioned this and he just looked at it blankly, and reiterated he put Classic hummus in the computer, so I guess he didn't think a mistake had been made - no offer to replace it or remove it. He did finally bring the sweetner, which he sat in front of me (I have a Coke) instead of in front of my friend who had the tea, after we ordered food. They were out of the Grilled Chicken, so we ordered other plates, which were just okay, nothing special, kind of bland. The Baba Ghnoug was bland and chunky, resembling cottage cheese, I've had so much better elsewhere. Btw, halfway through dinner I finally did get my Turkish coffee! I did order the Dubai Chocolate Cake to go, and it was good, extremely rich but good. Overall, we were there for 1:20 and more than half of that time was waiting - waiting for our server, waiting to order, waiting for food, waiting for our check. We will definitely not be back, but hey, if you like hookah that seems to be what everyone was doing and they had so much staff setting them up, I guess that's why we got stuck with a host who has probably never been a...

I visited this restaurant with a group of 5 adults and 3 young kids for a family gathering and was disappointed by the experience, which I feel compelled to share.

Food Quality & Portions: We ordered two family-style platters of grilled meats, including minced beef kebab, lamb chops, beef tikka, and chicken tikka, accompanied by small appetizer salads and tapas-style sides. The meat portions were surprisingly small for a “family” serving this was a ($179) per plate, with an excessive amount of rice, grilled vegetables used as a filler to give the appearance of a larger portion. As diners very familiar with Middle Eastern cuisine, we found the flavors underwhelming, missing the authentic seasoning and preparation techniques we expected, resembling the efforts of an inexperienced chef.

Service: To their credit, the service was commendable. Our server was attentive and accommodating to our group, including the young children, throughout the meal.

Value & Atmosphere: The value was a major letdown. Our group of 6 adults and 3 young kids spent over $600 on lunch, with no alcohol or extravagant items, which felt unreasonable given the small portions and mediocre food quality. The restaurant’s ambiance was lackluster, nearly empty dining room during peak lunch hours in a weekend, creating a sterile and uninviting atmosphere.

Overall Impression: The restaurant seems poorly managed and out of touch with its target audience. The combination of overpriced, undersized portions and subpar flavors suggests a lack of understanding of customer expectations for Middle Eastern cuisine. The authentic taste we were seeking was simply not delivered.

Recommendation: I cannot recommend this restaurant and will not return. For the price, there are far better options that offer authentic, high-quality Middle Eastern food and better value...