Ya Hala Lebanese Cuisine

08/02/09

Terrible food and service

by eatinout1

My falafel was soft and mushy. My grilled tuna was overcooked. The service was unbearably slow. I can see why the prices are so cheap. The chef wore a frown the entire time and seemed to hate being there. Too bad because I do enjoy middle eastern cuisine, when it's good. I'll be getting my falafel from the guy on 22nd and Division from now on.

• Pros: cheap in price, but also production unfortunately
• Cons: Bad service, Bad food. The chef has an attitude problem.

01/07/09

I will never eat here again

by eatr

The falafel was terrible! It was not fresh, and infact was microwaved and mushy! Very disapointing since cripsy falafel is a favorite of mine. The Foul Mudamas is definately from a can, and the wait for food is so long, I felt like they were holding me hostage! With a microwave and canned food, why should it take 45 minutes for appetizers? I am surprised they are so busy, it must be because it is cheap. I will never eat here again.

• Pros: Next to another place to eat
• Cons: Food does not taste fresh, slow service

12/11/08

Yummiest lebanese food in Portland!

by amyfchurch

OMG you have got to try the moughrabieh! It is like what would happen if I had a sweet old Lebanese grandmother who just happened to be the best home cook in the world and she was making me an extra special dish for my birthday. Two separate bowls, one with braised beef shank in a rich brothy sauce, one of braised chicken, perfectly seasoned, served with a dish of flavorful Israeli type (large grain) couscous and a big spoonful of thick whole milk yogurt. This is REAL, REAL food, not some sort of contrived restaurant dish that is trying to be as good as homemade. My boyfriend was totally jealous when I ordered this and he ordered something else (we don't even remember it compared to the delights of the moughrabieh). Get a couple of light mezza to start and then share this and you will be so satisfied. We have also tried several of the various mezza and they are all great. I don't usually order kebab because I don't think they're very good most places, but here they are indeed tender and well-seasoned. The Veggie Mezza sampler is a great deal, as it is a surprisingly large amount of food, sometimes we are so full after just sharing it that we can't believe we still have an entree to eat and end up taking a lot of food home. So yes, I think this restaurant is a great value, by the way. And finally, the service is pleasant and friendly. One time we had a problem where two sisters who work there each thought the other one was taking care of our table and so we didn't get any service for quite a while but I think that was an isolated incident and actually it was kind of funny.

• Pros: Delicious food, try the moughrabieh!
• Cons: Service is occasionally slow, not always though

09/22/08

Yummy every time!

by sneeches

True that sometimes the food can take a while (up to thirty five minutes), but every dish is cooked to order and well worth the wait. There is an extensive appetizer menu to help pass the time while you wait for your main entree. It is a little weird how the food trickles out one plate at a time, but it appears to be a vey small kitchen with not a lot of staff. Highly recommend the stuffed artichoke heart platter. This place is very friendly to omnivores and herbivores alike.

The best time to go is off peak hours, the service, timing, and noise level are all improved at these times.

• Pros: Great selection for meat eaters, vegetarians, and vegans.
• Cons: Sometimes there is a little wait for a table.

08/19/08

My new favorite restaurant!

by Travelbug99

I found Ya Hala in the AAA travel guide while trying to find a hotel in Portland. It was a little hard to find, but WOW! This is the best restaurant I have eaten at in a long time. The food was excellent and a great price. I found my new favorite dish-the vegetarian kibbeh. Everything we had was very tasty, and I enjoyed the smallish portions so we could try a variety of different dishes (they were still bigger than we imagined and we had plenty of leftovers). I would definitely give Ya Hala a try if you haven't been there before. I will be back again and again!

• Pros: Great food, good price

07/19/08

Good food, with a surprise

by eatandobserve

The food is wonderful but on a Friday be prepared to wait for a table and your meal. The service was good, however I decided to pay close attention to the kitchen to see how it works and was appauled to see who I think was the owner bully her employess when she thought no one was watching. This left me with a bad taste in my mouth.

07/13/08

Holla for Ya Halla

by tastebudsV

For the most part, I really enjoy this spot. The veggie mezza is great, and foul was excellent. When you get a good server, the experience becomes that much better. Top 2 for lebonese in pdx -

12/12/07

Best Lebanese restaurant in Portland

by leahinpdx

The food here is amazing and it is very inexpensive for how much you get. The wait can be really really long on the weekends but they are very good about putting you on the wait list as soon as you get there and giving you updates on how long it will be. I definitely think this is the best Lebanese restaurant in Portland.

• Pros: Delicious food
• Cons: Long waits on weekends

10/26/07

excellent chocolate cake

by riverall

I love the chocolate cake at Ya Hala, the kabobs are fantastic, especially on the fragrant bed of rice. This is one of my favorite places in SE. Always good, and very affordable.

• Pros: affordable
• Cons: sometimes theres a wait, not open very late

10/12/07

Baba from a tin and well below average Fatoush

by alibaly

I have been a regular at Ya Hala since moving to Portland 9 years ago. Agree with all the comments about the service ...its pretty dire at the best of times. I've noticed also that in the last six months the food quality has really slipped. A couple of times recently I've noticed that the Babaganoush tastes processed, exactly like the tinned stuff in the store which is attached to the restaurant. And the Fatoush is not consistent....the last time we were there it had no fresh mint, over ripe tasteless toms and what tasted like low quality olive oil. And way too much crispy pita in there......like they had run out of other ingredients maybe?

The bad service I could live with. But not the bad food. So I won't be returning anytime soon.

• Pros: Reasonable prices
• Cons: Terrible service and inconsistent food quality