Haji Baba

by bryan h.

food: 9service: 4*drinks: 5design/ambiace: 8crowd: 8wait/parking/reservations: 6This place is unbelievable.  It is a very different expirience.  *The service was bad because it was the first night and the first time our server was waiting tables.  None of my favorite beers on tap and I did not check the wine list, but I will definitely follow up with a future visit.  They only do one seating per night 8:00 reservations needed.  We showed up like good Germans (my wife) on time.  Everyone else showed up an hour late.  The place filled up and the music was pumping, there were two Arabic style bands and belly dancers in between.  While you enjoy the entertainment you get to enjoy drinks and...the best Middle Eastern food in SD.   Hummus, Taboulli, Babaganoosh, Falafal, Spanikopita, Pita, Kabobs of Steak, Chicken and Ground Beef seasoned to perfection and grilled so it was nice and juicy.  The rice that it was served with was buttery and moist, so good!  If you are going to dine here make sure you have all night as dinner lasts from 9:00 - 1:00 (we snuck out at 12).  There is dancing and people smoking hookahs all around and you really feel like you are in a different country.  The owners are very gracious and kind.  For $37.50 you will get enough food for dinner and 1-2 lunches.  The food is great and the memories will last forever.  If the service was better I would give a 5.

by Kelly O.

The food at this place is really good.  I feel like I haven't had good Middle Eastern food in a long time, so it was very welcome in my tummy.  The gyro, grape leaves (dolma), and hummus were awesome.  I have to say the falafel was really dry though - I wouldn't get it again.  The gyro was way better than the schwarma or kebab sandwiches a few blocks away at the Kebab Shop (I like that place too, though).  I was impressed with the bread on the gyro...it was fresh and tasty.  The grape leaves were so flavorful.  Yum.  It was just a really pleasing meal.Our waiter said the cook that day was Syrian but that the food at the restaurant is from all over the Middle East, not any specific country.The restaurant is HUGE!  And every time I've walked by there's hardly anyone inside - hopefully they get more popularity as time goes on.  If I could give them a suggestion, it would be to have more interesting items on the menu other than the regular gyros, schwarma, etc etc.  (They also have burgers, which is kind of unexpected.)  But I mean it would be neat to see more Middle Eastern dishes that you can't find many other places.I went around dinner time on a weeknight and there wasn't any bellydancers or music or entertainment, other than the Arabic-language music videos playing on the TVs. :)

by Roger M.

So after helping one of my buddies move into his new place in downtown earlier tonight I was in the mood for a kebab plate.  We planned on hitting up the Sultan Sharwarma joint off 4th since The Kebab Shop was already closed, so on the drive there, I ended up seeing a huge sign and knew right away this had to a Middle Eastern restaurant.So we parked about half a block down the street and came in and I was quite impressed with the decor and ambiance of this spot, man they even had live music in there bumping!  Took a minute or so for the waitress to see us as they were all in the back.  There was a good amount of people inside chillaxin' sippin' on brewskies and smoking hookah.My friend ordered a lamb doner and I got a beef shawarma plate, along with a New Castle to wash it down.Service was quite fast, as our food came out in like 5 mins.  I was starving and haven't ate since the late afternoon so I demolished my plate within 10 minutes, haha.This place has some of the juiciest tasting meat I've had in a while on any kebab plate and the seasoning was just right!  The beef was nice and tender and it just melted in your mouth like butter. ;PPortions here are quite huge, I was already full after eating 1/3 of the plate.  They definitely hook it up here!  There was more than enough meat, pita bread rice on the plate and the Greek salad was also plenty.  You can't go wrong with a fatty plate for either lunch or dinner!I've definitely found a new spot whenever I need a kebab fix, this is a place ya'll definitely need to check out! =)

by happy l.

I had really hoped the new owners would make a go of the location...which seems to be doomed to fail.  No fault of the new owners.  They did drastically improve the decor, but the food is over priced and there is absolutely no reason to charge a cover to watch amateur quality dancers on a Saturday night.  The food was ok, but nothing special; The same as any other mid-range restaurant. The service was painfully slow and one of the items we ordered never arrived, though we asked three times.   Parking is a challenge, even this far east of the Gaslamp and not worth the hassle.

by scott L.

The quality of the food was excellent, however the plates didn't seem to be worth $20 bucks a plate(we both had shrimp kabobs). 5 TV's were playing music videos, and I felt like my brain was going to explode. I like Lebanese music but one or two TV's is enough.Service was great, but I don't think I'll be rushing back anytime soon.

by Joel S.

my first middle eastern food in San Diego - excellent! - Hummus- Baba Ghanouj (Ganoosh)- Grape Leaves(so tasty, warm, soft and succulent)- Zaatar Manaeesh (topped with Thyme )- Spinach Pie (cheeseless-dairy free -vegan friendly)Happy Hour 4-7 1/2 off Apps and Drinks - woot wootAnd Hookah with 30+ flavors!Oh yeah - live music and belly dancers - whats not to love?(ps - the Belly Dancers never showed up, but the food was so good I'd return)

by Susan V.

After cruising around looking for a good place to eat late at night, my boyfriend and I were lucky enough to discover Haji Baba.  We were the only customers in the place at 11:30, though there was a group which I assumed were employees and possibly friends who were sitting at a large table enjoying the hookah.  We were greeted warmly and told to choose whichever table we wanted.  I have a little experience with middle eastern food so I knew when I saw the veggie plate with hummus, grape leaves and falafel that I would enjoy that.  My boyfriend had a couple of questions that our server graciously answered.  He ordered the gyro sandwich and even though the menu says the choice of sides were salad or fries, he was offered several options and chose rice.  My veggie plate was more than I could handle but so good!  The hummus was just as I remember my middle eastern friends making at their home years ago.  The grape leaves were oh so succulent.  I wish I could have some right now.  The falafel was good too though of the three things on my plate that was my least favorite.  A large plate of warm pita bread rounded out my meal, which was everything I could hope for. Because I had so much on my plate, my boyfriend was also able to sample everything.  I knew he would love the grape leaves and he did, as well as the hummus.  His gyro was great, the meat was well-seasoned and tender.  The rice that accompanied it was delicately flavored and light.  He also ordered a Lebanese beer at our server's suggestion and that was a great pairing with the gyro.  We had to wait a while for a check but that was okay because we had a chance to sit and relax and when the check did arrive, it was accompanied by some delicious baklava--on the house!  I told our server he had read my mind because I was just thinking of ordering some for dessert.  Thanks to Haji Baba for making the drive to San Diego worth the trip!

by Olin H.

Orthogonal Baba would be a more appropriate name.This place tries to be three mutually incompatible things: middle eastern restaruant, bar and nightclub.Restaurant -- Overpriced, mediocre food. Smoke from the dancefloor detracted from food. So loud that no one could talk.Bar -- No draft beer. Drink service was painfully slow. No traditional teas or coffees from the middle east. Lame.Nighclub -- DJs were amatuers. The tryed to play cool world music but they just didn't understand ways to mix. No one could "get into" any vibe because it kept randomly changing. They mastered the skill necessary to make it really loud and filled with smoke (great for nightclub but bad for a restaurant).We had a wonderful waitress who tried her best to provide good service despite the incredibly slow service from the kitchen.The waitress saved this place from a single star.