Sahara Restaurant

by Dee G.

Is it me or is the location of this place a little off? It's a really cute place and it just feels like a black sheep on Easton. Otherwise, they had good food, ok service, and PARKING! Best tabbouleh I had in my life. But something about it didn't have me coming back for more. I'll try it out again, but I'd recommend it to others for sure.

by Michael K.

I enjoyed my dinner here. My companion and I tried the hummus with spiced ezme, baba ghanoush salad, house tossed salad, lamb sauté with rice, broiled tilapia, sobiyet, rosewater lemonade, and cardomom tea.The decor is pleasing, the service was excellent, and the portions are large. Dishes that others were eating looked appealing. Prices are pretty reasonable.I think that the hummus and baba ghanoush at Evelyn's are better, but the proteins here are prepared with more care. The salad was flavored nicely with fresh mint.The pita here was a little chewy, and could have been warmed more. The sobiyet dessert is similar to baklava, but with pastry cream filling instead of honey and walnuts. It was not that special.The menu here is extensive, with three times as many items available as at Evelyn's. There's no alchohol served, BYOB. I'd come back again, so I guess that's a thumb's up for Sahara.

by Pedro Y.

food: great.... house soup amazing... house salad amazing... chicken kabob entree amazingambience: newly renovated.. looks really nice.service: the owner is really nice and friendly but he cant seem to find reliable waitresses. he seems to hire looks over brains.overall great experiance a change from all the college food in the RU area.

by Namrata A.

I really liked this place.  It was really nice inside and the food was pretty good too.  I had a great soup there that tasted a lot like something in Indian cuisine.  It was reasonably priced as well.  I'd recommend Sahara for an evening dinner different from everything else around you on Easton Avenue for sure!

by Dave F.

I spent the first 18 years of my life in New York City, and after eating at amazing Middle Eastern restaurants like Bay Kebab in Brooklyn, I was expecting much from this out-of-the-way eatery on the fringes of a college town.First, the atmosphere is great. The place is built like a palace, with cathedral ceilings, hanging tapestries and plenty of light. The whole place  is painted in a light-tan color. They have outside seating, but as a New Brunswick resident I promise you that the scenery inside is much nicer than it is outside.Now for the food- the veggies are always fresh, the soup has a great home-made taste, and the meat is cooked to perfection. The coffee is really good, and the baklava are unlike any I've ever tasted before.Bottom line- GO THERE.

by Rich A.

Sahara Restaurant (http://www.saharacafen...), conveniently located to Rutgers University and the New Brunswick NJTransit station on Easton Avenue, is a warm and sultry Turkish-influenced Middle Eastern BYOB restaurant with efficient service and tasty cuisine.We happened upon Sahara this past Friday night while meeting friends for dinner in New Brunswick at Evelyn's.  In fact, we had started our evening at Sahara, by accident, as we initially confused one Middle Eastern venue on Easton for another.  After a disastrous visit to Evelyn's (see my separate review), four famished diners descended on Sahara around 830pm seeking a quick, tasty Middle Eastern meal -- and we left very satisfied.Sahara offers a terrific atmosphere -- the first thing you notice when you walk in is the incredibly great smell and the beautiful decor.  The restaurant features indoor seating under a phenomenal hand-painted mural on the ceiling and tapestries on the walls as well as outdoor seating when the weather cooperates.Within minutes of being seated at an indoor table, our friendly server took our order.  Less than 5 minutes later, she brought out our shared appetizer -- the Sahara Vegetarian Combination, a platter of large portions of spiced ezme (spicy mashed vegetables mixed w/ walnuts, garlic, paprika, and olive oil), cauliflower dip, hummus, eggplant salad (grilled eggplant flavored w/ garlic, dill, parsley, red bell peppers and onions) and labhne (sour cream w/ walnuts, dill and garlic) and a basket of warm pita bread.  Everyone in the group had their favorite -- for me, it was the ezme for its unique spicy taste.Each of the entrees included a choice of soup or salad.  A large bowl of Ezo Gelin Corbasi soup (a Turkish spicy red lentil soup) arrived just as we soaked up the last of our appetizer.  The two of us that ordered the soup - liquified lentils fused with the flavors of fresh mint and paprika - agreed it was excellent.Entrees are priced from $10-$12; the menu is much more extensive than Evelyn's -- featuring the usual Mediterranean favorites as well as a full page of fresh seafood options.  I opted for the Kafta Kebab -- hand ground lamb mixed with diced parsley, onion and spices.  The plate featured four large pieces of freshly prepared tasty grilled lamb served with a small salad, basmati rice, and a grilled pepper.After the filling appetizer, soup, and entree -- all served within 45 minutes -- we had no room for dessert.. but, after the great experience we had, we'll definitely be back again.

by MS. F.

I am actually downgrading my review of Sahara which was originally posted in July 2008 - it is now November.  Six months ago when I was first introduced to this place the quality and the service were a lot better.  In recent dining experiences, I have waited up to an hour for food, had an entire table sit for 20 minutes with empty drinks while our male server was busy flirting with a female server by the front counter, and been given food that sat in the kitchen long enough to be soggy.  I also want to know why when you call in a carry-out order they tell you 15 minutes and then it takes 30.  Always be sure to check your order...it may be missing things or it may not be your order at all!I previously gave Sahara 5 stars...they are now down to 3.  Out of my last 3 dining experiences, 2 were well below satisfaction.  I still like Sahara, but something has changed and only better dining experiences will gain them their stars back.  With the economy the way it is, now is not the time to get so comfortable with previous success that you get sloppy and lose business.***Previous Review starts here:***When you walk in it smells incredible and it is beautifully decorated.  The waitstaff is friendly and usually pretty on top of their service (when busy I have been left with an empty drink for quite a while, but that can happen at any restaurant).At this point I have tried almost everything on the menu and have yet to eat anything I didn't like.  The Shawarma is excellent, the babaganoush is like none other with a lot of diced vegetables included, the chicken adana is seasoned incredibly.I don't think I will ever stop going to Sahara!  They offer carry-out, they can take large parties, and there is an actual parking lot for customers where you do not have to pay to park (which is rare in New Brunswick).

by Kate S.

My friend and I set out to go to the Thai place across the street but we decided we looked fancy enough for Sahara. This place started off the night of awesome. The atmosphere is amazing, the service is wonderful and the food... I was full after three bites but I kept eating until I cleared the plate. Not to mention that their Turkish coffee is the reason I'm writing this review at 4am. Amazing. Don't be an idiot, shell out some extra cash to check out this place. Do it. NOW!!!!

by Meg L.

I had dinner here for my 30th birthday before we went out on the town.  Unfortunately, we were seated at a table in the middle of someone's 60th birthday party, and in my opinon, they should have just closed off the second floor for this party and the amount of people in it.  It was so loud I couldn't collect my thoughts long enough to read the menu, let alone hold a decent conversation.  The service was friendly, but ultimately average.  The bus boys and water servers were on point, our waitress was a little behind.  The food, however, was a great value and very tasty.  We both got turkish spice shrimp skewers, and they were huge served with some type of pickled cabbage that was very good (cold) and a pita underneath it all.  I think our entrees were $12 each, so combined with being a BYOB its a great deal.  Overall, I could give this place another try eventually, I have a feeling it was a mixture of circumstances that made my dinner less than ideal.

by SG D.

Had a very good dinner at Sahara the other night.  The "house hummus" was really amazing (warning: if you're on a date, you should steer clear of this one, because it has a lot of roased garlic in it).  The kebabs were really good, and my wife who's a vegetarian especially enjoyed the baked eggplant.  The service is fantastic and the restaurant is a BYOB.