by Grace S.

Worst service that I've ever had in my life. The woman that owns the joint is a complete and utter biatch from hell.

by myer s.

I just moved to Philly and went to this restaurant on the high recommendation of a friend. I know and like Middle Eastern food and I was blown away by this place. In the last month I've been there six times (mostly at lunch) and have gone through much of the menu. I particularly liked the vegetarian sandwich. On my first visit, I asked for some tzadiki sauce. The waiter informed me that they did not serve it with the dish I ordered. A few moments later, he placed a plate of sauce on the table, complements of the house, a nice touch. In my visits I have been served by three waiters. They were helpful  and prompt in fulfilling my order and the young man, in particular, was friendly without being obtrusive.Don't ask for felafal, they never seem to have any.Enjoy

by John J.

Had lunch here today, tried the Kabob-E Barreh (Lamb Souvlaki) $9.95 for the platter with a lot of rice, far less spinach, mushroom, one grilled tomato and grilled lamb with a mint yogurt sauce. The lamb was good and it was a filling meal with the rice. The lamb was tender and well cooked. I also tried the shirazi salad, diced tomato, cucumber, onion with lemon juice. I would go back for lunch, probably not a dinner spot.

by Gwen M.

Update: We went here last week, for probably my fourth visit or so, and things have changed drastically.  The prices are higher, the portions are MUCH smaller, and every table around us was smoking a hookah.  I love hookahs as much as the next person, but I don't like being bombarded with smoke while I'm eating.  Don't we have a law against this in Philadelphia? Good Persian food, and pretty low prices (especially for the amount of food you get -- as with most…

by Bill M.

This is what happens when bad service rears it's ugly head! Despite the bad service I'm having a hard time giving this place a bad review (For what might just be the first time ever too). But it was so bad that it just needs to be acknowledged.It looked promising when my friend and I were promptly seated and given menus. But it also looked exceedingly bad the moment that our server decided to have  5 -10 minute conversation with a couple that ordered take out right around the time that we were hungrily ready to place our orders. around that time we were the only people seated down to order, so our readiness should have been an immediate give away to a good server, and we where ready to walk out the door when she finally decided to re-acknowledge us. Strike 1!Our server was prompt with our food orders and got our specifications right. But she also forgot the Turkish Coffee that McThrill ordered and by this point I was in dire need of caffeine and craving it. We didn't get charged for it, But still....Strike 2. As far as the meals go I loved mine while my friend loathed his. My Lamb Souvlaki was piled on with meat, feta, spinach, tomato, and a huge baked potato. And I also got hooked up with an alright cucumber salad (it tasted more like oil + vinegar than anything else). My friend was hating it though. He first found out that a Persian/Middle Eastern restaurant didn't have any falafel on a Friday (???) and than he found out that the vegetable platter was pretty much 65% vegetables that he hates (and he's practically a vegetarian himself. hhhhmmmm....) It was fine for me since I love mushrooms but he suggested otherwise. Strike 3!So in most situations Aromatic would be kicked off the baseball diamond by now. But since I don't play baseball I'm going to acknowledge the potentially good that this spot offered, and there was a lot of it. This place is hands down the hookah bar in Philly that offers the biggest portions of food. So you get yourself a huge meal and good hookah out of the deal. They're the one hookah joint in Philly that doesn't dish out alcohol. But they can very well double over as a coffeehouse due to all the choices that they offer. And the atmosphere and decor of the place can actually be quite peaceful. So if our server didn't suck I would have at least been happy and on the road to giving here 4 stars. But she did and I'm hoping that this was just an off occasion for them. So It looks like I'll be giving it a try yet again.To Be Continued................

by Michelle F.

My boyfriend and I went here on Valentine's Day evening. We were slackers with no reservations in Old City but we were armed with a big bottle of wine and empty stomachs. I went to this place once and remembered that the hummus was delicious and the hookahs are pretty cool too...We were sat within 5 minutes and ordered the Aromatic Sampler and Falafel Platter to split. It was delicious. The ingredients were fresh and it was the perfect amount of food. We skipped out on the hookah but the flavors of the food is something I miss out on when I am hungover and at a shitty diner. The service was a bit shotty but the waiter was a sweet, young lad and he was the ONLY waiter on staff that night. WTF! I blame the management because you can tell that he was doing his best to keep up with all his tables. Not to mention, there were a bunch of bratty ass tables that kept calling him over  to their table ever chance they had. Anyway, this place is open til like 3 in the morning on the weekends and is sooooo good and inexpensive.

by TJ T.

The relatively small menu at Aromatic House of Kabob offers tastes for nearly ever palate. Vegetarians can find several delicious sandwich options, and omnivores will delight in the kabob platters. The menu states that the restaurant uses only organic meat, which is prepared fairly well. For a small price (under $10 for sandwiches, around $15 for platters), you can eat a pretty great Persian/American lunch or dinner. Be advised, the restaurant is BYOB, so stop by the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board Wine and Spirits store on nearby 2nd street should you care to enjoy wine with your meal, or hookah. The restaurant's atmosphere is best enjoyed with friends sharing a bottle of wine and hookah; a relatively quiet and fun alternative to the rambunctious bars of Old City.

by Mark S.

My friend and I started by sharing a hookah. I was a little apprehensive about smoking before a meal, but I had no problem smoking through the meal. The apple flavored tobacco was pretty tasty and gave me a pretty nice high.The food was really good! They had one of the best tzatziki style sauces I've had in the city and great hummus as well. I had my lamb souvlaki with the optional baked potato. The baked potato was covered in a mountain of yogurt, feta, and mushrooms... definitely the highlight of the meal. My one problem was that the lamb was a little too dry, but it was definitely edible.Now for the bad. The service at this place is pretty awful. There was one woman running the dining area and getting her attention was like pulling teeth. Not the most charismatic person in the world, she made me feel like she was doing me a favor every time she came to the table. She also tacked an 18% tip on our final bill. This was a meal for around $65 for 2 people (this did include the hookah). I understand when they add tip to a table of 8 teenagers, but I found this insulting. I usually leave 20% so it was her loss anyway.The price is the other downfall of this place. The ambience is one step over a pizzeria and they're charging $16 for a souvlaki platter. With all the competition they have in the city I think is is a little ridiculous. In the future I might come back to have a hummus appetizer (which was incredibly large) and smoke hookah, but that's about it. Dinner isn't worth it with the mediocre service and expensive entrees.

by Andrew M.

I stopped in with 4 friends after a movie in the neighborhood, and we had a great time. Everyone ordered food and a drink (hot tea) and we got 2 hookahs for the table. The bill, including gratuity, split up to about $23 per person.  I think that is definitely a fair price, so we were all happy with that. As much as it makes me cringe to type it, there seemed to be a bit of a language barrier. I had to order hot tea literally 3 times before the waitress brought it. A few other requests from my friends were misinterpretted/produced slow action by the waitress, which prompts me to think it was not necessarily a case of rudeness or neglect. The hot Persian tea is delicious. It filled my nose with somewhat floral/incense-esque aromas. Mint hookah is very good, mint seems to be a good partner flavor for "smoke."  We also tried a mixture of cinnamon and coconut, which turned out to be much smoother than the mint, and left a delicious after-taste. I also got a sirloin souvlaki...I think that was my first time with souvlaki. It tasted decent, but lacked a bit of savory flavor, in my opinion. I just ate it like a giant kebab hoagie. The ambience is a bit more rustic/authentic than some other hookah spots I have seen, including one down the street. As an interesting sidenote, the Aromatic House of Kabob featured yogurt soda in their cold case.  I did not try it, but interesting nonetheless.