Tarbouch Lebanese Grill Hookah

by David P.

I'm now convinced that 95% of Austin yelpers live in the '04 or '02 - there's simply no other way to explain the outrageously high reviews that restaurants get in these areas.After reading the reviews on this place, I was so ready to dive into a Lebanese restaurant in my hood and if the food was even half-way decent, it was getting 4-stars easy.Sadly, my chicken shawarma had a strange glaze, was in presented in little 'nuggets', and they completely forgot my hummus.The pita was on the dry side, pretty thin and well, very forgettable.My wife's gyro sandwich was actually not bad, but couldn't make up for the rest of the experience. We had to walk up to the register to ask for water refills and left thinking for the money, we could have done a lot better.I'm very open to trying this place again as I so desperately want a place like this in the hood, but this food was what I would expect from a Mediterranean addition to the South Austin Trailer Park and not a brick and mortar establishment.As an alternative, I'd rec'd Athenian Grill downtown for lunch only (dinner's kinda pricey)

by SMASH C.

So, I think its been said, but I'll say it again, the decor is definitely lacking. But that is THE ONLY thing negative I can say. And, quite honestly, with food this good, who needs to look at the walls? Your face is going to be in that big ass plate my friends! So, we had falafel plate, gyro plate and the chicken shawarma. YUM YUM YUM. Plates come with hummus (delish) and Salad. The salad was made with Iceberg, which I usually am not very excited about, but the dressing was soooooooo good I would have probably would have eaten it with paper. The lamb was divine. Seriously, go eat there.

by Jaye J.

Awwwwww yeah! As a Lebanese woman who grew up eating her dad's amazing cooking, I'm always on the lookout for the good stuff and Tarbouch is just that.I'm on a 10 day detox to search for allergies and I can only eat meat and veggies more or less (and no chicken), so Tarbouch seemed like a great place for lunch. I had the beef shawarma and it did not disappoint. The meat was tender with a tiny bit of fat and a nice sour bite to it. Served on top of an onion salad and with pickles and hummus, it was a ton of food for a reasonable price. It also came with a Greek salad which was pretty boring. It was pretty much salad from a bag with bottled Italian dressing. Or at least, that's what it tasted like. I don't think I'd order it again really.I can't wait until I can have grains/gluten again so I can try the Fatoush and the tabouleh, and the falafel! All in all, I really like this place and I'll be back...quite a bit.

by Alex A.

Pointed to the south side by the owner of Big Bite for some Lebanese food, I drove down to Oltorf for the lunch special advertised on the Tarbouch web site - buy a chicken shwarma and get a potato side and a drink for free during lunch. It wasn't very good; certainly not tasty enough to get me back there. The dishes were completely lacking in flavor. What does it say when the iceberg salad's dressing packs the most punch? (It should be noted that the Chronicle agrees with this sentiment). I explained to the uber-friendly hostess/waitress/cashier that they need to give it a kick, and she said that they toned it down for American tastes. If authentic Lebanese amplifiers go to 11, this was a 2. The bread was perfect for the wrap but that's about the only positive thing I can come up with. The rosemary/garlic potatoes were undercooked and greasy. Clearly this place suffers from being understaffed and reliant on the microwave.  However, the price was right, as I drove away full-bellied for about $7.50Will try again in 6 months or so.

by Robert P.

This place is the real deal - best tabbouleh I've ever had and the only baba ghanoush I've ever liked.  We had a Vegetarian Plate (so we could sample everything) and a Shawarma Plate - the meat was delicious.  Actually, everything was delicious, so we tried some baklava and it was terrific, too.  If you love Mediterranean food or want to try something new, go get your fill.The decor was pretty much as expected.  Although much brighter and cleaner than the greasy dive that was there (which had a certain charm), it doesn't have much of it's own personality.  I don't ding them too much for this since I haven't found any ethnic food joints in the U.S. that had great food and atmosphere, and I'll take great food over atmosphere any day.

by Orion G.Howard T.Jim T.John P.Laura C.

Really surprised by the bad reviews... we just got home from eating there and Yay! I'm a fan!Three of us, my sweetie, her 16 year old and myself stopped in for dinner. I started with the Baba Ghannouj, my sweetie got the Falafel. I was a little concerned when I got my Baba... I'm used to it being fairly smoothe and this was slightly lumpy, but the flavor was very nice. The Falafel was nicely done and had sesame seeds cooked into the exterior adding a slight crunch.For our entrees, I got the Gyro plate. The 16 years old got the Chicken Shawarma plate. My sweetie got the Tarbouch Kabob Combo. My Gyro was tasty, as was the hummus, but I was a little disappointed that my Greek Salad was made with iceberg lettuce instead of Romaine. The Chicken Shawarma was apparently tasty as the 16 year old did nothing but grin and tuck it away... even eating and enjoying his hummus. I tried a piece of my sweeties beef and it was yum! Her rice was apparently tasty - I didn't try it as it looked like it had some saffron on it and I'm allergic.Then, of course, my sweetie and her son HAD to have Baklava, so I had a coffee while they ate dessert. I should say... inhaled dessert.All this food was enjoyed (though not finished due to the large portions) for the mere price of $54. Our little family will be back!I've eaten here twice, the first time I came and sat down with a friend. Took forever to get our food, which neither I nor my friend were impressed by. The second time I called in a to go order, and again I had to wait once I got there. My order consisted of a side of potatoes and falafel. Sad because I like Lebanese/Mediterranean food and this location is the closest.So much about this place is lacking, from the service to the over-priced food. I'm not a picky eater so I think the food is actually okay, but for their prices you expect better (or at least more, which I typically prefer). I want to like this place, but I don't. Not much more to say, except that I really wish I lived closer to Arpeggio Grill.I really love Lebanese food,  and Arabic food in general.What I experienced here had nothing to do with either :(I was really excited when I heard that a new Lebanese place was opening.. and on Oltorf.The lamb was absolutely disgusting.  Overcooked, fatty, gummy.. must have been cooked poorly, then reheated in a microwave :(4 other people ate there with me,  and ordered a wide variety of different food... ranging from chicken to eggplant, hummus salad... and were all equally disappointed.  Everything was poorly seasoned, poorly cooked... and everything seemed as though it was nuked in a microwave.I'm absolutely blown away by the plethora of positive reviews for this place.  Did I just happen to go there on the worst possible day?This place straight up sucks... and gives Middle Eastern food a very bad name.  They really need to get their shit together to even try to pass themselves off as a legitimate restaurant.Apparently the same chef that was part of Byblos up north opened up this location.  Had I reviewed Byblos I would have given it 5 stars.  Byblos has similar to a cafeteria in that many of the sides were already made and you could pick out what you wanted.   There was A LOT more variety at Byblos.  At Tarbouch you sit down and order therefore it's more expensive due to price increases and tip.  I had the Lamb Kebab Combo Plate.  The rice was dry and boring and the lamb was pretty awful.  Most pieces were very chewy and fatty.  The hummus was pretty good but the grilled tomato had some strange taste.My girlfriend had the Chicken Kebab Plate.  The chicken was decent at first but after a couple of bites I got tired of the very lemony/citrus marinade on the chicken.  It was pretty bitter.   Other people we were with got plates that came with a greek salad which looked pretty good.  On a side note, I don't understand why so many restaurants use the pita made by Phoenicia.  It is pretty bad piece of bread.  In all, don't think I'll be returning.  I loved Byblos but this place just doesn't cut it.A welcome addition to the neighborhood for fresh, good, Middle Eastern food in an unpretentious place.  It would be nice if they did more to embrace old South Austin like the old grill did... Tip - they don't have a liquor license so you can bring your own beer or wine.

by John P.

Apparently the same chef that was part of Byblos up north opened up this location.  Had I reviewed Byblos I would have given it 5 stars.  Byblos has similar to a cafeteria in that many of the sides were already made and you could pick out what you wanted.   There was A LOT more variety at Byblos.  At Tarbouch you sit down and order therefore it's more expensive due to price increases and tip.  I had the Lamb Kebab Combo Plate.  The rice was dry and boring and the lamb was pretty awful.  Most pieces were very chewy and fatty.  The hummus was pretty good but the grilled tomato had some strange taste.My girlfriend had the Chicken Kebab Plate.  The chicken was decent at first but after a couple of bites I got tired of the very lemony/citrus marinade on the chicken.  It was pretty bitter.   Other people we were with got plates that came with a greek salad which looked pretty good.  On a side note, I don't understand why so many restaurants use the pita made by Phoenicia.  It is pretty bad piece of bread.  In all, don't think I'll be returning.  I loved Byblos but this place just doesn't cut it.

by Crystal A.

At the insistence of fellow Yelper Steve O., I chose to have my birthday dinner here. We drove all the way down from NW Hills to have a delicious dinner, and accomplished our goal.The owners could not be nicer, and it's a family run business. We got a vegetarian plate, and they guys were nice enough to let us mix chicken and beef schwarma on one plate. We also got a big Greek salad, though the dressing was a little different than I am used to.The Dolma was so wonderful. Usually things wrapped in grape leaves are way too vinegary for me, but i loved these. Hummus, best tabbouleh I've ever had, babaganoush (which I decidedly have decided is a dish I just don't care for), tarboush potatoes (dip these in garlic sauce, seriously). And those pickles are so good! I wanted to order some to go!The meat was delicious. (That's what she said!) The beef tasted like there was a little cinnamon there, and the chicken just melted in your mouth. I got an extra side of the garlic sauce. When I received it, the gentleman said, "It just makes you want to keep eating." Boy, was he right. I started putting that sauce on everything! Before I knew it, we ordered the Lamb plate to go.I asked about a dessert that wasn't on the menu, and he let us try a whole piece for free (thought I forgot what it was called/how to pronounce it). Unfortunately, I was a little too stuffed for the lamb that night, and in my hurry this morning I didn't grab it for my lunch. It's ok though, 'cause I know we'll be back.

by Brian S.

Wow - so many reviews so quickly! You can tell that South Austin was just dying to have a place to get some Lebanese food.I was pretty excited to try Tarbouch, but less excited once I got my food, sadly. Everything is still being served on disposable plates, so presentation was lacking.The falafel was cooked very well and was spiced nicely. If only I could get these falafel in a Kebabalicious spicy wrap.The hummus was plain old boring. I didn't care for it. The baba ghanoush was a step up, but still not amazing. Potatoes were good, but not amazing. The cucumber yogurt salad was not the most pleasing thing to eat on its own, either.On the plus side, the staff was very kind and friendly and this is one of the only places to get such Mediterranean food in South Austin. If only Kebabalicious were open during non-vampire hours, I could get my lunchtime falafel cravings satisfied there. Tarbouch is not the best, but it will do for now.  I'll give them another try in a month or two to see how things have progressed.

by Brendan C.

Ordered take out here on a Friday night and really wasn't impressed. Asked for the chicken shawarma plate and the beef plate. The meats were super dry and the other yelp reviewers are right, the salad is terrible (feta and an italian like dressing). The hummas was ok and the dolmas was good.I am glad we decided not to eat there. Why would i want to sit in a completely white room on patio furniture or outside viewing the majestic Oltorf?I want this place to do well and these things can easily be fixed so I'll give them another shot in a month or two.