Ocean Cafe Restaurant

by LM M.

I like my hummus and falafels, but it wasn't until I visited here did I realize I like my falafels crunchy. Or maybe it was just good to begin with? Either way I enjoyed crunchin on em, the kafta kebob, and the tasty salads to complement the meat. That and the family atmosphere (during lunch hours, since I don't know what it's like around dinner or the after hours). It's a big place, a banquet hall with a dance floor, and is appropriate to have a party in. And they have many big tables. Table for two? Have a table for ten. And they have wireless internet. I'll try to come here another time for dinner, as I hear they have entertainment at night.

by Gabriela C.

So I'm giving this place to 2-stars because, according to yelp, that means "meh, I've experienced better." That is definitely true for Ocean Cafe Restaurant.We came here last night after driving by always seeing it packed on the weekends and our curiosity got the best of us. We came strictly for the food - smoking hookah is not our thing, mainly because I have asthma. So, I figured that, like most hookah lounges that double as restaurants, we would be able to sit inside smoke free. WRONG. Although we were seated in the dining room section, the doors were all open onto the patio so all the smoke, not to mention the cold air, was coming in. But, we were willing to let it slide. We then ordered our food: hummus with steak to start, the salmon special, the grilled chicken salad, and one of their sandwiches (I forget what it's called but it was essentially a sausage type of meat in a pita). The steak that came in the hummus was DELICIOUS! Probably the only reason I give this place two stars. The hummus itself, however, was a huge disappointment. It was way too thick and lemony. When a Mediterranean restaurant can't make decent hummus you know you've got a problem. The pita bread was not fresh, you could tell it was store bought and probably a couple of days old. The chicken on the salad was well-seasoned and flavorful, as was the meat on the sandwich. But the award for worst meal of the night goes to the salmon. Ughh, I don't even know where to start. The presentation was nice, it came on two separate plates - one for the fish and another huge plate of rice, salad and hummus (but after our previous encounter, we weren't exactly thrilled to come across another serving of it haha). The fish was absolutely disgusting: overcooked and over powered with lemon juice (seriously, do they have an orchard back there with lemons that were about to go bad?) The service was friendly and attentive. The atmosphere is nice and a great lounge to hang out late at night in the valley. But as a restaurant? I don't think we'll be coming back.

by Amanda S.

Long time no see, Yelp! I've missed you. I'm sorry that i've been only eating at my usual places and not venturing out to try something new in a while. But finally last night i did. A friend of ours' girlfriend is a belly dancer here, and a bunch of us decided to come for dinner and a show. And of course some hookah. Now, i've never been into the whole hookah thing, even in high school. I just always thought it was stupid...i'd rather smoke other things haha. Plus my family owns a few hookah bongs so i never felt the need to go out and spend money to smoke the stuff when i could do it at home whenever i wanted for free. But anyway, we came last night around 10:30, got a few rounds of beer, pita, baba ghanoush/hummus, and hookah. We opted for the Pineapple hookah bowl which was an extra $10 if i remember right. And it was totalllllly worth it. It made everything 10x more fruity.  We got it with the Fuzzy Navel flavor which was absolutely delicioussss.  Our friends got Sex on the Beach flavor which was surprisingly good too considering i'm not a huge fan of the drink.I wasn't too impressed with the baba ghanoush and the non-homemade pita, though :/  But the falafel was pretty tasty and fresh. the belly dancing was a nice touch. No wonder why this place has a 2:1 boy/girl ratio.Oh and they had Sam Adams Summer Ale on tap, which was absolutely delicious. I've never seen it on tap before, so they get plus points for that.All in all we all had a fun night, and service was really good. I'll be back.

by alex r.

everytime i drive by this place during the evening its packed with people wearing ed hardy and affliction tshirts, you know its crackin. i like to come here during the day with friends and order the lunch specials, the beef kabobs are  my favorite. very tender and tasteful. the tabbouleh salads are really fresh and unique. dont forget the hummus, i think its the best ive tasted. you can also order hookah and just chill out i think me and my friend spent 3 hours at this location and at one point we thought we saw  lance burton eating across from us.

by Sarah G.

This place had the most absolutely atrocious service ever. We sat down, took FOREVER to get served (this was a very late dinner on a Sunday). They don't know how to pack a hookah (ours was dead extremely early due to the fact that servers came by and STACKED coals on our bowl), and I didn't even get one refill on my water. Avoid at all costs, please.I don't get why this place got 4 stars and the place I go to all the time--where I get awesome service and great hookahs (ON THE TABLE, unlike these jerks who won't let you)--gets one. Ridic.

by Steve R.

Residing in East Hollywood, i'm used to the Armenian crowd when I go places, with their really expensive (you know they're doing something illegal, how can they afford that when they're not even drinking age) cars. If you haven't got enough of your fill, than head to oceans on a weekend night. This place is filled. A couple of my Armenian friends took me here. The food was pretty good, and was in mass quantities coming in huge plates. Everyone was out in the patio area smoking and playing either chess, checkers or backgammon, the majority playing backgammon. This place reminds me more of a busy banquet/dinner hall than a restaurant. Has a really odd location of being next to a lakeshore learning supply store, just in case you need some crayons or geographic charts they use for 1st graders. On the way home from here, I was involved in a hit and run, had to chase her down in her compact sedan while I was driving my goat. (Just thought i'd mention that)

by Anne G.

the food seems worth the confusion to find:lets start with, i just moved back to the valley and i'm slowly getting my barrings in granada hills.  when the dear husband requested greek, we logged onto our reliable yelp app and found this not so small wonder.you drive down devonshire and, if you're not looking, could totally pass.  ...it's beside the lakeshore learning store (lls).  then, you ask yourself, where do you park and enter?  ...it's in the back.  take the driveway beside the lls.  and, by any means, don't do what we did and park on the street ...because, then, you'd have to walk down a tight driveway with cars coming in and out to get to the restaurant's main entrance.once there, we walked in expecting a greek restaurant and found what seemed like a reception all with tables, men playing backgammon, and a hooka bar in the patio.at that point, our expectations were low.  but, we powered through and ordered kababs.  we expected to be disappointed, instead we were surprised to find a full plate of fresh salad; delicious humus; and killer kababs.  it was finger-licking good.i'm definitely coming back... but, next time, i'm bringing friends and room for some good conversation over hooka.

by Marie Q.

Of all the hookah places I've been to, this place is actually pretty legit. The hookah is actually of good quality and lasts about 2 hours for me and my boyfriend.  The food is also AMAZING. The chicken kabab is soo good and I actually really like their hummus even though one of my friends who makes her own says it's disgusting haha. But the chicken fettouch salad is really good, even my boyfriend really liked it and he's kind of opposed to middle eastern food. Anyway, it's a fun place to go with friends, too, but the only downside is you end up spending a ton of money here.... I don't think we have ever left without spending at least $70 for the two of us.

by Karen S.

We usually order the family special which includes cucumber/tomato/onion salad, hummus, kabob platter (beef filet, chicken, lamb), rice and pita.  This is enough food for 8 people or 4 that eat can eat like 8.  The kids don't like the hookah smoke so we sit inside or take the food home.  Be sure to ask for the garlic sauce.  It's sooooo good and garlicky.  Make sure your significant other loves garlic or you may have to sleep outside.

by Fabiola M.

Hummus and steak? Just WOW.I've been three a whooping total of three times. The place itself looks like no big deal from the outside, but when you go inside, it's pretty spacious. What I love about this place (aside from their kebab, meat, hummnus of course) is the fact that there's "fake" outdoor seating. This means that you're still under the roof of the restaurant, but it's like they removed the walls or something. This is definitely a PLUS because a lot of people smoke hookah and you get to enjoy some free air. So yeah...ATMOSPHERE at this place - pretty big deal.There's a belly dancer, or two, or three that pop up on Saturdays I think. Fun stuff.Service is great. The waiters are nice. Parking is great. Price is reasonable and the food comes in generous portions. :)