Afrah Mediterranean Restaurant and Pastries: A Favorite Thing Of Mine In It's Worst Form

Restaurant: Afrah Mediterranean Restaurant and Pastries
Address: 314 East Main Street, Richardson, TX 75081
Buffet or a-la-carte: a-la-carte
Date of visit: 5/31/15

Photo Credit: https://antonio1028.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/afrah-mediterranean-cuisine-grill-richardson-tx.jpg

Background: 

Salam/hey guys! For the first time ever, I will be reviewing a fourth restaurant on a trip. Every other trip I have made since 2013 has been to maximum three places. Even in the last trip to Dallas in December 2014 did I go to three places. Today's review will be of a long established restaurant in Richardson: Afrah Mediterranean Restaurant. The restaurant boasts that it was featured on the Dallas Morning News, one of two major newspapers in the Dallas-Ft. Worth Metroplex. It was even featured on Guy Fieri's show Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives. The time came for me to try came when me, my sister, my cousins, my aunt, and my uncle were invited to a gathering. I initially did not want to go, but after finding out that I was specifically requested to come as I had not come to the previous two gatherings, I decided to come along.

Let The Experience Begin!

Afrah is located just at the intersection of N Greenville and E Main in Richardson. There was an outdoor patio and the inside of the restaurant. The host (my uncle's oldest sister) reserved a whole bunch of tables for the group. After everyone arrived, we sat in the restaurant.

Let's Eat!

At first, it looked like it was going to be a repeat of what happened at Samosa Hut: not getting what I had desired. Before leaving my aunt's house, my cousin decided to order burgers for her, me, and my sister. I was beyond upset. I never had a chance of even seeing the menu before deciding what I wanted. Also, I found it extremely odd to have a burger at an Arab place. This place is far different from the other places that I have been to that have both American and Mediterranean (examples include Grand Cafe in Richardson and Busy Boy back in Houston). This is because the main selling point here at Afrah is the Mediterranean food like shawarmas and kababs. In the other places, both the Mediterranean food and the American food are popular hits among the customers and the major selling points. Thankfully, by the time we arrived, not everyone was there. So this meant that I would use the menu to order and I got what I desired. Anyways, everyone there ordered many different things from shawarma wraps to burgers to kababs. I ordered the shawarma combo plate, which was chicken and beef shawarma meat with tahini and garlic sauce, kabsa rice, and french fries. Thus, this is different than what had occurred at Samosa Hut. This means that I will determine whether Afrah is worth going to or not, based on the food that I get. If at all it is bad, then I would need to be convinced by someone to give this place a try rather than coming back voluntarily to try the one thing that I had desired to try. To wait, I went to the Indian grocery store and prayed.

Menu: http://afrah.com/

Now why did I put the website of the actual place rather than the usual direct link to the menu? Well, it's because when you click "Menu", a popup consisting of the PDF copy of the menu opens up. Anyways, the place has the usual Mediterranean such as hummus, baba ghannouj, falafel, kabab wraps, and kabab plates. This place also has hookah. This wasn't good for me because any time I had been near a hookah in the past, I would immediately start coughing intensely. I remember when I had visited Grand Cafe with my uncle back in December. The person next to me was smoking hookah while I was eating. I wouldn't stop coughing for four straight weeks despite taking cough medicines and cough drops (I am still coughing as I type). I wonder if the inside of the restaurant allows smoking, as many of the places do allow hookah smoking inside regardless of whether it's a hookah lounge or not. They have a lunch buffet also.

The Entire spread with some bread

The Verdict:

Long story short: I didn't enjoy at all. The only good things were the bread, fries and the tahini sauce. The meat and kabsa rice barely had any flavor. The garlic sauce was one of the worst ones I had ever had. It's sad, considering the fact that garlic sauce is one of my favorite sauces of all time, and garlic sauce and fries is one of my favorite combinations of all time. The garlic sauce had a really bad smell, and once I took a bite of it, it seemed as if something bit my tongue. The food was washed down with a glass of water. Overall, two thumbs down.

The service was good though. The waiter was able to serve us properly even though there was a party of at least 15 people. He was also very nice.

Conclusion:

Despite all the good things I heard about Afrah, I had a completely different experience with the food. The food that didn't taste good, and to top it off one of the worst garlic sauces that I have ever had. I personally wouldn't recommend this place. The only times I'll probably come back are if somebody convinces me to give them a second chance OR if there is a gathering that takes place here in the future that I would have to attend. If you want some good Arab food in Dallas, then I would suggest you look somewhere else.

Grading:
Service: 8/10

Food: 5/10

Total: 13/20 = 65% (D) (Only the second non-passing grade given outside Houston)

Pricing: $$ out of $$$$

Restaurant Information: 

Afrah Mediterranean Restaurant and Pastries
314 East Main Street, Richardson, TX 75081
Phone: (972) 234-9898
Website: http://afrah.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AfrahRestaurant
Timings: Mon-Thu: 9 AM - Midnight; Fri: 10 AM - 1 AM; Sat: 9 AM - 1 AM; Sun: 9 AM - 12 AM
Caters: Yes


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Cheers!
Zain Mohammed