Zara Original Mediterranean

I liked Zara!
The restaurant is very nice, with long flowing drapes hanging from the windows. The tables are clothed in white, set perfectly, with folded napkins sitting atop them. Paintings and large mirrors hang from the walls. Everything is just lovely.
Service was extremely friendly, too. Very patient, and willing to help out with the menu, as well as make conversation with their guests. They really helped to make the experience as well.
What of the food?
I started off the sigara boregi. It was good, though could have been a bit more flavorful. In particular, the feta cheese just didn’t have that characteristic sharpness that you’d expect from feta or other goat cheeses, which unfortunately made the boregi a bit less flavorful.
I then had the Alexander, which was just excellent. It came with marinated beef cubes served with a red sauce and yogurt. Great flavors all around.
Not much to complain about here! The ambiance is beautiful, and sets the mood for the meal to come. Service is lively, and ensure a great experience for you. And the food is good, which places the final piece of the puzzle in creating an overall very good dining experience.

We visited Zara as I had got a groupon. I must say that serendipity has its advantages. The ambiance is great, the service was impeccable and the food was good too.
I have had better turkish/​middle eastern food, (Chelokababi in Sunnyvale comes to mind), but the location and décor of Zara is definitely better!

Food is excellent. I’d say Anatolian Kitchen around the corner is half a notch better, but they’re both really good.
The only reason they’re not getting 5 stars is because it’s 7:00 pm on a Saturday night and I’m trying to order delivery, but nobody is picking up the phone. WTF?
On the plus side, the minimum delivery order here (theoretically) is only $ 15, whereas it’s $ 50 at Anatolian.

I had a delicious meal here today with my family! Probably the best and most consistent Mediterranean food I’ve had in the Bay Area.
We were warmly greeted and promptly seated in the restaurant, which was not too packed this Thursday night. The soft lighting makes the ambiance at Zara really pleasant. We decided to order the cold mezze platter and falafel for appetizer. The platter was awesome– we especially loved the haydari yogurt dip– and it was very filling. All of the dips from the platter went really well with the fresh, warm pita bread they served to our table (and kept refilling!).
For dinner, we got the musakka and the stuffed eggplants, and asked for both to be spicy. The musakka was like a lasagna but made with eggplants, potatoes, and cheese instead. With the spicy sauce in it, it was something I’d never had before but that I would definitely get again. The stuffed eggplants were awesome– they were stuffed with green beans, peas, carrots, corn, and fresh feta cheese! Both dishes came with a small salad and this unique rice pilaf that we really enjoyed. And my dad got the chicken shish kebabs and loved them as well.
Overall this meal was more than what I was expecting– it was filling, hit the spot, and the flavors were truly tantalizing.
Would I come back here? Definitely! I look forward to coming back here for more great Turkish food!

meh. First, the layout of the restaurant is bit odd. Literally, there’s a small dining area towards the front of the restaurant with a large open space in the back where there are no tables. It apparently is connected to a club/​hall of some sort. I dont know but it doesnt give you a very warm and enjoyable feeling. The food is tasty good but nothing great. The service was very good the first time we ate there. Unfortunately may be the last time though.

I’m amazed that there are two Turkish restaurants off California Ave, only about 25 yards apart, both surviving. One of them is Anatolian Kitchen, a cozy mom-​n-​pop place that’s become a regular haunt of mine. But on a recent, sunny weekday I decided to branch out and try the other one, Zara.
And because of the lovely patio here, a sunny day is about the best scenario for a lunchtime respite, complete with shady trees and burbling fountain. It’s so much better than the restaurant interior, which feels a little stuffy. I sat out here on both my visits.
(Personal note: the women working here are stunning in a ‘Mediterranean natural beauty’ way; Not an impact to my rating though; I must remain objective!)
Back to our regularly scheduled program; the food:
– Adana kabob: ($ 12.95) This took a while to arrive. The very well prepared meat was juicy and slightly pink in the center. Perfect rice on the side. Grill pepper slices was a nice touch. Salad was fine. Pita bread was excellent. But overall the portion size was on the small side. 3.5 or 4 stars.
– Falafel plate: ($ 8.95) Included 5 medium sized falafel balls, baba ganoush, hummus and salad. The falafel was very good, with a crispy outer shell and a moist, greenish center with good flavor. I’d say 8 out of 10 on the falafel scale. The Baba ganoush was very fresh and not oily. Hummus was OK. Salad was small but fresh. A solid vegetarian lunch.
Each meal was preceded by an unexpected bonus: A starter plate of warm, thick pita bread accompanied by a balsamic dip containing caramelized shallots. Soooo good.
So now, when I’m in this neighborhood, I have two, good Turkish places to choose from. I can think of worse problems.

We arrived at 12:15 p.m. on a Saturday, having learned on Unilocal that they open at noon. A shy guy (who would later be our server) informed us that they were not open — they were in the middle of a clean-​up. Just when I thought, «Great…» He said, «We’ll be open in half an hour.»
We returned in 25 minutes; looked like they were in business. The guy (whose name we would later learn was Yashar) appeared genuinely delighted to see us back and told us we could sit anywhere we wanted. The joint was nice, lots of natural light, definitely had a Mediterranean vibe, including the courtyard for al fresco dining.
Immediately Yashar offered a complimentary appetizer for our inconvenience. Certainly wasn’t expecting that. I submitted my Groupon, not having been keen enough to realize it was good for dinner, not lunch. Yashar gladly accepted it. Wasn’t expecting that, either. What a good-​natured person, what great attitude. Service was great, he had the perfect pleasantness and attentiveness, never cloying. Some places see a Groupon and assume the customer is a cheap skate. This place was at the other end of the spectrum, nothing but respect. We felt really welcome.
Food was good and came out fast. We shared the fried zucchini patties. The S.O. had marinated cubed beef with yogurt sauce, I had the Etli Bamya (okra and beef stew). Rice pilaf that came with was yummy. And I really dug the bread dip (caramelized onion, olive oil, tangy with umami). Generous sides of salad that really balanced the meal.
I vowed that for the shining service alone I was compelled to write a review.

When we entered on a Friday night, the single table of guests should have been tip off #1. But Unilocal rated this place 4 stars, so we ignored our instincts and proceeded to our table. We started off with one of our favorite Turkish delights, ezme, and it came out in two scoops on a platter. We overlooked its unfamiliar appearance and dove in to taste. Ugh. Not enough walnuts, too much pepper, I dunno, but it tasted off. Next came the vegetarian musakka. It was a monster loaf of bland: flavorless eggplant layers on the bottom, topped with an inch-​thick layer of egg soufflé-​lard-​cheese something (??), then covered with red sauce. It was quite possibly the most disgusting rendition of musakka I have ever tasted. Hubs got the beef + hummus– mediocre at best.
Maybe the regular chef had the night off, but man, we were disappointed. Won’t be back.

I came here for lunch yesterday, only because I had a groupon. Didn’t read the fine print, when I gave it at the end, they said it was for dinner only. DOH! but i’d come back, although I wasn’t too keen on my dish.
the place is quite larger than i expected, with a huge patio area. with the nice weather, we decided to sit outside (there are also heat lamps). for lunchtime, this place was very empty, although the patio area filled up with a couple groups later.
I wanted to try an appetizer, but didn’t want to overload on food before going back to work, so ordered a beef sauté entrée. My coworker ordered the musakka, as she is a vegetarian. Thought it was really cool how the menu was split for vegetarians and carnivores.
We were served with warm pita bread and an olive oil dip mixed with burnt onions. Very good! Our entrees came out quickly, and my beef sauté was sauteed with tomatoes, bell peppers, and mozzarella cheese on top. a side of rice and salad was also on the plate. Huge portions! I wasn’t a huge fan of the beef. There was some fat on most pieces, some parts were way overcooked so it was chewy. I just ate up all my rice and salad. My coworker’s musakka looked like a big piece of lasagna, but was actually layers of vegetables topped with bechamel and mozzarella cheese. I had a bite and it was different but really good!
Service started lacking with a big group of 12 next to us, and there was only one waiter? There were about 5 parties outside including us. There was another worker that came out, maybe a bus boy, and I asked him for our check and boxes. Wait 10 minutes, no bill. Finally went inside to the restaurant with my credit card and told our waiter that we were in a rush. He was very apologetic, he thought we had gotten our bill. He quickly brought out our bill, and we were on our way.
I have to come back because of my groupon, but I enjoyed the food for the most part, but would probably order something else. maybe the musakka!

There’s a certain romantic charm to being the last couple left dining outdoors at a small restaurant on a warm evening … maybe not so much when it’s only 8pm, but still.
Seriously, this place was pretty dead for a Friday night, even on California street, which is a shame, because the food and service compares very favorably to Anatolian Café just a block over.
Unlike some restaurants we’ve been to, where being the last table of the night leads to inattentive, slow service, we were under the constant care of no less than two servers, polite, friendly and helpful.
We ordered a couple of appetizer sampler platters — the cold plate consists of a bunch of different dips (all nicely flavored), and the hot plate is an assortment of very interesting fried foods. A basket of soft and warm pita bread arrived just after we placed our order, quickly followed by the dips.
They have a fairly complete beer and wine selection here, including some wines from Turkey and Efes beer. I had an Efes Dark, one of my favorites.
For our main courses, we had Beyti — a ground meat rolled in lavash and then cut for presentation with a pool of yogurt in the center which is the subject of a picture on their website, and Imam Bayildi — a flavorful vegetarian eggplant and bell pepper dish. Though the Beyti may have been a little more salty than we like (a common problem we have with Turkish food), both dishes had excellent flavor.
We were drawn in by a coupon offer, but we hope this place manages to stick around as we’ll no doubt want to return for the friendly service and the yummy Turkish food.

I like to try new foods and new places and thanks to a Groupon deal I was able to try Zara.
Unfortunately (or fortunately) the place was VERY quiet at 6pm on a Saturday. We were able to pick our seats and chose a very nice location on their patio. The patio has a really nice ambiance, which white light lit trees and a bubbling fountain.
Our waiter was very prompt and on top of service.
We were presented with a nice big basket of warm pita bread and olive oil dipping sauce.
They serve generous portions of wine (by the glass) and lots of meat in their entrees.
We were too full try their dessert, although they did have a small dessert menu and a selection of coffee drinks.

We finally used our Groupon here the other night. The restaurant was pretty empty, as can be expected on a Tuesday evening. We ordered the dolma, greek salad, and Imam Bayildi (Eggplant, red and green bell pepper, onions, pine nuts, olive oil serve with rice).
The dolma were decent. Not bad, perhaps not the best I’ve ever had, but good.
The greek salad was good. I could be mistaken, but the feta tasted extremely fresh… perhaps it was homemade?
The Imam Bayuldi was great. Normally Im not a fan of eggplant, but it was fantastic. Really rich tasting, yet light.
At the end of the meal, we didn’t feel full. Which was great. It’s not hard to imagine why the mediterranean diet is so good for you.

I could swear that I was Turkish and my Turkish grandmother was in the back cooking for me. So many well-​balanced home-​made flavors (and I mean that in a good way).
We were nervous that at around 7PM we were one of 2 tables in the place. They remained dead for our duration, which was sad — because for $ 31 we got:
–Pita bread with olive oil and carmelized onion
–Dolma
–Greek salad
–Lentil Soup
–Imam Bayuldi (baked eggplant dish).
Food — 4.5÷5
Service — ⁵⁄₅
Ambiance — ⁴⁄₅
Value — ⁵⁄₅
Overall 4.5÷5

I took my girlfriend on a Sunday night date to Zara. We ordered Dolma, lamb shank, and a dessert that I forgot.
The dolmas were delicious, though the presentation could have been better. The lettuce bed looked as if it had been mechanically separated in ¾ inch strips.
The lamb shank had incredibly moist and tender texture and the flavor was mostly great. There were some areas that were a tad bland but the serving size was quite large considering the price.
I can’t remember the name of the dessert but it was wonderful. It almost looked like a thin layer of cheese with a crust of thin fried spaghetti, soaked in a honey water. Sounds strange but it was really good. I would recommend splitting it between 3 – 4 people as it is VERY sweet.
The service was exceptional and I would definitely come here again.

Good for your wallet? Check.
Good for your taste buds? Double Check.
Good for your waistline? Maybe not so much.
Worth it? Most definitely!!!
Delicious food combined with genuinely considerate and attentive service in an impressive and relaxing setting (they even have a patio that is BEYOND lovely!). The expansive and equally delicious wine list coupled with a full bar is an added bonus! What more could you ask for???
P. S. Don’t leave without trying the Cold Combo Appetizer and the Turkish coffee! Yum!

i was really hoping that i would have a good experience here … but i was kind of disappointed here.
i ordered the LAMB SHISH KEBAB (Marinated lamb skewered with onion and bell peppers) and i was shocked that it was a little dry and quite chewy. i tried bites of other peoples food and theirs was so good … minus mine. fail! i always hesitate when i when i order lamb at restaurants but the reviews were pretty decent … OH WELL. im sure that i will not order that again from there.
Otherwise i tried the Turkish coffee sweetened and YUM!
totally had me awake after that lunch and you know after having a lunch like this and you have to go back to work … FOOD COMA but NOPE that coffee had me goooood! woo!
overall: i have a dinner groupon, gonna have to go back to check it out and DEFINITELY order something else haha

The food choices are very good. Lamb shank was excellent, and so was the Turkish coffee. My wife had Alexander and she liked it as well. We enjoyed the sitting outside, close to the fountain.
Staff was nice and efficient. Food was prepared quickly, the restaurant was not crowded, few tables were occupied.
We will be back here.

Absolutely horrible. I will never go here again, EVER.
Before this was Zara it was some other Mediterranean Restaurant which I went to twice and was pleased. I was really disappointed to see it go and replaced with another restaurant of the exact same type… but I wanted to give it a try since the location is very close to my work and it looked nice on the inside (and on the outside it has nice outdoor seating too).
Anyhow, I came here with my Mom and again was excited to try it. We ordered the Combo Hot Platter, totally not impressive at all. The Falafel was gross, you can get WAY better Falafel if you walk up the street to Mediterranean Wraps (which I will write a review for and definitely recommend over this place). The Loopek was okay and the Boregi was again gross. Oily and dense and not good AT ALL.
Since the fried appetizers were quite filling (read dense and oily) my Mom and I decided to split a Chicken Wrap. It was a good size but completely and totally flavorless. I was shocked. The chicken was FLAVORLESS and chewy. They threw some lettuce & tomatoes in there and the waitress said there was a sauce in it too but it was so DRY I insisted to the waitress the chef must have forgotten it.
Yes, I certainly told the waitress of my complete disappointment and to her credit she was very nice about it and didn’t charge me for the Chicken Wrap. I gave her a good tip for her good customer service.
To end this totally bad experience my Mom called me 2 hours later to ask how I was feeling. I was fine, but my poor Mom had a horrible stomach ache and felt like she had food poisoning. She ate nothing but a muffin that day so it was definitely the lunch that made her ill.
Yes, this is my very first experience with Zara, but it was so bad I vow to never go back, period.
If you want good Mediterranean food on California Avenue go to Mediterranean Wraps (433 South California Avenue). It’s not a fancy white table cloth restaurant but their food is delicious and that is what counts in my book!

I loved the Mediterranean restaurant in this location before Zara and I like Zara even more.
The service was great. The food took a while but was definitely worth the wait. Everything was delicious. From the appetizers to the entrees to dessert. My favorites were the the Alexander and Beyti. The kenefeh for desert was the best I have had. The complimentary sambuca at the end was a nice touch too.
The only concern is the lack of customers when I was there similar to the restaurant that was here prior to Zara. Perhaps something to do with the location which is in the not so busy part of California Ave. I hope people discover Zara and it is here for a looong time! Can’t wait to go back.

I remember way back in the day, this was once a sushi place and the club was the Edge. Now it’s been redone yet again to a new Turkish restaurant. White linens, clean bright space and even a patio area for the warm days. We had the hot combo platter which had falafel, sigara boregi, and borek, plus we added hummus to bolster the starters. I had a solid Iskender kabob for my entrée and the friends liked their moussaka and mixed grill. The owner came out to introduce himself and told us that they’ll eventually have Friday BBQ’s out on the patio. Service is really friendly and attentive. I know there are a ton of Turkish places all over the south bay but it’s always good to have another solid choice.