Hayes & Kebab

This was my favorite place to eat lunch on work days. Unfortunately, they are closing for a couple of years so construction can happen on this space. It is an unfortunate loss. I do hope Bauer and Amin come back to this space or one nearby… Enjoy your vacation !
Sunday was the closing BBQ…
You will be missed !!!

Not sure about some of the other items on the menu, but our gyro wraps were boring and tasteless. The meat, though cooked well, had no flavor. The actual wrap that was used was a bit too crunchy and flaking off into pieces as we ate.
The outdoor seating area is spacious and dog friendly, but not sure if its worth the money when there is much better in the area.

I work in Hayes Valley, and this is by far one of my favorite places to go for lunch. I usually go for the King-​style Falafel wraps, but their plate dishes (chicken gyro plate, particularly) are always very good. My favorite dish is probably their vegetarian moussaka — highly recommend, especially if looking for a hearty vegetarian option. All of the plates are huge portions that I can never finish and have to eat for dinner too. Also, If you don’t really know what you want and express your thoughts to the cashier, typically they have some great suggestions or will make you a little something that you’re bound to love!
This place is dear to my heart mostly because their servers provide the best customer service ever. They are very sweet and attentive, and always make a point to chat with me and catch up when I come by. When I stay to eat, they also check up on me juuust the right amount — enough to make me feel like I am a welcomed, important customer, but not enough to make me feel like they’re breathing over my shoulder the entire time I’m sitting there.
The location is great — so spacious, and even when the place is full it doesn’t feel cramped. Very clean, cozy, and comfortable — this is definitely a place where you can sit with your computer and get some work done if you’d like. Feels almost like a coffee shop, except they play Turkish music in the background and serve you baba ganoush instead of muffins.
So I’m giving it 4.5 stars because though the food is not *extraordinary* (simply very good, according to my ridiculouslyhighSanFranciscostandards), everything else about this place screams amazing to me and I love it to death regardless.
Reaaally sad this place is going to close in a couple of weeks — specifically, on September 28, give or take a couple of days. Seriously, everyone go get your falafel wraps or salmon kebabs now!

I think the best thing about this spot is the abundant outdoor seating. I love the large patio space with picnic tables of different shapes and sizes (especially since there’s usually some quaint art decorating the surrounding fence). There is more «loungey» seating closer to the building (which is also shaded) and plenty of seating indoors as well. You’ve got options.
This is a counter-​service joint — nothing fancy. But the food is good and the ambiance is pleasant. What more do you need?
We ordered two different wraps — both were delicious. One had a ground lamb with herbs, and the other had falafel with eggplant, feta and hummus. YUMMUS. I love the grilled lavash bread they used, and the fillings were totally fresh and tasty — including the lettuce, tomatoes, etc. that come standard. If you like it hot, you can also add the spicy chili sauce for a big kick.
We also tried the babaganouj which was just OK — not my favorite. I don’t like mayo and don’t think it belongs in this dish, but to each his own. It did come with soft, hot pita triangles which I appreciated.
$ 20 for a solid lunch for two in an enjoyable atmosphere — I’d call Hayes & Kebab a good value.

If you’re hungry and need to get filled up for a little over $ 8, order one of the wraps. They are huge and quite satisfying. I had the falafel wrap hoping it would taste like the falafel place in San Jose and while it was good, it wasn’t the best.
What I will say is that this place has high ceilings, lots of natural light and an even larger outdoor patio so that you can hang out with friends (or alone). Lots of people had their laptops open doing work, and the space was able to accommodate for this.
The service was also really good here– you order at the counter and get a table #. When your order is ready, they simply bring it to you. It was fast and efficient.
Last thing to mention is the clean bathroom. I love clean bathrooms!

Went here last night after drinks across street at Noir. H&K was my first attempt at having a gyro in SF since I moved here. Now coming from NY, those gyros set the bar. I go here, and the gyro sandwich is in a wrap? Also, wasn’t feeling the ingredients, where’s the pita bread? Where’s the tzatziki?
Search continues…

Plainly and simply, this was fast and delicious. I ordered a beef plate, and asked them to make one of the skewers lamb. They were happy to. Juicy, tender, charred steaks and veggies on a stick. Along with it, rice, salad, and a yogurt dipping sauce. Go here!

My kabob was delicious and all but I had an odd experience there.
After my friend and I paid for our order, we took a seat outside. Our food took a while to arrive and when it did, the plate given to my friend was not what she ordered. She communicated this error to the server but as we were starving by then, decided to keep this new dish. However, since she had paid for a more expensive meal, she let the server know and strangely enough, instead of issuing refund or doing anything remotely official, the serve came back with a few one-​dollar bills and handed it her… Oh and we got a complimentary plate of baklava as a «sorry, we effed up.» Still. Weird process.

I have driven /​walked by this place so many times and for some reason, never tried it. As I say there devouring my entire Greek salad, I wondered to myself why I never dined here before. Others must agree because there was a huge line at 3:30pm! The service, food and atmosphere was excellent. I love how easy ordering was — you order up front, take a number and find a seat. Delicious food comes to you within 7 – 10 minutes. There’s ample seating both indoors and outdoors. Wine and beer (on tap too).
Food was absolutely delicious. I had their Greek salad — very fresh ingredients and loved their feta. My mom had their lamb plate and asked for hummus instead of the rice, which they were happy to do. Oh em gee! Loved their hummus! Will definitely order it next time I come back!
Highly recommend it!

This place is huge. Plenty of airy indoor seating, and if you should be so lucky to be here on a sunny day, they have outdoor tables in the back.
The kebabs come out quick, but everything seemed a tad dry. Possibly pre-​cooked? My beef wasn’t juicy at all. Rice was boring and bland. I definitely need more yogurt to slather over my meat and rice to make it edible.
Not really worth it for the price point… I’d eat elsewhere in Hayes Valley.

Ok. This was a hard decision for me (3 stars) because I alternately want to give them more stars AND less stars.
First off, ordering food is nice and fast. The patio area is adorable! Picnic tables all over the place. It was the perfect choice to sit outside during the heat wave we had last week. I ordered the beef gyro and it was tasty! All good things so far…
The not good thing? That I knowwww sometimes it just happens, but finding a dark, crinkly hair in my friend’s gyro, yuck. Yuck. I want to say that finding hair in your food is only acceptable when you’re camping and most of the food you’re eating is covered in dirt anyway. Not super cute greek restaurant!
It could have been a fluke though!
So. While I loved the space, and my own food was hair-​free and tasty… I’ll probably wait until I forget about the hair experience to be back. Or I’ll come back drunk. Whichever comes first.

This restaurant helped me to appreciate my boyfriend. Why?
Because he always pays for our dates. This time (at Hayes and Kebab) I offered to pay and… this place was surprisingly more expensive than I thought it was going to be.
I am used to «order at the counter» style restaurants being on the $ side. Surprise! I ended up spending $ 70 for 2 meals. Sure, it is not THAT bad. But it was mostly the surprise and feeling of: «what the hell did I get?!» 2 meat plates, 2 wines, and 2 desserts. Hmm…
Food was delicious.
Atmosphere was fun.
Weather was cold outside though… don’t go after 7ish.
I also really liked the Hispanic waiters/​bus boys. They were REALLY nice, attentive, and quick.
AND I love that I could walk my puppy and have her eat outside with us.
Anyplace that is dog friendly gets 5 stars! #lovemydog

Meh. Just ok. I will preface this review by saying that I definitely need to get a few more visits in to explore more of the menu.
Came in for a weekday lunch. The space was great, I love the spacious inside area and outdoor patio — such a plus for sunny SF afternoons! My friend and I ordered salads with salmon — her’s the greek which she seemed to enjoy. I had the spinach salad, it was tasty, just underwhelming. I felt it could have used a few more ingredients to make it special and a little more exciting to eat. Salmon was tasty and it was nice of them to accommodate this request.
I shall return with the anticipation of upgrading this review, stay tuned!

I really dug this spot… sort of a hip-​fresh-​urban kebab house.
1) Very fresh, very tasty hummus.
2) Good «fired» taste to the naan.
3) A very stuffed and hearty kebab wrap with a garlic sauce, tahini, and moist chicken.
4) Low prices.
5) Responsive server, quick kitchen, clean place.
We were «forced» to change dinner plan when the German place couldn’t figure out their wait-​list. But it was serendipity as we like the kebab house thoroughly.
The food was simple, but good. Lots of seating, interesting people, and authentic food.
KUDOS!

A perfect spot for lunch. The space is open, plentiful, and comfortable. Light and airy.
The grilled vegetarian wrap is very good: the zucchini, eggplant, and peppers are just crisp enough, and the lettuce and tomatoes add a nice balance. The yogurt sauce is creamy without overpowering the flavors. The wrap is sturdy with a lightly crisp exterior. Eat it with your hands or a fork.
I’ll definitely come back to try more fare.

A guaranteed good spot to grab some late night munchies, eat a fair meal or to make it into a leisure, dine-​in café shop.
Their dimly lit lounge seating is comfy and they have the convenience of Wi-​Fi.
Order up at the counter and it is self-​serve water as well as open seatings.
Their Gyro Wraps are proportionate, a decent amount is given and a bit on the dry side. You would need some hot sauce that they offer up on the side, to spice up the mild flavor. Their lamb kebabs were sizable and the lamb meat was on the chewy side.
The exposure is there for this corner restaurant and it is generally an assuring restaurant for good Mediterranean food to eat up.

Now that my friend and I aren’t in Palo Alto nearly as often as we used to be, we’ve been on a hunt for places in SF that can match the same quality and price as Gyro Gyro. Park Gyros has been our go-​to spot, but we decided to check out Hayes and Kebab. Partially for comparison’s sake, but also on the slim chance they had chicken and rice bowls like the Halal Guys in NY (they don’t).
The menu at Hayes & Kebab looked really similar to what Park Gyros and Gyro Gyro offer — various plates and wraps, with an assortment of salads and starters/​sides to choose from. And yet, somehow, my friend and I both ended up with the Lamb and Beef Gyro Wrap while splitting a plate of Hummus. I guess if nothing else, we’re consistent. And boring.
– HUMMUS…$ 4.35
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The taste wasn’t outstanding (it’s pretty standard), but the portion was quite generous. Which it needed to be, in all honesty, in order to make up for how amazingly dry the pita bread was.
– LAMB AND BEEF GYRO WRAP…$ 7.50
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In short, a total miss. Yes, the meat was sliced nice and thin, but it didn’t taste like much since the marinade didn’t come across. The rest of wrap was just as unremarkable as well, especially the yogurt sauce. Of course, the dry, semi-​stale wrap didn’t help things either.
TWO AND A HALF STARS is about right, but I rounded down since I couldn’t find anything redeeming about the experience. Although the hummus itself and the service were fine (you order at the counter and they bring your food out), there isn’t a «reward» for meeting basic criteria. Save for my occasional trip to Gyro Gyro in Palo Alto, I’ll stick with Park Gyros for something better and closer to me.

Our group made a stop at Hayes & Kabob as part of our food tour through Gourmet Walks. They had a table set up for us already, and we were served:
–Hummus (Dip of Garbanzo Beans w/​Garlic, Lemon Juice, Tahini, EVOO, $ 4.35), Babaganoush (Charbroiled Eggplant Dip, Fresh Herbs, Lemon Juice, Tahini, Mayonnaise, EVOO, $ 4.35) [
: This was served with warm pita, which was a nice touch. However, the pita was too thin for my liking, and it was difficult to scoop the dip up with it. I thought the hummus was so so– it was a little bland and the texture was a little too smooth/​baby food like for me. I liked the babaganoush more, but think it’s a bit strange they add mayo to it. Although I liked the babaganoush, I don’t think I would come back just for this dish.
–Falafel: Good, but the exterior was a bit overcooked, and very hard. This isn’t the best version of falafel I had, but also wasn’t the worst.
Overall, I wasn’t very impressed by the dishes I had at Hayes & Kebab. They were also stingy with the pitas and we had to ask them a couple times before they gave us a refill. With all the other good restaurants in Hayes Valley, I don’t think I would return. Parking in this area can be tough, especially on weekends.

This place has a cool outdoor area with picnic tables. There is normal seating as well as cozy alcove like seating. I really like the vibe of this establishment! It seems like a perfect place to hang out with friends!
Bread smell bothered me a little and interfered with the flavors of the food. A few days burnt smell.
Falafas were hard on the outside, soft on the inside. Good.
I was not a fan of the hummus or babaganoush but I am not a fan of these flavors.

I think we tried Hayes & Kebab when it was at a different spot. I wanted to come here because I figured it’d be open Sat 1÷5÷13.
We got 2 things:
Babbangoush — tasty eggplant dish, I ate lots of the pita that came with it too. Had to add some hot sauce, otherwise it seemed bland.
Red lentil soup came with one round pita bread, better than the bread for the dip.
You can charge your meal, so happy.
Many tables/​chairs.