Ali BABA Restaurant in El Cajon

I love this place .. they have feast platters that feed at least 3 people even my nieces and nephews like the food and you know kids can be picky.. the kabobs are amazing .. well... all the food is amazing

The restaurant is excellent and roomy, the menu was delightful and the prices were very reasonable. rapidly, efficient service and very affable waiters. I highly recommend this place.

The greatest hummus, lamb kabobs, beef schwarma, and service! Incredible experience!!

Came here 6 years ago and I was so impressed by the quality and the great taste of food. 6 years later, same great quality and same great service. The best Arabic restaurant in the USA. I’ve been to most of famous Arabic restaurants around the US, everything in Ali Baba is way better. It’s family owned and they care so much about their customers and would do anything to make you happy. Also their prices are reasonable. THE BEST.

I came in after a long flight looking for some good food. The place was clean and the staff were friendly. I ordered to go since I was exhausted. My food was prepared quickly and was a good portion size. And i was not disappointed with the flavor! I will return on my next business trip.

Great food 👍🏼👍🏼 friendly people

For the past couple of months I’ve been going to different middle eastern food places in San Diego and so far this place has the best Hummus and in-house made bread (naan) a simple thing like rice was properly prepared and served. The meat marinate and flavor is just authenticity I’ve always enjoyed (Perfect Turkish coffee) This is it for me. Lastly I must mention the service was just wonderful with a family atmosphere and a smile. Looking forward to coming here again very soon to try more dishes.

I have seen the parking lot packed for many years, so I had been wanting to try it to see if it’s as good as all the hype....it’s NOT! We walked in and were greeted quickly by the host. So grate customer service, but the food was terrible and wasn’t true traditional middle eastern food in our opinion. We got home and as soon as we opened the containers we knew it wasn’t going to be good. We tried it anyway....bad idea...went straight to the trash. There’s so many other great spots...skip this one! To me it’s like a fast food spot...cheap ingredients and not good on any level.

I was happy with our lunch. The staff was very welcoming and eag er to share suggestions of their food. It was moderately priced with generous portions. What I liked was the tables were spaced more than 6 ft apart as required for the covet suggestions. We enjoyed the food had a great lunch and left. I definitely would go back again.

it was a good restaurant but not anymore. Everything was dry and has no flavor.

Very tasty. Good service. Very clean. We love .We came from Boston so when we will come back here we will visit it .

Amazing food from kind and friendly staff. Their generous portions of delicious food keep bringing us back.

Very friendly staff and super comfortable dining. Was my son's birthday choice to try something different and he was well pleased. There is a lot of competition in the community between this place and the place across the street. Maybe younger people see across the street as a fad. They also mention the Ali Baba's large plate serving as if it were too much. That scored high with us. The beef kabob was moist, not dry like other store kitchens. We rated it the best beef kabob. The community rated their chicken kabob as the best.

Very tasty and good food ... A little pricey but still worth the Money!!

Newly renovated, family friendly, huge servings. The feast meals have lots of veggies, fresh made as you order breads and supper nice people. Open late. Love the food.

Delightful family run establishment. I ordered lamb tekka which comes with a gigantic loaf of pita bread made to order! A truly spectacular meal and worth the drive to El cajon alone.

So good! Enjoyed it and we even ate the leftovers without heating it and was great! Great quality

Loved this place.....Didn't have to wait at all to be seated!Got our drinks and appetizers all within 10min of arriving...Our server was great, he kept checking up on us. food was amazing every thing taste good. We ordered a meal that had a bit of everything they offered for only $65 perfect for the amount of food on the platter. Deserts are good as well... Overall satisfied with the whole experience/environment at Ali Baba Restaurant..

One of the best Iraqi traditional restaurants I've ever tried. Prices are so reasonable. Bring serious appetite though.

Ali Baba was most excellent!! I highly recommend this restaurant for a great meal in a very friendly atmosphere. The food was great. The servers were awesome!!

Very welcoming! A soft warm smile as soon as we walked in. Food was delicious! Salad was fresh and tasty. We ordered the meal for three. 5 adults ate and there was still food leftover.

We were visiting San Diego from Virginia, we searched online and found this restaurant and decided to try it out. If you’re looking for good food and good service, then you’ve found it. We ordered the lamp and beef kebab with another dish of Qouzi, Jajek and baba ghanoug and taboula for starters, don’t forget the Iraqi special khouboz(hopefully I was spelling words right and if you’re Iraqi then I guess you’ll understand it anyway). Very friendly service and staff, don’t miss it.

I am a Chef from Chicago and had a trip to San Diego. I was told this is the best middle eastern food. I was not disappointed. The food was outstanding and the owners were the nicest people. The place was extremely clean and we'll kept. The food was fresh, hot and delicious. If you want extremely good middle eastern food at a great price and large portions then you need to check this place out!

1/16/20Came here for dinner, as it was the closest Mediterranean restaurant located to where I'm staying. Upon arrival, I couldn't help but chuckle as some of my friends like to call me "Aly -Baba" but it's a commonality for Mediterranean places to have this reference. U ordered the 3 meat entree with an Arabic salad. The food was perfectly flavorful and deliciously I would return here again if in the area.

I've eaten Ali Baba before and I am never disappointed. But this was the 1st time eating inside the restaurant. It was cute and the service was excellent. Good food, good portion, good price. We left fat n happy. We will be returning and I'd definitely recommend this place to anyone who enjoys Mediterranean food.

I picked up food from there, all of the employees where rude didn't even acknowledge that i was there. Ignore me till i said i was there to pick up an order.Did even said thank you or responded when i said thank you and they didn't want to speak English as if they didn't understand

Incredible. Get the family platter. You will have leftovers for days. This restaurant is run well from top to bottom.

Very good I love middle eastern food but since I know about food the only problem at this place the chicken cream chop it is not cuz I know what and how chicken cream chop should be what they do here is take a chicken patty and slice it that is not chicken cream chop sorry to say other than that good place friendly people

Very good food. Called in for pickup and food was ready upon arrival and on time estimated when making order. Large portions. Have only ordered take out from here, so can't write about dining at the restaurant. Lamb Kebob very tasty and I love the bread.

This is the best Middle East food I have ever eaten, my husband is 100% American, I am 100 % Venezuelan and we love Arabic food, the beef shawarma is my favorite, the rice is the best. We always get the family plate. I won’t go to any other place..

Authentic Arabic food that taste so good. We always drive to El Cajon for three good Middle Eastern restaurant, Ali Baba is one of them. But they don't have alcoholic drinks not even a beer. However, if you don't eat pork like we do, for religious reason, then Ali Baba's halal food is perfect for you.

Food was plentiful and affordable. The staff was friendly and had good energy. I like restaurants owned by immigrant families because we understand the importance of good time with family through food and hold it to a high degree. I'd like to come here again soon.

The food was great and the price is reasonable. The only reason I gave it a 3-stars is because of the location and cleanliness of the restaurant. The staff were nice and friendly.

What a fantastic place. We drove by many times. So we finally decided to try it out. The service was super friendly, the food was amazing. We will definitely be back.

Great food huge portions. I think their tabuleh salad is one of the best I've ever had. Their fresh hot bread is to die for! Try this place 👍🏾

My favorite restaurant for a while Best bread in the world

I love this restaurant! The folks are super friendly and the food is excellent! Thanks for being open!

Great spot to grab something when in a rush. Their customer service is rapid, pricing is convenient, excellent character. Highly recommended

The food is very well prepared and the ingredients were all first rate. Everything we had was excellent except for the hummus which was overly bitter. The atmosphere is pleasant and relaxed. The floor could use a good strip and wax as it looked a bit dingy. Prices are very reasonable for what you get. The service is a bit slow but professional and friendly. A nice family spot if you are in the mood for Mediterranean style cuisine.

I liked the food quality, the kebob was well cooked and was not stiff also. The only reason I give five stars and not four is because if you order bread, they bring you just baked bread which is very warm and super delicious.

Good ,fast service, friendly atmosphere, delicious middle eastern food

Solid service. This food is seriously amazing. Sooooo delicious. We got the dinner for 5, AMAZING:)

This place has a great middle eastern vibe and the food is rich and full of flavor. The meat was cooled well and everything had a proper smoky flavor to it. The spices were loud but not overpowering The garnishes and sides provided could be larger, but overall the proportions were well sized. The rice was fluffy, the bread was very fresh, and the hummus was outstanding. My family is Iraqi, but each generation has moved over the last 70 years so only my grandparents know how to cook original Iraqi dishes. I have never seen their recipes offered on a menu outside of the Middle East, so it felt great being able to have Koobah and Tilapia the way we used to have as kids.

Food was really good specially the baba ganoush. The Kebabs are juicy and flavorful!

It used to be good but now they give you rice left from previews day the kabob was smelling bad so iam done with ALI BABA please check the food when you order before leaving the shop

Ali baba a great place to come for Pacha which is the Iraqi Menudo

My god, the bread! They make the most authentic, delicious food you could imagine. The only thing you have to do here is make sure you buy some bread to take home!

This place was recommended to us by a good friend. We drove from Riverside to check it out and it did not let us down. Come with an appetite because you'll be munching on their bread while your food arrives. The best middle eastern bread on this side of the earth. Literally, I could eat it forever if I could, but I shouldn't. Their food is mostly Persian-like so I'm guessing there is an influence in their recipes, however, I'm not even sure what middle eastern country this food is from. Perhaps a combination of many countries? It is absolutely delicious! Try it! You won't regret it.

Food is always amazing and the service is phenomenal! They're quick. you get a great amount of food for the price and its DELICIOUS!!!!