Za'atar Bake Restaurant in Oxford

Reviews

1. Rosanna Rozi ★☆☆☆☆

   More interested in their phones than customers If you enjoy being ignored while staff watch videos on their phones, this is the place for you. From the moment we arrived, the staff showed zero interest in taking orders. Food arrived whenever it felt like it — all at completely different times — so eating together clearly wasn’t part of the experience. The staff spent most of their time sitting around gossiping with each other instead of doing their jobs. No sauces, food dumped on the table, and then straight back to chatting like customers didn’t exist. The real highlight? We asked for 4–5 small baklava desserts and were instead given 5 enormous cake-like desserts and charged £30 for them. No explanation, no warning — just a blatant money grab. Absolutely disgusting behaviour and completely dishonest. Food was good but the service was shockingly bad. Save your money and your time — we certainly won’t be back.

   almost 7 months ago
2. Alok Sonthalia ★★★★★

   The restaurant is located on Crowley Road opposite to Tesco express. If you are driving, ample paid spaces are behind Tesco express. Not sure for Fridays and Saturdays evening. As soon as you enter, Middle Eastern music is playing and you are immediately transported to dunes of desert with aromas of good food. The kitchen is live. You can see your order coming through and going in the oven. Kababs were fabulous. I ordered chicken tangerine, which was rich in tanginess and lots of flavour. The breads are prepared hot. That’s the best complimenting part of eating hot food. Falafel were crisp and delicious. Definitely worth visiting and having genuine and tasty Middle Eastern delicacies. Kudos to the team for keeping things simple and yet flavourful.

   almost 9 months ago
3. Sophie Johnson ★★★★★

   Beautiful middle eastern restaurant on Cowley Rd perfect for all group sizes. Food was absolutely delicious and service was fab! Great place!

   almost 9 months ago

1. Jimin Kim ★★★★★

   12 January 2023 This is my new favourite place in Oxford's beautiful Cowley Road to have Middle East Food. Really awesome decorations, lively music and the service was quick, the staff already had the dough prepared and once we selected what we wanted to eat, they immediately started making our food and the service was quick. When we were looking at the menu, we looked at a picture of sesame flatbread that looked very delicious. We asked the serving staff if the flatbread had sesame seeds in it just like the picture and he replied that the flatbread is plain but he could add the sesame seeds in it without any charge. That was very nice of him. The meals that I have ordered were much better than I prayed for, it was very authentic, amazing and tasty. The flatbread arrived with the sesame seeds and it was very delicious. They were all very hot and fresh and I loved it. I would like to thank all of the serving staff here, they were all very friendly and kind. I live in Oxford and I certainly will come back to enjoy more of your food very soon. 21 January 2023 I visited here again for a family dinner again because I dreamt about the delicious food I ate here last week. It was brilliant. I ordered Lahme Chilli Fatayer, Chicken Maqloubah, Za'atar, Baba Ghanoush and Flat Bread with Sesame seeds on top. The friendly staff who served us had remembered us, he remembered that we liked to have sesame seeds on our flatbread. He also said that he read my review of this restaurant and this made me feel very happy. Once again, our meal came quite quickly and they were just as fresh as before. I loved every bite of our meal. I surely will come back again.

   almost 3 years ago
2. Rashid Al-Yahyai ★★★★★

   Some great food gems happen by accident! We walked in after a long walk in Oxford, hoping to have anything to eat as we were desperately hungry & tired! The name Bake is deceiving, as we ended up with Maqlouba instead of baked stuff! We were not wrong, the food was delicious & enjoyed both the meat & the chicken versions of it! Topped with Mamul & Turkish coffee, all was dreamy satisfying! Will definitely go back, next time we are in oxford, as I loved the beats of the food here! Greetings to all staff, truly friendly & made the whole experience an amazing one!

   almost 4 years ago
3. Howard Choularton ★★★★★

   Overall, the service was great, the food was delicious with huge portions and big flavours. We particularly enjoyed the chili prawn tagine, which was super spicy but delicious. It was filled with lots of different vegetables and perfectly cooked prawns. Definitely worth getting an ayran or lemonade to cool down your mouth! The breads were freshly cooked right in front of us in the open kitchen. The dips were fantastic, especially the baba ganoush, which didn't last long. Make sure you're hungry, as the portions are big and lots of things come with bread. The fatayah were tasty, especially the spinach and cheese one. With two pescatarians and one vegan, we were spoilt for choice, no wonder Za'atar Bake is always recommended as one of the best restaurants for vegans in Oxford. We will definitely be coming back to dine in, or ordering takeaway, and can't wait to try more dishes (and the desserts and coffee!).

   almost 4 years ago

1. João Carmo ★★★★★

   This is one of my favourite places in Oxford, right at the heart of Cowley Road – one of its liveliest. I've been here often for some great Arabic Coffee and tasty Baklava, but eventually felt compelled to try one of their mains. My only regret is that I didn't do it sooner! I had the Kofta and can't wait to go for another. Delicious lamb meatballs served with potatoes, tomato sauce, and herb infused bread.

   almost 4 years ago

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