Phoenicia Bakery and Deli

Went to the Phoenicia Bakery for lunch last week. It’s a cheap meal, and tastes as such. I will not be back.

BEAUTIFUL people and AWESOME grocery and deli! I have been a customer for the past 30 years and have always enjoyed going to their store not only to shop, but also jut visit and chat. They are all loving and kind family, Malik, the owner is an outstanding individual with a high quality of morality, ethics, honesty and kindness!
Mehrdad Vatani

I used to go here very often when I lived in the area. I always got a gyro with extra meat and a pack of dolmas from the specialty fridge. Sometimes if I was super hungry I’d get a couple honey drenched baklava. I’ve tried a lot of the items from the grocery too. Turkish coffee is good stuff! There isn’t any inside seating but they usually have a picnic table out front. It’s fine if you don’t mind a little car exhaust LOL. I used to grab mine to go and cruise over to the south Austin rec center and eat at their picnic tables then stroll around to work off some of the calories.

Bought this cheese on the way home from work today without glancing at the use-​by date. It’s more than a month past it’s used-​by date. Lucky I realised before we ate it, but annoyed I’ve wasted money and ruined dinner.

Tiny portions. Not enough pita included with the plate. Food was decent but certainly not spectacular. And I’m sorry but the workers were speaking Spanish. Not the language you want to hear at an authentic middle eastern bakery/​restaurant.

I was disappointed there was no inside seating. I give the gyros a 3/​10, and the baklava a ⁵⁄₁₀. Really, I’ll be looking elsewhere.

Wonderful Mediterranean place! One of my Favorite The bakery is amazing and I cant leave without a fresh package of pitas for home. Always a great stop for lunch to grab a wrap… The staff is awesome and they truly care about there food and there customers. I am a proud customer.

I got Croatian tea there, and got my desserts there. The food tasted fine. The only thing was that the people are very very slow at the register. If you want to visit the store, I recommended you to go there in non-​rush hour. And remember that the store closes at 7 pm. Plan your trip early then!

Refreshing attitudes/​personalities — as the proverb, «a smile without a reason is a sign of idiocy.» All business at this place, but the lady did ask me if I wanted my gyro heated up and this tells you it’s not their specialty. Pups had mixed reviews on the shawarma but baklava was 5 stars so if you have a sweet tooth, make it happen.

I probably go in here now at least twice a week. I always get the roasted chicken (I heard about it through the chronicle). I’m hooked. The other food on the menu is great too. I can see why some people have written about the staff but it just seems like they’re relaxed is all. I don’t care. As long as the food is good and for a great price.

I love this place– the little old ladies behind the counter crack me up! Great for lunch if they aren’t too busy– I recommend the gyro, chicken shawarma, or the ham and cheese sandwich– fresh and delicious. This is my favorite deli– you can’t beat the hummus, tabouli, fresh pita bread, sliced salami and prosciutto, olive bar, oh and don’t miss the French sheep milk feta– all of these items are authentic and fresh and a fraction of the price of other specialty markets. The bakery is top notch and again– cheap! The baklava is DRENCHED in honey and full of crispy nuts– my son loves the soft baked chocolate chip cookies– a neighborhood original, been there every since I can remember!

WOW I have no idea why there are bad reviews here, anyway I will write my own perspective of this bakery.
I love Phoenicia bakery a lot and I appreciate small family owned businesses rather than chain restaurants or stores or corporations. I find myself always coming back to Phoenicia deli as I love their sandwich especially Kafta with hummus sandwich and lahm bil ajeen and cheese bread. I never had any problems with Phoenicia and I go very often, I personally like it but thats just me.

This place sucks. I bought something from here and it was rotten. On another incident I was coming in to exchange some yogurt because my husband got the wrong one a day before and right before I walk in it drops out of my hand and breaks and splatters on the floor. I let them know of the incident and ask if I can just exchange it since we had not opened it yet and they would not budge they still wanted to charge me for a new one. So charging me
for this item was more important than losing a customer that is constantly in their market? Because that’s what happened. Won’t be a back here ever again.

I been to Houston location many times, absolutely love going to the market I can find anything and everything I am looking for .
Love the fresh fruit
Fresh vegetables
love the bakery.
Fresh meat, fish and a lot more.
I love all the housewares also.
Soaps shampoos… many different kind of teas.
You name it they have it.
After all I go next-​door and grab me fresh food in the restaurant.
I haven’t been to Austin location yet I am going today I hope it’s as nice as the Houston location.
NO WAY
This looks nothing like the one in Houston
I will never go back so filthy and dirty.

Austin does not have as many international stores as it should. Houston and Dallas has us beat for sure, so finding any store that has any kind goods not from the U.S. is a blessing. Phoenicia is right off of South Lamar and they also have a store up north.
They serve and make several of their own dishes like the Hummus, Tabbouleh, Gyros, Salads, and so much more. They have a decent variety of goods to choose from and even things that I would not expect to get there. One of my favorite items in a Fig Jam they carry with whole figs in them… SO DELICIOUS! They do make several types of bread that can be bought and their Pita break is my favorite. I love their Gyros and how they wrap theirs compared to other places that place it on the bread (its just to hard to eat that way when your own the run). Their baklava and other pastries are delicious! If anything, just come here for it.
Parking can be a challenge, especially during the lunch rush and the weekends. There are not to many places available to try to get there before the crowds.
The service is either a hit or miss. Most of the time, everyone in there is talking to each other or kind of look miserable. They are not as approachable as you would like them to be but they can you want you need.

The food is excellent and inexpensive. My only complaint is that the one time I went in there it seemed like the cashier was really out of it. I had to remind him to take my money, and he kind of seemed to stagger around. It took forever to get our food and I felt like he forgot about us. I’m hoping it’s a one time problem.

I love this down home deli. They have everything from plantain chips to baklava and dolmas. I love the hummus wrap and ever time I’m there I feel like I’m in a Mediterranean deli in NYC! The people are great and the vibe is nice here. The only downer is the parking lot is really small so it can be a challenge getting in and out.
This is your best bet for Greek and Mediterranean cuisine and goodies! They are authentic! I get lost just looking around at all the yummy snacks and I try something new every time I go!
The only reason I took off a star was for parking– but I wish I could give them 4.5 stars due to their yummy food and good service.

I seen an episode of «Eden Eats» last year just after we got back from Austin.
(follow the link for the recipe on the show)
So I wanted to try this pita recipe but when we arrived they didn’t have enough sitting area to eat, so we just shopped for some baklava, pita bread, lunch meat and cheese for frying, you know just a few snacks during our stay here when we don’t want to go out to eat.
The folks are very nice, when I mention I was from California and we had seen this on the Eden Eats episode, the man at the cash register told us exactly what Eden had eaten here, it’s their special. (Maybe next time)
They have what seemed a nice variety of Mediterranean foods and spices, my mother in law had found some Guava jelly she had been in search of and a few other items.
It was a good little store run for us and now my brother in law knows a place for baklava when he’s in the area.
If your in this part of Austin looking for a place to get your Lebanese pita or any Mediterranean type foods, I’m sure you’ll find the basics here.
Oh yeah they have a second location in Austin too.
TC
So we headed out to find another place to eat. But this is a nice little store, reminds me of a few places back home.

I’ve been going to the Burnet location on and off for 10 years. It’s much easier to get in and out of than this S. Lamar location. The parking lot at this location can be a bit of a nightmare when even one person is trying to leave and another pull in.
The gyros are good, but a little light on meat. The baklava and prepared deserts I’ve had are all quite nice. The grocery selection is great, and I’ve found spices and other products here that I can’t anywhere else in town.
Ordering can be annoying, especially when they are busy. I’m never quite sure who to convey my order to, and sometimes they seem annoyed when you do finally order. Often times it involves one employee shouting at another.

THESE PEOPLE SUCK. Seriously, take your business elsewhere because the people running this store don’t like you. They don’t like you at all. 3 old people and 1 young Latin lady will stand behind the counter and they will damn well finish the (probably unimportant) conversation they are having before they bother to acknowledge your presence at their register, even with an arm full of groceries. This happens EVERY SINGLE TIME I go in, so ya know what? I don’t go in anymore. The food really isn’t even all that great. Give your business to the pizza guys in the gas station next door, or the hippies over at Wholly Cow a few doors down. Please.
(The good news is that karma is a bitch and these people will be run out soon when all the unfortunately douchey condos open on South Lamar — at least all the construction is good for something! I wouldn’t normally wish ill upon local business owners, but seriously, these people are consistently awful, so I don’t feel so terrible.)