Cafe Lili Lebanese Grill

Have been calling this place since 9:20pm to place a to go order I called 4 x no one answers the phone. I drove there and arrived at 9:40 and the restaurant is completely closed I mean lights out everyone went home a hour ago. Here’s a picture of your hours I thought Google was lying but it’s actually posted on you window. If your not going to stay open until 10 please change your hours. Oh and please answer the phone. That would of saved me time.

Great food, staff and atmosphere! This place only serves authentic Lebanese food. I also like the fact, that one of the original owners used to be a wrestler. My family loves this place, and we visit every time we’re in the area. Go check them out!

I would have given this treasure five stars but the server or owner was very dishonest. We ordered the «special for two» and it was the most amazing food i’ve put in my mouth. When the check came, everything was itemized and there was NO special. We apparently just ordered a bunch of food. I asked the waitress why this wasn’t lumped together as a special meal for two and she claimed their specials change each week so thats why everything was added up separate. Dishonesty makes this place not worthy of a second meal.

Good Mediterranean food provided by attentive staff. Consistent quality and variety. Comfortable but simple dining area. The reason I am giving a 4 star rating is the grilled red fish on the half shell available on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The fish has a mild grilled flavor w nice carmelization and is tender and moist. This is among the best red fish I’ve ever eaten.

Ordered the baked kibbe, meat platter and a side of tabouleh and lentil rice. They were all tasty and delicious. We also had bread and homus, which was great. Apart from the food, our host added to the 5-​star experience as she was cheerful, informative and just sincerely nice. Would definitely return.

Yum! Friendly staff, yummy food in heaping portions. I wish they’d had more seating options inside and some additional beer options. But the food was really good. We’ll be back!

I am of Lebanese descent and grew up taking much pride in the careful preparation of our meals and moreover, in the gracious way they were presented with gratefulness for the hands that prepared these wonderful dishes and the people who served them. Much time and love goes into cooking Lebanese cuisine and everyone was always welcome at our table – going back to WWII veterans who came home on furlough through Ellington AFB where my aunts worked. They were greeted with eager ears, deep thankfulness and all they could eat.
Café Lili used to be the place I went in search of some semblance of that which I knew: fresh Lebanese fare and what I thought would be reminiscent of the graciousness of my grandmother (those before her and now, in my parent’s home). Instead, what I experienced time and again was Lili sitting at a table as one enters, reading her iPad and ceaselessly working her hookah. Never a glance towards her customers, much less a «welcome» or «thank you» for your patronage.
I hosted numerous family members and friends to her establishment, always saying hello as we entered – though she never glanced our way. I told her that I was bringing folks in to her café and her response: «You tell me that every time you come in here…» Not a shred of appreciation there. More disturbing was how she (and her son, Elie) consistently berates her outstanding staff in front of customers: screaming and treating them with the utmost disdain. I felt their pain and took them aside, asking if they were ok. Though they would not speak with complete honesty for fear of further retribution, I witnessed conditions that went beyond cruel.
I made the decision to confront her one Saturday afternoon when I was dining alone, after yet another awful scene on her part that left the server in tears and asked why she treated her hard-​working staff (and customers) so poorly. She defiantly told me how difficult it was to handle the «kitchen help,» and how she had to speak Spanish and nothing was ever right…
My last visit was about 6 weeks ago when I was served by yet another caring and lovely staff member. It was her first week and though she provided me with outstanding service and care, she was dressed down by Elie. I was so mortified by his display of utter disrespect in front of other diners, I spoke with her and offered my business card. As I went to pay for my meal, Elie confronted me asking why I was giving her my card and what my intentions were and that I was not to be «friends» with the staff; rather, they were there to wait on me only. I was livid, as this was none of his business and responded, «What is wrong with you people?!» With which he replied, «We’re a bunch of morons.» Clearly, he meant it tongue-​and-​cheek, as the money they make «speaks for itself.» I reminded him of the years of patronage I had afforded them and he said that he was «nice» to me when I was in.
It is worthy to note that if you dine at Lili’s at lunch, SHE (the restaurant) keeps all tips and does not allow the respective servers any. When I learned that 6 months or so ago, I quit adding the tip to the check and paid the staff in cash.
After my last (and I mean last) visit to this establishment, when my lovely server was left in tears and ridiculed in front of all to see, I told him I would never be back.
Guess what: he didn’t care.
There’s a lot of competition in our city when it comes to dining venues. I view this place as very similar to the «sweat shops» that we read so much about that place people who make clothing in the most degrading of circumstances, without a thought for human dignity or respect.
Remember, there are always alternatives.
~ Cynthia

I convinced a group of my coworkers to try Lebanese. Café Lili was the closest place. While standing in a line (probably a lunch rush) a man kept saying «sir I can help you» over and over progressively getting louder. There was a young lady ahead of me in line whom he was overlooking. I gently got her attention and said «you can order» once it was my turn I asked if they served «Lebanese tea». He began to explain that «that’s a Louisiana thing» he was so aggressive that when I turned to look at one of my coworkers she immediately said «woah! Still wanna eat here?» I ordered Lebanese coffee and it was delicious also my server ANGELICA deserves props for being so incredibly awesome!!! However! The guy at the counter rubbed me the wrong way. I shall not be returning, and I doubt any of my 8+ coworkers will either.

Probably my favorite restaurant! Grape leaves are great, hummus is great, salads are huge and the souvlaki is always perfect. Red fish on Fridays is pretty good too!

I adore Café Lili.
Here are the many reasons:
(1) Delicious specials. On Saturdays, they often have a grilled redfish (yes, the whole fish) that is absolutely to die for — fresh, flakey, delicious. Grilled fish is normally not something I order when at a restaurant, as I feel it can be done at home better than most restaurants can do it. Not true of Lili — that grilled redfish is phenomenal. They also oftentimes have lentil dip or lentil soup on special. To. Die. For. They bring you lots of flatbread to dip in it, and the lentils are phenomenal (and VEGAN!).
(2) Awesome staff. I’ve gone here about once a month for several years, and there has been almost no staff changes — this is because it is a family restaurant, and they clearly treat their staff like family. I like that I can always count on seeing the same beautiful faces every time I visit.
(3) Great wine. So they have a Lebanese «house» white whine that is a Sauvignon Blanc that is by-​the-​bottle and is very good and really, really reasonably priced (I think it is around $ 25). They also have a «premium» white wine, as well, but I prefer the house, actually.
(4) Ease of use. They have a huge parking lot. You don’t have to wait for a table. The people are nice.

Very clean family owned establishment. The son and father are very pleasant and inviting, you can tell they take great pride in their business. The food is always good and taste homemade.

Perfect food, service and beverages. I had the grilled chicken special with grilled tomatoes. At first I thought I was going to be put off that it didn’t come with rice like Iranian food, but OMG, this is wonderful and I lacked for nothing. The chicken was perfect, no room for improvement. The dish comes with salad or hummus, I had the salad. The salad needed a bit more vinegar or lime/​lemon and perhaps garlic, not a lot of flavor, as is. The chicken is the chief feature, bam! I cleaned my plate. Nice wine, and great complimentary Lebanese coffee flavoured gently with cardamon. I am a happy camper, plan to come back for lentil soup, more wine and coffee!!!

Great food. Best fried cauliflower I have ever had. Food and service really great. Perfect for mid day grub

I’ve just discovered this Labanese restaurant, food is tasty I really liked their Beef Shawarma. They also have complementary Arabic coffee. Service was ok !

I give it a low score solely for the fact that I feel like it’s SO over priced for the the cheap out of date ambiance! They are always pretty busy so I feel like they should invest in remodeling it a bit! Everything I’ve ate there has had a weird bland taste to it! Not worth what your paying at all!
Parking sucks to even though there is a huge lot just because the shopping center is SO busy!

For starters: when we walked into the restaurant, the original owner was sleeping on the bench at the entrance before the pre-​lunch rush. He was so apologetic upon seeing us enter the restaurant; I was smitten with the place instantly.
The service was great, and the server gave very personal recommendations with thorough descriptions of the food. The owner (after waking up a little more from his nap) came over and offered us special, traditional coffee at the end of our meal as well! You order at the cash register then the food is brought to you.
The food was great, I got a Fattoush salad (photo also posted) with the Lebanese beef/​meat. It was an insanely large and filling salad, beware! We also shared a humus appetizer, which was also very good but no extra flavors were added.

I’m a fan of this restaurant! We went for lunch on a weekday and the food was fantastic. I got the lunch special of the day (lebanese meatballs and rice), which came with a dinner salad. The plate was too hot but it was absolutely delicious. The meatballs were just tender enough to split with a fork and the rice was perfectly cooked. The meal was so big that I had to take half home.
The host was extremely helpful and willing to describe all the plates. The owner of the restaurant came around after our meal and offered us coffee/​tea. Besides that, the time it took was pretty average for lunch and the service pretty standard.
If you’re a fan of Lebanese cuisine and you’re in the area, this restaurant serves authentic and good-​quality food.

I have been eating at Café Lili for 15+ years and it is, by far, my most favorite restaurant in the Galleria area. The food is always fresh, homemade and served with a friendly smile. The prices are also incredibly reasonable.
On many different occasions I have taken friends, clients and family to Café Lili, and never once has anyone ever left wishing we’d gone elsewhere.

I can’t believe I never wrote a review of this place.
This is one of my favorite spots in the whole city.
The kofta is excellent, the falafel is excellent.
They have THE BEST french fries in all of Houston.
Go on the weekend and try the red snapper special. Amazing. Their lentil soup, lentil dip, cabbage salad, their raw kibbi, the fried cauliflower… I could go on and on.
And the staff are wonderful, they get to know you if you go often, and they remember what you like.
I wish I lived closer to this venue so that I could justify going once a week. I like it that much.

Café Lili is such a cute and casual restaurant off the Westheimer strip. Walk in, and you’re immediately greeted by the owner behind the register. Know that this place stays busy during lunchtime, hence the large cushioned seating for those, so dine here in a small group (I’d say no more than four) and don’t arrive starving — like we did. You’ll also notice a lot of other Middle Eastern diners, which is always a great sign. Food must be good, no?
Now I’m not an expert on Lebanese cuisine, but I do know that the fried cauliflower here is something every patron should try at least once. I like cauliflower — I like all veggies — but this was a flavor and texture I didn’t expect. High five to my table-​mates for sharing with me. And their dolmades? Best I’ve tried in town; they’re small and tightly wrapped and sprinkled with meat; they’re not over-​spiced (like at Istanbul — though that’s Turkish); and they’re not covered in a tangy creamy sauce (like at One’s A Meal, though that’s Greek). They’re juuuuust right.
This time around, I tried the day’s special — kibbeh — only because it came with cucumber and yogurt salad. I can eat that stuff daily. And it’s good for ya too. The kibbeh was good, though not something I’d frequently crave.
The owners are really friendly, as they kept on apologizing for the long wait. Hey, that’s what happens when you roll deep. Except this one party of four decided to use their table for eight for a post-​lunch meeting. I finally worked up the nerve to ask them to move to a smaller table so that our group could finally order and eat. Note to people who do this at restaurants during peak lunch hour: Save that for Starbucks or some other coffee house. Or at least don’t hog a large table. This isn’t the Café’s fault, I just thought I’d point that out.
I’ll be sure to drop in again and try some of those kebabs. That bread looked too damn delicious.