Zayna Flaming Grill

What can I say, other than attentiveness to detail and customer service was on par with a 2– star Michelin rating. Without a doubt stop by for a fantastic meal experience.

Found this place on Unilocal because of its rating and it did not disappoint. The kabobs were juicy and the shrimp to die for. The he appetizer sampler is a must — one of the best hummus and babaganouj I’ve ever had. The service was attentive and friendly. This will be added to my regular places to eat in or pick up!

The lamb kebab at Zayna only comes second to my parent’s kebab.

Delicious! Perfectly cooked. Consistent, which is important to me when it comes to great restraint food. Seasoned to perfection meats! Also affordable.

Amazing customer service and authentic food. Hummus combo is a great starter and the kabob and shwarma plates are delicious. Heathy too!

AMAZING!!! The portion size is so generous, everything is fresh, the chicken shawarma plate is delishhhh. The pita is soft and warm, the rice is phenomenal, the sauces and hummus is perfection and the customer service is top notch, greeting upon arrival, smiles from everyone, always attentive of our needs. This place exceeds 5 stars by far.

This is a real hidden gem for vegetarians in the South Bay. (They have non-​vegetarian also.)

The service, the hospitality and friendliness, the overall experience and the prices make this place one of the best in the area. Ray and his hip Mediterranean restaurant is absolutely worth the visit. Ray, the owner went out of his way to make sure we enjoyed every course. He gave us a tour through the menu and shared his favorites, offered suggestions and even explained the dishes that are popular with Unilocalers… which were pretty much what we already had in mind to order, and we did.
They have no booze, but the restaurant is right next door to a liquor store who graciously offers a 10% discount on whatever you buy if you’re dining at Zayna’s. Even better, Ray doesn’t charge a corkage fee… what a deal! We enjoyed some craft beer and a crisp Chardonnay.
The four of us started with the popular Mixed Dips… a selection perfect for an appetizer. Hummus, baba ganoush, roasted red pepper hummus and moutabel, which in my opinion was the hit of the dips — Delicous fresh eggplant, peppers and garlic. All served with pillowy soft flat bread.
Fresh, hot falafel… yummy balls of goodness served with a house made sesame sauce.
We enjoyed a couple of shawarma combo plates and one seafood combo plate… an abundance of food, way too much for the four of us. We’ve got enough leftovers for another dinner or three! The food was great and prepared to order, nothing was sitting in warming trays. The chicken and beef were tasty and nicely spiced. Crisp romaine, cold cucumbers, mint and feta rounded out the Greek salad. And the basmati was fluffy and perfectly prepared. The Tilapia was flaky and was a prepared with a delicious spice. The shrimp wasn’t memorable but it was decent and the calamari had a yummy coating and dipped in the romesco was delish.
We had a terrific time and Ray made us feel at home. The Persian tea was and fresh baked baklava was a perfect ending to the meal. The baklava here by the way, isn’t soaking in sugar, it’s almost like baklava «lite, flaky and really enjoyable.
About $ 160 including the tip for four… and lunch the next day for 3 – 4 people, seriously, I have a fridge shelf full of food! Terrific place, ample parking in the lot, street parking too. Casual, low key ambiance, a perfect location very close to the beach. Sure there are other Mediterranean restaurants and some whose food is better, but with that means much higher prices and not nearly the service or hospitality Ray showed us tonight. Thanks Ray and team Zayna, we’ll see you soon!

Chicken Shwarma is the Best and the dips are spectacular! Love that garlic dip… potent and perfect ! Amazing flavor and friendly service and a good value!!!
The Beef Shwarma is fantastic too and don’t get me started on the salad dressing. Third time here and they never fail to disappoint!

Amazing food! I don’t think I have ever gone anywhere and enjoyed every item served from the Chicken Shawarma to the salad and sauces! The quality of the food is top notch! You would think that you were eating at a fancy restaurant. My friend recommended this place to me and I am not disappointed. I wouldn’t think twice about driving from the IE just for the food. –it’s THAT good! Ray and his staff were so welcoming and made sure we were taken care of. Thank you so much! Can’t wait to be back in CA to grab a bite here!!!

I’ve been back a few times since I first reviewed Zayna’s and it never disappoints. Super friendly service, amazing food. So glad this gem is here in Redondo!

I called in an order for two sandwiches and the gentleman who answered the phone said the order would be ready in 25 minutes. I arrived 25 minutes after placing the order to find that no one had started to prepare our order and instead had to wait another 15 minutes at the restaurant while they made a chicken shawerma sandwich and a fallafel sandwich and fries. The chicken shawerma was wrapped in parchment paper, which ended up becoming soaked in oil that dripped from the sandwich and all over my hands while I tried to eat it a few minutes later. The fries were soggy and mushy. The quality of the food and service is abysmal for the very high price. The sandwiches were almost $ 10 and I noticed that the platters are priced at $ 18!

You should know, before reading this, that Mediterranean is my least favorite type of food. Good, glad I got that out of the way. But ZAYNA is not your ‘typical’ Mediterranean fare. It is bigger, fresh-​er?, packed with variety, and offers something new and exciting making this place better than «to be expected».
Around 8:00pm the place was only 30% full of people… we must have missed the dinner rush. We were greeted, with who I believed to be the owner, seeing how involved he was at making people feel welcomed upon entering. We were seated and then the feast began.
We began with the mixed hummus dips, which he suggested for first-​timers. I absolutely loved the idea of the Moutabal, which was roasted eggplant with other spices. It was very unique and I would describe it as a Mediterranean salsa for pita bread. The other 3 hummus dips were also great! Pita bread was served warm and soft… I could have just eaten that alone.
The Lentil soup was so delicious and I experimented a bit by taking some of the Moutabal and dipping it into my lentil soup. It was awesome! I wish the lentil soup had more lentil beans in it but I’m still very satisfied with it.
The owner knew it was our first time so he took his time to recommend items, bend the menu to suit what we were looking to try so we could try a little of everything, and took the time to follow-​up. For me, a non-​Meditteranean foodie, I use a little test to see how good a place might be. If the Lamb comes out cooked to perfection, the place is golden. Well, everything was cooked to perfection and fresh, including the lamb! Each item, the chicken kabob, lamb kabob, beef Shawarma, and chicken Shawarma, was served with its’ own dipping sauce which added to the variety. The white rice and basmatti rice was so fluffy and delicious. Everything was super satisfying that I left craving a space on the floor to lay down and stretch my belly.
So why the loss of 1 star, you ask? «We are all out of Baklava». I didn’t mention this before but the number one reason that will get me in the door to a Meditteranean place is the fact they carry a homemade Baklava. This is the 3^rd Meditteranean place that I researched to make sure they carry it only to find out they didn’t have anymore. Bummer!!! I’m still craving a piece…

Delicious food. Highly recommend the combo shawarma plate
But the service is what takes the cake. Very cute family owned restaurant with impeccable service.
Really care about customer experience.

We’ve been coming to Zayna for years and under the new management things have really improved!
Ray the new owner is gracious and the food continues to be excellent. We started with hummus and tiziki (sp?) served with warmed pita slices — YUM!
Then my daughter had the chicken kabob and myself and my daughter’s boyfriend had the chicken salad bowl which was fantastic!
Zanya is a great alternative to the now packed Village. Zanya has pet friendly tables outside complete with water bowls, there’s more than enough parking in the lot north of the restaurant.
This is wholesome, good mediterranean food and you have to go!

Wow! New owner, new attitude and updated menu! It is the even better than before. Loved the kibbe. The beef kabob and chicken kabob are so tender and juicy. Homemade tahini and hummus are to die for. Can’t wait to come back and try other items on the menu. As others have said, the owner Ray is a very sweet person and full of personality. He is direct and to the point (kinda like a New Yorker) and is all about making the customer happy :) Ray has added some seafood options and creative appetizers. He brought back some old time favorites (pre-​Ramsey). Support this family owned local business. Thanks Ray for giving Zayna’s a second go round!

After dealing with a double charge on my card that one of their waiters made by mistake, I’m happy to report that I am a happy customer! Polite and careful, as they should be, they made sure to keep good records and refund the extra $ the waiter charged me. Granted, I had to come down to the restaurant to get it, but at least it wasn’t far from where I was!
The experience at the restaurant itself was nice, the art on the wall is extremely cute, and the food was pretty good. My cousin and my mom enjoyed their food very much. The potatoes were lightly crisped and golden to a perfection with a garlicky lemony goodness. We had the flaming part taken out because my mom can’t handle her spices. *sigh!* I’ll have to go back to try the spicy version! The dips were gorgeous and tasty. The orange one was my favorite. It was like a light nachoey flavor that I’m not quite sure how to describe. They did charge for extra pita even though the dips were ginormous. Kinda wish it came with more! The shawarma was tasty and I get why everyone likes it!
And man, their food is just so pretty! Check out my pictures:)!

We had a great first time experience at Zayna Flaming Grill. The owner was really helpful with the menu and giving us suggestions on what we should order.
We decided to go with:
Mixed Dips — Four different kinds of hummus and dips. Came with a lot of pita bread and the owner even threw in some cucumbers on the house for us! The different dips were all really good. My favorite was the Baba Ghanoush
Fafafel appetizers — Came with 4 falafels. They were good, but wasn’t the best falafels that I’ve had. I don’t think this was worth the $ 7 price tag.
Combo shawarma plate — Came with both beef and chicken shawarma, rice, salad and pita bread. I didn’t get to try the beef because I don’t like red meat. The chicken was so good and my boyfriend actually preferred the chicken over the beef as well. Pita bread was nice and warm.
Overall the food at Zayna was satisfying for us. The service was kind of questionable because we did ask for certain items that took quite a long time or that was forgotten. It’s okay though because it seems like they are still getting used to everything (I read that it was new ownership?). Another downside was that our total came out to be pretty pricey.
I think I would come back… but only for the chicken shawarma!

New owner, Ray is making some wonderful magic of his own !
Combo Appetizer Dips are great: normally included are Hummus, creamy Baba Ganouj, Moutabal and Red Bell Pepper Hummus. Ray was kind enough to sub some Falafel and Zabadi for the ones that have bell peppers in consideration of an allergy I have to deal with.
I especially liked the Zabadi, a Greek Yogurt dip with Cucumber, Onion and Mint. Whole Wheat Pita Chips served warm from the oven are a nice touch.
The «Side Salad» added to entrée (or sandwich) for only $ 3 was plentiful and very fresh and flavorful with their House Dressing, which was a lightly creamy garlic and dill vinaigrette.
Chicken Shwarma was delicious, moist and tender atop a bowl of irresistible rice — I don’t even usually eat rice, but this rice was like so light and tiny grained, I couldn’t pass it up. A fluffy Garlic Sauce added another bright note !
I came in intending to have their Mousakka, but was told it might take an hour to cook slowly to perfection. Guess I’ll have to try that favorite dish of mine on another occasion.
Do stop in and check out their new menu options. They’re certainly conveniently located on PCH in South Redondo Beach, so close to Palos Verdes, Torrance, Lomita et al.
New owner, Ray is friendly and very accommodating. I’m eager to come back and try some of my other favorites.

This place is famous! Zayna Flaming Grill was featured on Gordon Ramsey’s Kitchen Nightmares years ago. From the 4.5 average Unilocal score, the sweetie and I decided to check them out. The location is not far from the beach and free parking in their lot was available. Service is very friendly and informative. The owner/​manager (I think his name is Ray.) came to visit us a few times and shared a bit about Chef Ramsey fine tuning some things on the menu. He also mentioned that they might be opening other locations near the beach. It seems they want to identify with being a beach/​casual eatery.
Speaking of the menu, there are not a lot of choices compared to rival Mediterranean eateries in the area. When dining Mediterranean, we usually go with pita bread and hummus. Tasty but, not great. Bread was fresh and hummus had decent flavors. The highlight of our meal was the Moroccan Iced Tea. Delicious and refreshing!
The sweetie’s go-​to meal is a lamb gyro. Again, the flavors are fine but, not great. The case is the same the chicken shawarma, sort of good but, no wow factor. Disappointing especially with having been on TV and having been rescued by Chef Gordon Ramsey. We looked up the show that they were on and it appears ownership and some staff has changed except for a lady that we recognized. The staff that we interacted with were super pleasant. Service was very good.
Sorry, this is a late review and it has actually has been a little while since we were last there. We have not returned. Kind of a bummer, we really wanted to give this place a better review but, with just OK food, 3 is it for now.