Byblos Cafe

I had read the Unilocal reviews and had this place bookmarked. I agree with the reviews that the food is awesome, albeit a bit pricey in my opinion.
My issue was with the service. We went on a Monday night a little after 6 and there were maybe 6 tables occupied. Our server was polite but not engaging at all .We had a hard time deciding and she wasn’t helpful. She answered our questions but offered nothing more.
I had the chicken shwarma dinner $ 18 and husband had the combination plate. $ 24 Additionally we ordered a side of Feta and a side of Toom (garlic paste) We both asked to substitute salad (which comes with the meal) for tabouli. She indicated that was fine. Here’s where I take issue — If there was an extra charge for substitutions at the time of ordering is the time to tell the guest and let them decide if they want to make that decision. Do not just add it to their bill! !!!
I don’t have an issue paying for what I want, just give me the respect and consideration to inform me before the bill comes. It’s not the $ 2 It’s the principal and the attitude behind it

Best vegetarian grape leaves and I’m saying that coming from an Armenian background and I legit pick and grow my own and home make them.
We also got the shish and chicken kabob which were also very yummy.
I’m still craving the grape leaves. Sangria was awesome too and great service !

The place is in South Tampa. It’s a good restaurant. Seems like there is a trend in South Tampa for slow service. I don’t understand it. The place was not busy when I went, but the service was terribly slow. The food was amazing can’t complain about that. The staff was friendly.

After asking around for the best Lebanese restaurant in Tampa, one of my cousins recommended Byblos Café. And so we went to check it out to celebrate my birthday.
My husband ordered a nice white wine from Lebanon, and I had the Byblos Martini both were delicious. We ordered the Taste of Lebanon for my husband and I. Don’t let the $ 67.00 price for two deter you. The Taste of Lebanon includes, Hummus, Baba Ganuj, Labneh, Kebbeh, Falafel, Grape Leaves and the Tabbouleh Salad, plus a combination of the Shish, Chicken and Kafta kabob. Plus delicious pita bread. The serving is for two people, but quite frankly, four can share the hummus, Baba Ganuj, etc. Our teen ordered the gyro dinner and the little one was keen on the Shish Kebob and hummus.
I have to say the food is delicious, and we spent a great 10 min trying to decipher the ingredients in the olive oil dip that they serve with the pita bread, when you first sit down at the table. We had lunched at 1 30 pm, so the place wasn’t packed. Our waiter was very attentive and nice. For dessert we ordered delicious baklava.
Our experience at Byblos Café was great, it left me kind of wishing they would open a restaurant in Carrollwood near us. However, we’ll definitely visit them again in South Tampa for dinner so we can see the belly dancers. :)

Fun relaxed atmosphere. They have a belly dancer in the evenings. The service was great, our server was very friendly and very helpful when it comes to explaining the different dishes available on the menu. The only downfall is that it’s pricey for a casual atmosphere and food.

I tried the Fooul and the Batata Harra. These actually were the best two versions of those dishes I’ve had in a very long time. I was highly impressed. The servers that were on staff this past Sunday morning were very polite, hospitable, and positive. I can’t give this five stars simply because I ordered two appetizers only and have not experienced the rest of what this menu has to offer. Also ordered a hookah and had a nice relaxing hour-​and-​a-​half session with my food and a friend. Great job, Byblos!

Ordered takeout from here, and even though it’s more than I would usually spend on a chicken dish, the chicken shawarma dinner with tabbouleh was great! Chicken was marinaded and spiced perfectly and a very nice sized portion.

Consistently one of the best Mediterranean restaurants in the area. The interior is beautiful, with light wood and colorful cushions and wall hangings. The only downside is that it can be one of those places that it’s hard to have an intimate conversation when the restaurant is full; middle eastern music is piped through the speakers, so that, combined with bad acoustics can make it pretty loud. I made reservations through Unilocal,and the hostess seemed confused by that — they hadn’t added it to their reservation sheet. It made no difference on a Monday night, but I could see how that could cause a problem on a busy night.
Our server was friendly and efficient. Cocktails came out quickly and even though my Moscow Mule was purple (?!), it was strong and good. I loved my combination shish kabob plate for dinner. Wonderful combination of flavors. Plus, huge servings of the different types of kabob — with extra bonus points for the meat being already removed from the sticks, so I didn’t have to battle that task myself. The plate came with both hummus and salad, and their hummus is some of the best around.
Two free pieces of baklava with Unilocal check-​in made for a perfect dessert to go.

We had a reservation for 2pm and once we got there we waited 25 mins before I went to look for someone to seat us. The server was extremely rude and said «you’ll have to wait longer because we only have two servers» so I asked how much longer with it be, since I was taking my friends who were out of town here, and still never got seated.
So we just left, nobody even cared to attempt to serve us. I’ve been here a number of times, and it’s always the same issue, but since the food is sooo good I would come back. Never again. How embarrassing.

Came here for dinner on a Saturday night. Food was yummy! We ordered the Shish Kabob and Chicken Shawarma. Loveddd the pita and oil dip. Our meals came with hummus and it was DELICIOUS. There was also a sauce that came with the shawarma – so so good.
All in all great experience. We got to experience the belly dancers for a quick minute. Sara D was our waiter – it was her first day, and considering all the questions we had, she was awesome! Ill be back to try out lunch and hookah.

We’re visiting town and staying with friends. Went out for an early lunch with a goal of saying «Take me away, Unilocal!» We were only about 5 minutes from the house when Unilocal said «Mediterranean» … Byblos Café …
Service was pleasant and swift. Engaging staff! We ordered the Chicken Curry entrée and the combo Chicken/​Beef Shawarma.
OMG … The Chicken Shawarma was out of this world. Flavors were incredible. The garlic paste to eat with with just added the right amount of kick. I would have been happy just to have that as an entrée. The beef was equally as good. The rice, salad, humus, pita — all made for a fantastic meal. Prices were very reasonable.
I hope I can find a place as good as this one back home. I’ve been ruined now for Greek food!

Discovered Byblos as I was running errands earlier today and we were lucky arriving about 15 mins after opening. We were treated warmly by both servers and given our choice of seating. The décor was awesome as we learned the original restaurant was quite small and the owner built it out as it grew. We ordered the Lebanese tea and it was awesome! Their version of wings for an appetizer tasted amazing and we ordered the chicken kabobs and chicken shawarma — both were perfect and it was nice to see a menu with a large percentage of the menu items gluten free.
We will definitely be back as we enjoyed our meals and would like to experience the restaurant in its full glory.

Falafal was amazing. The wait staff was very nice and the place is clean. They have a full bar and an outside patio that could be fun at night, don’t know, will have to come back for that.

The food is four star, the rest is 2 star.
I came for lunch yesterday. They had two waiters for the whole place and service was slow because they were constantly running. They did the best they could.
Décor is cool, but slightly impractical, tables are too low! I ate at the bar for this reason.
Now onto the good, Had the chicken schwarma wrap and it was delicious! They griddled the pita, so it had a nice crisp and toasty exterior. The meat and veg were delicous. Hummus was good and fresh. A nice spot for a middle eastern fix.

I came he for lunch with a few friends. I was intrigued upon entry; the décor was nice, and had a very comfortable feel.
The hummus was good, but my gyro was extremely dry I had difficulty swallowing each bite. It sucked the moisture out of my mouth, as if I were eating desiccant.
Others said their food was good, so maybe I just ordered the wrong thing, or maybe it was an off day for the restaurant. Either way, I’d like to try it out again. Next time in in the area, I’ll check it out and update my review accordingly.
EOMFD

They have good food but they are rather overpriced in my opinion.
Atmosphere is great but the service varies depending on when you go.
Steak kabobs were amazing.

This restaurant has a nice ambiance but the service could have been better. After all, who would like to wait for a glass of water after having falafal and chicken curry on a hot July afternoon
Food quality: Good
Service: Average
Price: Not cheap

Unlike Dianna B., I wasn’t adrift searching for a place to eat when I came across Byblos. I was actually brought here by my older bro, the person responsible for introducing me to Unilocal 5 years ago. Though he no longer has an account, he flexed his seemingly flaccid Unilocal muscle Saturday by taking me to a place I didn’t even freaking know about. It was like he was letting me know that he still knew what time it was when it comes to restaurants, with or without the actual account.
Well, springing a Lebanese restaurant on someone as a surprise is risky business. Not everyone likes middle-​eastern or Mediterranean grub, so I admired my brother’s decision. Luckily for him, I will pretty much eat anything and anywhere, so this excursion turned out great!
What did I have? The kabob combo platter with chicken beef and kafta (ground beef). The seasoning and spice level on everything was perfect. This platter is probably the best way to sample the most of their food because each meat is seasoned differently. I also got the baba ganuj, which was good, but no the best I’d ever had to be honest. I would suggest their hummus or trying the lebnah over it, actually. To drink, I got the Lebanese iced tea. Please, for the love of whichever celestial being you worship, make sure you order this stuff. One sip will transport your taste buds to Tripoli.
Service was provided by Suzana (sp?) and she was great. Attentive, accurate and cute as a button; all the things that matter in forward-​facing customer service. She even threw in a free desert for my born day celebration :)
Lastly, it should be noted that there is a small market place all the way in the back, where some Lebanese dry goods and canned goods can be purchased. Olive oils, flatbreads, lentils, pickles items and more.
Overall, just a great place with a great vibe. A return visit is a must!

I came here for lunch on a beautiful Saturday morning last weekend. I was the first customer (as I showed up 5 min after opening and I was impressed… It is one of the more upscale Greek restaurants I’ve been to and it had a lot of seating… There were several comfy-​looking couches, great for night time cocktails…
I was greeted by Jorge. He was a prompt and attentive server. He was knowledgable about the menu and very courteous… I ordered the Sangria and the vegetarian plate. It came with hummus stuffed grape leaves, and felafel. They also give you a good portion of pita. I preferred their pita over others because it is thin. Because I dined alone, I did not get the hookah but they do provide it which is nice :)… I will take advantage of it next time
Overall, the food, service, and ambiance was wonderful… I look forward to going back :).

Found myself adrift this afternoon, when the plans I’d had changed. Instead of letting this get me down, I made it into an Unilocal-​ortunity! I’m only vaguely aware of the south Tampa area, so I decided I’d play Unilocal Roulette and let the spinner choose where I was going to eat.
The first place (read closest) was Pinkys. Sadly, they were closed. So I headed down to MacDill and saw Byblos right around the corner. I like Middle Eastern food, there was parking, so SCORE! Lunch would be had.
There were very little patrons at noon on a Monday, but I imagine during the weekend this place is hopping like mad! I was shown to my seat, given a menu and a few minutes to decide what I wanted. It was pretty easy, I love labneh, which is a dip made with a kefir goat cheese and herbs, tangy and delicious. And I was in the mood for a salad, so that’s exactly what I ordered.
It was delivered quickly, the food was extremely fresh. The salad, $ 7.95, was little more than romaine lettuce, cucumbers, shaved carrots and tomatoes, but it was very tasty. Not sure it was worth the cost, *shrug*, but I didn’t want to add meat to it and bring the cost to double. As for the dip! It was amazing, I’ve not tasted labneh in a long while, so this made my tastebuds dance! And the pita the served with it was chewy and just the perfect texture.
I used my Unilocal check in, so I received 2 free pieces of bakalava as my dessert!
The service was excellent. Zuzannah was very knowledgeable, friendly and happy to show me around the location. She was very proud of the party room! And she even showed me the attached store, which sells oils and spices as well as a few food items that they sell at the location.
The décor is –gorgeous-​! Reds and golds everywhere, Rich fabrics and stunning portraits on the walls, it’s a place I could get lost in for hours (if I had them!) Every saturday night, they have a live Dancer, who will perform for you. Hookah is also available if you partake!
I know that I’ll be back!