Ali Baba

Recently tried for the first time. Portions were large, prices were too, and my gyro was so dried out it curled into a cup. Too close to Fronimo’s to ever return.

I have been away from Tucson for quite some time but I recently visited the city and decided to go to Ali Baba’s Restaurant and my platter was Huge. My friend had a Huge giro sandwich for about 6 bucks.
I wasn’t crazy about the dark dismal looking interior, (black ceiling)…and my waitress did get the order incorrect (beef kabob instead of steak) but all in all it was a good meal and portions were satisfying… although prices were high on several dishes (I can get those same meals for a lot less in San Diego).
Now, a couple of days later I wanted to go back and it was a Friday night at about 9:10p and I called the restaurant and informed them that we would be there by 9:30 (they closed at 10p.)and the gentleman on the other line started talking about the cost of his gas and electric, and the cost of his overhead etc. and asked us to understand.
Well needless to say we just hung up and were in disbelief that a business (a restaurant) would even say that to a cuatomer… if they wanted them to continue being a customer.

Delivery took over 2 hours when they said it would be less than 1.
The food was alright, but the delivery time was unacceptable.

We’re have been a patrons of Alibaba’s for over 7 years now, without any bad experience whatsoever. Persian dishes are all well prepared and always very tasty. Having years of experience of eating in every variety of Persian restaurants in Los Angeles and spending some time in Iran in the 1970s this place always meets and exceeds our expectations. When visiting the restaurant always order Persian specialty dishes like Kubideh or Sultani and I promise, you won’t be disappointed…

This place is amazing. You must try the cucumber lemonade. Do not miss out on this drink. After you try it, be sure to come back to my review and mark it «useful» and then friend request me.
All the meat here is halal. They give you really big portions. The detail and presentation of the food is amazing. Everything was delicious. You must try the lamb shwarma! The portions are huge! The service was good. They must have improved things by seeing the negative reviews about their service. The lady that was our server was very nice. My wife and I also enjoyed the baklava.

Ali Baba offers a nice range of food choices. The Eggplant and lamb stew was delicious. My date ordered the lamb shank with green bean rice. The combination of spices were different for each dish but equally aromatic and a delight to our palates. We have plans to return. Wonderful food and friendly service.

We purchased a Groupon to try this eatery. We saw the 2.5 star rating and weren’t sure what to expect, but turned out we enjoyed the food. We visited on a Monday during lunch hours. The ambience was casual, inviting (sit anywhere you choose, and plenty of comfortable booths). Decorated with real plants. My husband loved his gyros (great value at $ 4.99), and I loved my eggplant bourani plate. The food tasted like it was freshly prepared per our order, so there was a bit of a wait. We don’t drink soda or alcohol, and appreciated that the ice-​water tasted filtered and they kept our glasses full. Good service!

We ate here on an expired Groupon for just the cash value. Food was tasty, but not fabulous. The waitstaff didn’t know much about the menu.
So it was OK.
Now — on the expired Groupon the owner deducted the cost of one drink since we only ordered one and the Groupon (for full value) required purchase of two beverages. I didn’t think about it until I already paid the bill — but for a groupon that has expired and only valued at what I paid for it — there should be no requirement whatsoever to purchase beverages… If they gave me full value then absolutely.

Food was delicious and huge portions however I gave it four stars because the service was not that great. We had the family meal and it fed 6 of us with food to go.

I came to Tucson for a business trip, I ate in different places but I think Ali baba is best kabab house in while Arizona, I recommended big time.

So just stopping through Tucson and really was craving Mediterranean food. I called to place my order and was told I’d get a call back in 30 minutes, it took 45. I ordered hummus and a Greek salad while my husband ordered a Greek salad and a gyro sandwich. We also ordered 2 pieces of cheesecake and drinks. The food came 30 minutes late and the drinks had cigarette ashes on them. The hummus was good but the salads came without utensils. The cheesecake was by far the best part of the meal. The service was less than pleasant.

This place is horrible. They are now offering Groupons to get people through the door. What is it with Groupon? It seems as if looser restaurants list with them just to get business. They really aren’t a bargain any more.
There are much better & more interesting Middle Eastern restaurants around Tucson. My favorite is Za’atar on Country Club at Glenn.

Best middle eastern FOOD in town! My fave is the chicken kabob with basmati rice and salad. Don’t forget to ask for a side of garlic sauce to mix in! ;) Yum! My favorite!

I if there is (no star) rating I would put that.
I don’t write reviews on Unilocal but this place needs one!
I went there this afternoon for lunch. Despite the reviews on Unilocal I got the guts to go there and try out the food I used to eat as a kid back in my country. Some middle eastern Friends told me that this restaurant has good kebab. So I went to try some. But as soon as I sat on the table and read the menu, I have seen mouses running underneath the tables.
This is the last time I become adventurous with low rated restaurant on Unilocal

My wife and I went here for lunch a few weeks ago, and we enjoyed ourselves. The tea is very good to start with; definitely have some. I had the falafel sandwich, which was, thus far, the best-​tasting falafel I’ve had in Tucson, and also the most filling. The pita and hummus appetizer is a really good deal for the money; they literally brought out a bowl of hummus with some pita bread. My wife had a chicken dish with lentil rice; it could have easily fed two of us, and tasted good.
The only downside to this place is that a lot of their dishes are expensive. But you get what you pay for with those dishes.

Had a great time the one time I went there. Food was great. Service was slow. But we were the only people there.
Today was a shit experience. I couldn’t eat anything on the table. The filet was over cooked. And the lamb was super chewy. It’s like they switched cooks.
And to top it off the owner wasn’t there so they wanted to charge me for the food. That i didn’t want to eat. He was rude and not at all understanding. Even the drinks that I had enjoyed the other day was terrible. I ended up paying to sit there and tell them how horrible everything was. Cuz he is a money hungry douch

Service is AWFUL! I felt like my presence in this restaurant was inconveniencing the staff.
My group went here for a celebratory lunch for a undergraduate that works with me (it was his choice, so we went despite the less-​than-​favorable Unilocal reviews). When we arrived we were sat in the back of the restaurant, next to a booth that looks like it’s used primarily as an office. This was the first undesirable aspect of this restaurant.
Second undesirable aspect — The wait staff is so slow, in fact, it is unbearable slow and absent-​minded. One person took a very long time to bring out our waters. Then, another guy (I guess this was our official waiter?) took our order for an appetizer — hummus and pita bread for the table. About 10 minutes later two men, who looked like they were line cooks in the kitchen, brought out the pita bread first, then waited 4 minutes, then brought out the hummus, then we waited for them to bring out small plates for us to use for the hummus. We figured they forgot, so one of the people in my group went up to the front counter to ask for small plates. They only gave us 6 plates, and we had 8 of us in the group, so we had to get up and ask for more plates again. After we feasted on the hummus (which wasn’t bad, but definitely could have had more flavor), our original waiter came and looked very annoyed while he took our orders. Meanwhile, a new person came to refill our waters, and did so very awkwardly, asking each of us individually if we would like more water, rather than re-​filling the glasses that were low. When the food arrived, all the people who had been waiting on us brought it out in shifts and had no idea what anyone got so they had to say the dish name and look at us to claim it. They didn’t say the dish name loud enough for us to know what they had said, and it was disorganized and awkward.
Third undesirable aspect — The food was not great. I had the gryo sandwich and the gyro meet was sliced VERY thick. I had one slice that was at least 1″ think in the middle, which I think is too thick for a gyro sandwich.
We had all finished eating and we had to get the wait staff to ask for our check, which was the first thing that they brought in a timely manner. As we were paying our bill another staff member came in and set up her «desk» in a booth next to the «booth desk» and started talking with our waiter about doing his sales tax while we were trying to hand our bill back to him so that he could run our credit card.
Also, toward the end of our meal, they turned on the sound for a TV show that looked and sounded like a middle-​easter soap opera.
Overall, it was a terrible and frustrating experience. I never intend to come back. If you are craving Mediterranean food, seek it elsewhere.

Food was ok, service was absolutely horrible. Asked for water without ice, never got that, asked for no onions on the sandwich, hmm good thought, but there they are.
When asking questions about the food, was rudely referred back to the menu. The couple, who seem like the owners, made me feel like they were doing me a favor by bringing me food.
Never going there again !!
If I have to deal with this kind of snobby rude service, I would rather go to a french restaurant :)

Please save yourself and don’t eat here. If you decide to do so, DO NOT get delivery.
Ordered delivery at 5:20.
Called the restaurant at 6:45 asking where my food was and was told frantically «Oh oh yeah, the driver left 2 minutes ago!» Um… Took you guys an hour and twenty minutes to make a pita sandwich and some rice?
I feel cheated :(

Food = decent but so far beyond overpriced it’s scary. Service = slow. Slow. Slow. Slow and unfortunately uninformed. Beers are mikeloooob and flat tire, among other rarities. Water refilled, luckily.
If you read me, you’ll know I’m allergic to stuff. Cucumbers all over my salad, though I specified no no no no cukes. The server was pissed about it, so I assume she had told the kitchen. She did know the different spices used among meat plates.
My dining companion specified no tomatoes; he got tomatoes. She removed both and replaced my salad. I could tell she wasn’t fibbing. She forgot his dolomites. At least we weren’t charged for them.
Flavors are good.
Restaurant isn’t clean. Deal-​breaker.