I eat lunch in my car most work days so my options are limited. I saw the sign for hot food in the window and decided to stop in. This is one of the best car lunches I have had in 3 years. I got the beef shawarma and a side of dolma and it is some of the best I have ever had. It was a lot of food for a good price! I will definitely be back when I am on this side of town again. Absolutely recommend. read more

Al Rafidain - Dolma, Beef Shawarma Combo Plate - Middle Eastern Near Me - El Cajon, California

Food is delicious and affordable Taste very authentic "Mom and pop" kind of place They're might be a language barrier/difference of culture. The customer service felt cold or guarded. I'm not sure. Overall delicious food and I continue to keep coming back. read more

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Forgot to bring lunch to work today and was hungry af and wanted to try something new/different. Looked up kabobs and this place popped up. Checked out the menu online and called in a order of 2 beef kabobs w/rice and an Iraqi bread. There was a language barrier but we got it done-teamwork. Guy told me 15 mins, and I arrived on filipino/mexican time in about 25 mins. Cool market type vibe, left is restaurant and right is groceries etc. They had to make my order unfortunately but only waited about 10 mins. $10.61 was the total, damn cheap if you ask me BUT they forgot the rice. Now food time DAMN this was DELICOUS talking about 10 out of 10. The size of that Iraqi bread is literally 2'x2'!! No need for rice at this point lol. Came with 2 juicy beef kabobs with some bread tucked under to catch all the juices (I tasted of hint of lamb in the meat which was ), onions, grilled tomatoes, regular chopped tomatoes, and some yellow peppers. All this mixed with their garlic and spicy green sauce was flavor in every bite and made me respect their culture even more. Definitely would go again and try the rest of the menu. Big for me. read more

Al Rafidain - 2 beef kabobs and Iraqi bread - Middle Eastern Near Me - El Cajon, California

I've been eating here for many years. The reason why I change my way to come here is the authentic cooking and the smell when you check in, just like home. They cook fresh for you using daily meats. Best of all they serve the kebabs with freshly baked large pita breads. While they're cooking your order you can finish your grocery shopping. They have some space to eat inside and outside if you cannot wait until going home. This time I ordered ground beef kebab and beef stew kebab, came with free sides of pickles. Totally delicious. read more

Al Rafidain - Combo kebab - Middle Eastern Near Me - El Cajon, California

Don't place orders through DoorDash, this store will ignore your order if it is placed with any discount. Too bad because their food is really good however the owners are very stingy obviously because they don't want to give a $6 discount. read more

The food is delicious and the customer service is 100%! They also have fresh bread and produce. I'm never disappointed when we order from this excellent place. One of my favorite places. read more

A great little hidden gem with fresh produce and homemade food that is always on point. The staff are always sweet and helpful. Overall great grocery store and will come Back. read more

My family and I were hungry and saw this market that also offers food, we asked for the Menu and a nice gentleman asked us if we wanted to get a tray that would have more food for a cheaper price rather than buying 3 combo plates. So glad we went with the tray it was delicious and lots of food. Also the bread they gave us was delicious and lady was making it fresh . Highly recommended this place to eat we will definitely be ordering from them in the future. read more

Al Rafidain - $30 tray with 4 different types of Rice, Chicken Kabob, Beef Kabob, and Lamb great taste . - Middle Eastern Near Me - El Cajon, California

The food was so good, and the people were amazing .. it was our first time visiting San Diego and everyone loved it read more

Al Rafidain - Grilled fish - Middle Eastern Near Me - El Cajon, California

I'm middle eastern and I know my kabob very well! There is kabob on every street being sold all over El Cajon... but I gotta say, this is in my top 5 of best kabob I've ever had. A lot of my family members told me I had to give this place a try, so I did. Walking in, I was a little taken back. It's definitely a hole in the wall. They have a kitchen on the left side of the place and a small amount of produce being sold on the right side. I walked up to the kitchen, waited there for 15 minutes before someone acknowledged me. Right off the bat, there was definitely an attitude problem. The first thing said to me was "yes?" I'm here to order some food sugar plum!! Why else would I be waiting??? Anyways, I placed my order and walked around the place to see if they had any spices I liked. They had a small selection of produce including, tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, jalapeños and bell peppers. They weren't the best looking so I stayed away from them. I didn't find any spices I liked, but I did see one of my moms favorite sodas she loved back in Iraq called Vimto. My food was handed to me in a very thin aluminum tray, piping hot! The cook had oven mits on, but I did not! I kindly asked him to please place the tray in a bag and he did. I payed for my stuff and I was on my way out. I definitely wasn't a fan of the service, but I will admit they are serving some of the most delicious kabob ever! Seasoned perfectly, cooked to perfection and some really good quality meat. They kept the meat juicy and flavorful, a lot of places lack this. My theory is that they're using some kind of lamb fat in their mix to keep the kabobs from drying out. Kabob usually has a decent amount of sumac on it, something they didn't do here, regardless, it was very yummy. The shawarma was also tasty. Not overly salty and again, not dried out. I'm a fan of the food! Prices are a little higher than the competitors, but the food is well worth your money. Hole in the walls are where the good stuff is at. Service needs some work, but the food does not! Give this place a try. read more

Al Rafidain - Kabob and beef shawarma mix - Middle Eastern Near Me - El Cajon, California

Excellent food, the kabobs were amazingly delicious full of flavor and fresh to order. The staff and service were great, they were super friendly and helpful. My new go to place for fresh traditional kabobs read more

Came here for lunch two days in a row, love the food here. Might take a while for them to make it but it tastes really fresh and flavorful read more

Al Rafidain - Gyro meat plate - Middle Eastern Near Me - El Cajon, California

Great service Cashier went out of his way to make sure i get the delicious hot bread i was craving read more

The food is so good! Love the customer service- they give big portions of samples (rice, meat, etc...) before I buy anything. The prices are also affordable. Great experience every time I go! read more

I always go to Al Rafidain for kebabs and I and my family like it, thank you Al Rafidain

The best market ever and yummy food the kabobs is amazing and the sammin is so good god blessed you read more

Al Rafidain - a tray of food on a table - Middle Eastern Near Me - El Cajon, California

Super amazing food from the chicken to the lamb to the rice everything here is delicious! Friendly staff, they sure know how to do it right.

by FAR the best tasting and quality food I've EVER had! I highly recommend this place!

Let me start by saying the Shawarma and Kabob are Great. Both of the meats are very flavorful and moist which are very important. I got the tray of both meats and fresh naan bread. If you are in the mood for good shawarma and Kabob this is the place. read more

Al Rafidain - Shawarma and Kabob. - Middle Eastern Near Me - El Cajon, California

I wish I could give 0 star. I've been a regular customer until tonight where all the employees were very unpleasant. Please train your employees and teach them what customer service is. Teach them how to respect their "non-middle Eastern customers". I was looked down with a disgusting face and they overcharged me for a sandwich. I will not return to that store. read more

Excellent food and service. The lady at the register even gave me a tip on how to make a middle eastern dessert. Totally recommend this store. read more

Great little market and the fresh food is delicious!! The owner is amazing. Highly recommend.

Theives!! They charged us taxes for food in a state of a tax-free on food where they don't charge for EBT. $2.50 for kabab shish with tax. Fraud! read more

I don't usually give 5 stars but this place deserves it. Cute little market with fresh food option!! Mediterranean is one of my favorite foods and I've tried it in many places (well over 30 restaurants) And this place tops all of them. The food is so great! Sadly they didn't have any garlic paste which I would never eat my Mediterranean food without it But damn this food was soooo good, I didn't even care. Must try Great food Great price And no I'm not a family member hyping a relatives business I am a true independent customer read more

This place was awesome. It's very close to where I live, the food was good, and they had a good variety in groceries. HOWEVER, recently this store has been GARBAGE. Last time I went looking for cookies and condensed milk, the place was filled with flies, it was a horrific site at a place that sells "fresh" meat and food. The condensed milk on the other hand, was ALL expired months ago. When are they going to shut this place down? I can't believe this read more

Al Rafidain - Expired condensed milk, I looked through each one - Middle Eastern Near Me - El Cajon, California

Came here for the kebabs. Was not disappointed. Best kebabs in San Diego and possibly SoCal. I don't say this lightly - ther are many good kebab shops in the area, but this is by far the best. I spent time in Iraq and one of the things I miss the most are the delicious kebabs. I've had kebabs from all over the world - Turkey, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq... and Iraqi kebabs are some of my favorite. Al Rafidain did not disappoint. The shop stays true to form as it should be noted that to make a true Iraqi style kebab you do not only need good meat and spices. The kebabs need to be cooked over charcoal (charwood) and have a fan blowing on them to keep the embers stoked as hot as possible. AL Raf does just that. They also have phenomenal bread cooked in a tandoor. You really can't beat the place as the kebabs are some of the cheapest at $1.50 yet taste better than kebabs at other shops that charge $2.50-5.00 per skewer. The bread at $1.25 is a no brainer. Came in to try it and got two skewers and bread. After devouring those, immediately ordered another 8. I saw a lot of reviews stating how they are rude and don't care about you unless you are Arabic. Not the case at all. As long as you make it known that you want to order, someone - whether they are a customer or an employee will help you out. They are SUPER friendly. In other words, if you aren't sure if you are going to be helped - SPEAK UP. They want to help you out.Its a bit smoky in the kitchen/restaurant area, and the outside eating area is very bare bones - but much like a good bbq spot, that's what I want. No frills, just food. Can't speak to the grocery store, or any of the other dishes. I live across town and honestly if I make the trek to El Cajon, I'm going all in for kebabs. Yes, they are that good. Like the Tacos El Gordo of kebabs. read more

I really recoupment the food The best food in town especially the kebab and whole chicken Grill And Shawarma

Very bad food market cheating on the price when you take the item to the chaser and scanned it will be different price and I bought yogurt from them it was rotten and expired I don't recommend it to buy anything from this market... read more

Super delicious quality food. Customer service is pleasant and it has a good price! Their Chicken Kabobs are so good. Cant wait to go back.

The food/restaurant is amazingGood flavor, good price and good customer service. The cheese from meat counter good as well. I live their produce section too. I wouldn't venture into their other products. It's definitely the best place to pick up some kabobs. Will definitely be back read more

This is very good midle eastern store, I like their Kababs. Try their food, it's really good. read more

Al Rafidain - This is how it looks like - Middle Eastern Near Me - El Cajon, California

I Discovered this place by accident but, I will return early and often now! I got a 1/2pan loaded w/4 different types of rice, 6 kabobs, a 1/2# of chicken schwarma, a big salad w/fresh sliced and while grilled tomatoes, a big bag of naan and two bottles sodas for only $28!!! This place is amazing and the flavors are exactly like I remember when I was deployed and eating on the local economy. They are a super friendly family owned market and kitchen. I'll be back to buy groceries and we'll as takeout food. read more

Delicious flavorful traditional food. One of the chefs brought out a extra side dish on the house, which was also amazing. I asked about the very large pieces of bread they were making and he brought one over for me to have with my meal. Hidden gem!!! Best shawarma I have had since being in the Middle East! read more

We are from Turkey and we love Arabian , Labenese food & kebabs. This place was best and also cheapest one in San Diego. But be prepared : use Google translate to communicate they are actually very nice people but they feel hard to understand fast English. And it's a self service place .. don't expect a waiter. Never miss bread directly coming from fireplace it's best part. That giant dish in picture was 17 usd .. it's enough for 3 people read more

Al Rafidain - Fish from Al Rafidain - Middle Eastern Near Me - El Cajon, California

We do buy hot from here alot , the kabobs are really good , i like their beryani rice and the bbq chicken specially when its well done , the service is good , the new cashier is nice and smiling all the time and she is very helpful , the only thing i dont like about this place is the smell ! It ruins the good things and thats why i am deducting the star. read more

This is the worst place market in El Cajon the customer service is bad I get kabab was Really bad and the worst rice I will never go to this place again read more

The chicken shawarma and kebabs are amazing! The rest of the store is ok but you really cannot go wrong with the hot food. They also make really good fresh bread! read more

Very bad food market cheating on the price when you take the item to the chaser and scanned it will be a different price and I bought yogurt from them it was rotten and expired I don't recommend it to buy anything from this market... read more

This is the place you want to order food to go from. We order for our dealership on the weekend and these party trays are enough to feed 40 people. They also had a trey of hummus and vegetable tray not pictured. Rice is delicious, warm fresh bread and juicy meats (chicken shawarma, beef shawarma, chicken tekka, and beef kabob. Perfect for large party orders or even chose from a few plates. They got our large order done last minute and everything was perfect. I recommend this place out of all the other markets in El Cajon. read more

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Best Iraqi beef shawarma in the Nation. I know because I tried to find Iraqi shawarma in at least 10 states.. this one is the ONE. Great food read more

Al Rafidain - Middle Eastern Near Me - El Cajon, California