The large appetizer plate could be a meal in itself with a wide variety of delicious and authentic samples that we shared. The 2 lamb kabobs were tasty, tender and seasoned well. The very best was the baklava - not too sweet and with a large helping of whipped cream on the side. We enjoyed eating outside on the covered front patio because it was less noisy and there were overhead heat lamps to keep us warm. The staff couldn't have been nicer. read more

La Mediterranee - Statins a great place! - Mediterranean Near Me - Berkeley, California

La med is la mediocre. I'm trying hard to write a fair review. There's much hype about this place, but the food is just alright. Tried the popular pomegranate chicken for lunch and the marinade was tangy along with the hummus. Not quite up my alley. Pita bread was warm, but dry. I enjoyed the rice pilaf the most, if anything. Lunch price was around $10. Waitress was initially nice, but then she got real busy. Seems understaffed. read more

Had lunch when visiting in Berkley, and I'll have to say damn that lemon chicken soup is awesome. Location is not so great for large parties, but the service is good and the people are friendly. Cafe style restaurant. I ordered the chicken kabobs with the lemon chicken soup, bomb! read more

They have a great food here! It is a bit crowded during the evening but generally the atmosphere is pretty cozy and romantic. The food is great. I love the pomegranate chicken menu. Chicken Cilicia is my favorite. read more

My best friend lives in the East Bay so I find myself trying out places in her neighborhood often. Friday was she wanted to go to La Med. We arrive and the hostess is nice and communicative. (she gets the star) We wait about 10 minutes before being sat. Our server arrives some time later to scowl at us and look around the restaurant while we give him our order...probably why he forgot half of it. So...yeah! We get half our order, half expecting the other half to arrive shortly thereafter... nope. Half an hour later we flag down our server (and his winning personality) to ask where the rest of our food is to which he replies ,"I didn't get that." I didn't get that.? Hmm... "Well, can we order it then?" No apology or 'I'll put a rush on it' or anything. So an hour after the original order was placed we get the rest our food. My friend is loving her food so I don't want to rain on her parade about how mediocre it all is. AND...I'm a glutton for punishment (or just a glutton) and I persuade her to order dessert... We order to go from Mr. Friendly Face and wait. And wait. And wait. I look over at the counter and see what I believe to be our dessert....waiting...for us. I walk over to the counter and ask if I can pay our tab because I haven't seen our waiter in some time. And yes. Our food was just sitting there while we were just sitting there waiting for some sort of closure to our time spent in this wonderful establishment. Food - meh. Cost - wha? Service - ewwe! read more

This was my first authentic Mediterranean experience and I thoroughly enjoyed it. For those who dig variety, I would recommend the "Middle Eastern Plate", as it has a little bit of all of their best dishes. My favorite was the "Chicken Cecilia", an eggroll-like pastry dish featuring a flaky crust filled with chicken, almonds, chickpeas, raisins, and a dash of ground cinnamon. Service was quick and the atmosphere was very enjoyable. The price was very reasonable ($12.50 for my food only), and they had a decent wine list. A basket of tasty pita bread comes with dinner. It was also open late. If you're around College Ave, you could do much worse! read more

Always delicious. Great menu choices. Prices in line with portions. My only complaint on this week's visit: falafel was quit dry. I dunked it into hummus, but next time will question the staff... maybe it's supposed to be dry? read more

This place is so cute and the food is amazing. The chicken kebab plate is my go to. I love their hummus and soup. It's a little pricey though read more

Must admit I felt totally let down here the other night. Food was just OK, service was even worse.

Definitely tastes like there are huge bins of food in the back and they just pile what you order into your plate. Not fresh tasting at all, and as others have suggested - the service is ridiculously bad. The East Bay definitely lacks a quality Mediterranean/Middle-Eastern place and this joint certainly does not fit the bill. read more

The food in this restaurant is very disappointing. For anyone who has had real Middle Eastern food and knows about its flavors, you will wonder what all the fuss is about. The hummus is flat (is there any garlic in it?), the lentil soup was boring, the phyllo dough things I had on the Middle Eastern plate were soggy and the filling of one that I am guessing was chicken was dry. We asked if there was any type of Middle Eastern spicy sauce and we were given Tabasco - the height of laziness! The lamb kebab was not marinated in anything; it was overcooked and chewy, too. The rice could have been Rice-a-Roni for all the Middle Eastern flavor it had. Interestingly, the Central Valley (near Turlock and Modesto) has better Middle Eastern food since it has a large Assyrian population. Maybe the owner of this restaurant needs a field trip. On the plus side, the outside eating atmosphere was pleasant and the wait staff was only slightly inattentive. read more

i liked it - yum! We shared 2 Mediterranean plates - one meat, one veggie and everything was really tasty. The best dolmas i've had in a long time and the lamb meatball thing was moist and flavorful. The only not so good item was the roll up sandwich which was bland but ok when dipped in hummus. The server was a bit cold but she did the work so whatever. I'll go back for sure. Bring on the feta! read more

I still crave for their dolmas! I always get their vegetarian middle eastern plate because there's a delicious variety on it. The items can be a little tangy, but i like it. Theyre usually busy, so expect a wait even for 2 ppl. I would definitely recommend a reservation if you're a group. But its a great place for groups because theres so much variety. I had my graduation lunch here. My group was all vegetarian and never really ate Mediterranean food (beside hummus). They loved all the flavors and textures and everything in general. And as mentioned before, their dolmas are amazing and I haven't had any that good anywhere else. The restaurant itself is cute and has a nice ambiance in the evening. read more

Great food and atmosphere. The Med Meza is ten bucks a person and involves a sampling of everything on the menu - great fun! They immediately bring your puppy a waterbowl at the same time as the humans without being asked and are very nice about my large 70 pound moose puppy sitting on the sidewalk side or inside the patio area. Consistently good food and service. read more

The food is always delicious. We especially like Chicken Cilicia and Pomegranate Chicken entrees. Our "go to" Mediterranean restaurant in Berkeley. read more

I live right by this place but the mixed reviews on yelp have always made me hesitant to try it out. . Well I finally talked my husband into trying it out for dinner last night. I'm so mad I didn't try it sooner. We ordered it to go and they said itd be ready in FIVE MINUTES :D heck yeah. I admit the pricing is more than id like to pay but the portions are pretty good sized. I didn't know what to expect so I crossed my fingers and ordered one entrée to share with my husband and a small side order of rice. We ordered the pomegranate chicken plate (?). it came with rice, hummus, salad, fruit with a slice of cheese on it (which I thought was fun), and it was FOUR drumsticks that were falling off the bone delicious. the meat was so flavorful and juicy. .oh and it came with three mini pitas. \The whole order was $16..thats not bad, $8 each for dinner? and its healthy food. I think its worth it to pay a little more for food that's going to leave me satiated and not hating myself. I will definitely order this again. I ate the leftover rice for breakfast :) . oh by the way the rice has garbanzo beans and some kind of dried fruit in it. So tasty. Give them a shot. read more

So my girlfriend and I decided to try Ici for the first time Sunday afternoon. 30 minutes and 4 steps later, she gets a very very bad migraine in which she takes medication for to lessen the pain so that she doesn't throw up. I needed to get her pills from our car, and water so that she can take it with (the pill is a size of an egg). I had to rush back to her as quick as I can after getting her pills, so I entered the nearest restaurant that I could find along the way back in line. I went into "La Med" to try and get a cup of water. I walked in gently even though I was in a rush, smiled at 3 waitresses at the counter, and kindly asked them for a cup of water because my girlfriend needed to take pills so that she doesn't throw up. 2 of the girls looked at me for a second and continued on with their conversation like nothing happened. The third girl gave me a dirty look, not saying a word to me, and left the scene. I then said to the 2 women talking, "I'm REALLY sorry to bother you guys, but may I just get a cup of water for my girlfriend? She needs to take these pills." They stared at me, stared at each other, then separated, attending the other diners. I had to come back to my girlfriend with just the pills. She was able to get water from some bakery who charged her a freakin quarter for some warm tap water. I know we could have gotten water at Ici, but like I mentioned, it was our first time, and it was so crowded, I didn't even think of entering into the store at the time. I felt compelled to write my very first review on Yelp to express my thoughts on what had happened today. What has happened to society where you cannot even get a cup of water from a restaurant due to an emergency? But that's not even why I'm upset. If any of those 3 workers I mentioned said anything to me, such as "we only give out waters to our customers", or a simply, "no, sorry", I would've understood and not think of writing this kind of review. However, the fact that they completely ignored me and went on with their work really made me realize how mean-spirited people can be these days. I have never been treated this way in my 25 years living in the bay area. I hope that no one will ever go through what I went through today. read more

Our favorite place when we are in the East Bay for Mediterranean food. We always enjoy the pomegranate chicken. Two dinners plus a side of hummus is always enough for 3. We can get items gluten free by substituting veggies and gluten free crackers for pita bread. read more

Yum! First off, its summer and i'll never complain about a place that lets me eat outdoors and watch Tout Le Monde stroll by.. College Ave is a great place for such excursions and the cozy patio space doesn't disappoint. My friend and I had an easy walk in on a Sat night w/ no reservs. We enjoyed a light Pinot Grigio and the nice salad w/ blend of vegetarian appetizers. I did esp like the lentil salad myself. The vegetables all tastes farmers market fresh, which they should, as this is the Bay area and summer. The one downside is though our server was sweet, she was a little missing on the 2nd glass of wine and by the time she checked back on that, dinner was in essence over.. But i'll go back and i'd like to try some of the meat next time.. read more

Why is this place so popular when the food at Holy Land across the road tastes so much fresher? Well, La Med is bigger and better for groups, and the waitstaff are younger, which isn't correlated with better service. Also, some might find it more romantic; I admit to once having a last date here. If you do come here, the hot food is OK and less likely to have come out of a can than the cold food. read more

What can I say? My mouth is already watering thinking about one of my favorite bay area spots! The food is amazing. I love the fillo dough combination plate. I love it so much that I really never get anything else. Thank goodness I usually go with someone so I can try something else off of their plate! The Chicken Cililia is my favorite. The combination of chicken, almonds, chick peas, raisins, spices and cinnamon is heavenly. And I actally hate raisins. The service has always been fine when I have been there. So go...eat, drink and be merry! read more

I've had hummus before but oh my God, this HUMMUS! I ordered the lamb kebab, wary of the usual obligatory green salad that you have to suffer through in the name of health. But the tomatoey feta-y thingy they had going on in that thing made me crave every bite! The symphony of flavors continued with the buttery rice pilaf (not that it had butter), and even the authentic fruit and cheese at the end complemented the flavors well. I'll remember this meal for a long time as the best Mediterranean I've had (and my dad's from Morocco!). Oh, and did I mention? It was all gluten-free too. read more

we're not usually in berkeley but we ended up going on a hike and decided it was perfect for a couple of us to stop by it was a bit busy but we definitely didn't feel it. service was prompt and the place was mellow enough that you instantly feel comfortable. their lemon chicken soup is delicious! creamier and less lemony than i expected. the levant sandwich was good but it was the least stellar of the dishes. anything with phylo dough is amazing. one of us ordered a dish that totally reminded me of b'stilla and i can't remember what it was called but it was the table's favorite. the meat filling was moist and it was covered in a phylo dough and topped with powdered sugar. the savory and sweet combination is amazing. great meal for a great price! read more

To further illustrate my allegiance to the objective review process, I am going to give you the honest to God truth on this spot - DESPITE the fact that it is owned by one of my best friend's uncles. If that ain't dedication to what we all are doing here, I don't know what is. And the fact that everyone else gave this place the gold stamp of approval proves that indeed most people are either ignorant of what REAL good food is, or perhaps everyone is 18-22, in which case, you got a lot of living to do folks. Newsflash: La Med is not so good. This place is a wanna-be Greek restaurant, with the La Med theme and all, and some of the dishes help to underscore this point, but many of the dishes miss and languish in some sort of Middle Eastern purgatory, devoid of seemingly any connection with an actual ethnicity. See here's the thing. The hummus is hummus, it's good, whatever. Baba is forgettable, so are lots of the other little salads. What was that....pickled beets, that are now all dried out? Some pepperoncinis? Super. Like I came for that stuff, the equivalent of iceberg lettuce on a diner salad. Look, I want damn tasty, Middle Eastern food. Give me some spices, give me fire grilled bread, creamy tahina pooling around a mound of hummus, roasted eggplant, and perfectly seasoned, grilled lamb, and I am good to go. And the hummus better be f&%$ing amazing, since by and large, the only place to get killer hummus in the Bay, is from a Middle Eastern restaurant, as ALL the packaged kinds sold everywhere, are just mediocre at best. This place delivered none of what I just mentioned. It was generally hit or miss, and you really had no way of knowing what was going to be good until AFTER trying it. Why try to do something that might be slightly off-base, in terms of what you are used to cooking, rather than shine on what you probably do VERY well. What I mean, is that this place is owned by an Armenian man, and I have to say, from having eaten Old World Armenian food, cooked by an Armenian grandmother, and several other women from the homeland, most of their fare is incredible. Why not do ARMENIAN FOOD? Why try to genericize your offerings, making the place "Mediterranean", but yet nothing really hits? You got friends that are going here, you get roped into going, not a total lost cause. Generally speaking, any pastry-like thing filled with meat, is good. They got Chicken Cecilia, or some sh*t, with shredded chicken and spices like cinnamon and something else, that is good, and one with ground beef, that is pretty good too. But for the most part, the stuff you WANT to get - the hummus, the baba ghanoush, the falafel, some skewered meat? Go elsewhere. No seriously, go down the street to HOLY LAND, which I still believe has the best falafel in town (the balls are crisp, and fried perfectly), very good hummos, and other fare which is more of what you would expect. Leave it to the JEWS, as they do a damn good job. And this place would be killer.....if they decided to stop the charade, and just serve Armenian food, since, although being fairly unknown to most, it is truly a unique and delicious culture. Hey......you asked......so I told ya. Anyone else that RAVES about this place? Fools.......probably college kids who haven't traveled much. You want Greek? Go to Truly Med in the Mission. You want food from the Jews, go to Holy Land in Berkeley. Can't really think of a reason to specifically go here, sorry to say. Oh yeah - they do a potato salad here, and I don't care if it's "traditional" Armenian, or freakin' German potato salad, but it was terrible. Too much of a vinegary taste, and not a good one at that. Chef needs his head examined if he really thinks this dish is anything that possibly resembles "good". Buck the trend, baby. You heard it here first. read more

Try it for breakfast - so cheap and plentiful. I enjoy that I get a little taste of everything - eggs, cheese, fruit, bagel, potato, yummy wheat cereal thing I can't spell but has raisins. Good stuff. I lived down the street in college, and love the fruit and cheese plate for a little lunch. Dinner has disappointed in the past, but maybe I'll try it again based on reviews. read more

Here's the thing - as far as their Mediterranean dinner goes, Le Med is decent but nowhere close to brilliant (for brilliant check out Zatar in Berkeley). But they do have one of my favorite brunches, along with outdoor seating, and they're almost never crowded on weekend mornings. Get the steamed eggs with mushrooms and cheese. This item also comes with a side of Maimounia (Mediterranean cream of wheat), a bagel, cheese, fruit and potatoes. Sumptuous, scrumptious and easy on the wallet. I can't comment on anything else on the brunch menu, since I come here pretty much exclusively for this dish, but it is totally worth it. read more

My review is for the Le Mediterranee catering service which I recently enjoyed at a Bat Mitzvah. The food was truly outstanding and memorable...a rarity for event food. I loved the dolmas and everything I tried. Went back for seconds! read more

Not bad, but not great. Maybe it's just that I've had stellar Mediterranean food lately at places like Wally's (homey) or Ba-bite (super fresh and pan-Mediterranean), but the food we had was mostly soggy and bland. That being said, it was still OK AND they deliver - which is pretty awesome. We got the mezza platter - the dolmas were very tasty, as was the rice. The portion size was large and there are plenty of leftovers. All the dips and such (baba ghannouj, hummus, tabbouleh) were a little too watery and the liquids were running into eachother in the package. The pita was OK - kind of dry and out of the package tasting. There were also these rolls made with a lavash type bread that were wet and bland. My husband liked the chicken. We both enjoyed the spinach phyllo - it was packed tightly and had was one of the only things on the plate that stayed crisp from the delivery. Nice flavors. We also got a baklava to split - 1 serving is large enough for 2 people. It was good but not super fresh tasting and also on the damp side. All in all, fine but not amazing, just ok for the price. The pros are that they give you a lot of food and they deliver. I wouldn't go out of my way to eat there in person when there are significantly better options for Mediterranean food, but I will order delivery some time in the future when working late and craving it. read more

If you go in a small group or pair, you usually will not have to wait very long. However, this place is most fun when everyone orders a little of something and you go family style. A bit expensive for what it is. read more

Great experience. The sparkly white lights lining the adorable outdoor seating drew me in. That and the fresh wildflowers on the tables. We just wanted to sit outside and drink wine and snack on appetizers for a late-ish 2nd dinner and they were all for it. We ordered the hummus combo plate with a half bottle of house red, and it was perfect. One of the lovely servers chatted with us sweetly and told us the secret ingredient in the chocolate mousse (sold!) and they brought it out with a quickness I could not believe! read more

Everyone here looked like they went to Oberlin College and my sister left her purse in a safe thanks!

3.5 stars. Very good mediterranean platter- love the phyllo rolls with spinach and feta. Also tried the dates for desserts and baklava- excellent!!! read more

La Mediterranee - Mediterranean platter - Mediterranean Near Me - Berkeley, California

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This is one of my favorite restaurants in Berkeley-- easily top 5. Their entrées may be somewhat expensive, but the quality of the food outweighs. It's just delicious and healthy. The chicken cilicia and chicken pomegranate are especially wonderful, and when paired with their white wine, "naked earth," you might as well be in heaven. read more

It may be slightly pricy, however, the food is consistently amazing. I recommend any of the pastries, so just get a platter and enjoy! Also for meat eaters, the pomegranate chicken is incredible! Great service too. :) read more

After seeing the Check Please Bay Area rerun, we went with another couple. The food was so much better than I had anticipated even tho all the CPBA folks liked the place. The service was very fast and the food had wonderful, fresh flavors. Our waitress said the Mez platter and the chicken & lamb kabobs were the best dishes and that was what we ordered. The missing 5th star is due to the overpriced wine list. The wine and apertifs come in a tiny thimble glass. Please be just a tad more generous ok? and I will give you the 5th star. read more

This is an ok place to sit in the patio for a while and maybe have some pita and hummus. Overall the food is not so great though. Also the service isn't the greatest. It's better than the service at the other location I tried in the Castro, though, so I will give them a grudging three stars. read more

I am never coming back to this place again. I have been to so many restaurants and have had such different cuisines but this place was a biggest disappointment. Also, just so you all know that this is a cash only place. Please do not go to this place...their service is not good, it took them to come to us more than 15 minutes even they weren't busy. This is not the level or service or food for the amount we paid. I paid $52 for a lamb kebab and a Large Mede plate. Not worth at all. read more

My boyfriend and I came here on or way back from Napa looking for a quick bite to eat. Even though it was a sit down setting we were in and out in super quick. The food was absolutely delicious, well balanced, and perfectly portioned. This place was definitely a gem and next time I'm in Berkley, I will be sure to come back! read more

The service was prompt and sufficient. The food was good but nothing tasted too fresh. Maybe that's how it goes when you come for an early dinner around 5pm. It was fine and I would go back but it's not going to make my list of favorites or places I'd like to take out-of-towners. For the price, it's not horrible but I was hoping for better. read more

Oh another visit, and a great sample plate of an assortment of middle eastern delights, including the lemon chicken rice soup. I loved it. The lemon dominated the palate, which I wanted. The plate also included a little cheese, banana, orange, three pita breads, and a lot of hummus. Great selection. BTW, they recommended the parking lot just behind the restaurant. It is metered but you avoid the mess on College Street which on a Saturday night is impossible. read more