Love this place. This is my second visit with my dad and we now always make it a lunch date every time we come to the bay. Great service and delicious wraps. read more

Old Jerusalem Restaurant - Mediterranean Near Me - San Francisco, California

Excellent Palestinian in the Mission. I tried their hummus with lamb, and combination meat plate (chicken, beef, kofta). Everything was fresh, tasty, and well-seasoned. The only thing keeping it from 5 stars is the price. While not outlandish (what isn't right now in 2021 in the Bay Area?), this came to ~$50 after tax & tip. That said, I felt the portions were sufficient, and I'll definitely return based on quality of food alone. The lamb in particular was a standout. The vibe here is also great; I recommend sitting on the back patio if/when you dine in. read more

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Went with kids, the food was amazing, the service was top notch. They recommended what were the best items and we really loved all the food. Falafel, pita were so fresh!! Chicken dishes were so tasty! read more

The owner and staff is amazing very hospitable The food is great authentic and the owner always make sure that you're eating good there's a reason why my family and I come here a lot. The veggie plate is amazing the falafel is the best I have tried here in the city. A must try! read more

What a nice neighborhood surprise !!! After many years of passing by and wishing I can try their food I finally did it. And definitely is a place to go back over and over again. I had the meat combination ( lamb, chicken and beef) and highly recommended to anyone. Very clean spot and so the bathrooms. I can't wait for the next visit! read more

Good vibes all around I went for the first time earlier this month - we ordered the combo plate and I think all that was left was maybe 1/4 of the grilled onion Service was fantastic and I wish there was one on every corner V read more

When you visit the restroom you basically get a full view of the kitchen. I'm not questioning the food quality. What I noticed was the guy washing the plates and cutlery. He basically was washing everything without soap and just rinsing the cutlery using his fingers. Everything looked to be done using cold or room temperature water. I would only ever have takeout here. read more

I got a takeaway chicken shwarma wrap today, and .... (1) it wasn't in the typical bread you expect -- it was in a burrito wrapper, which has a -completely- different mouthfeel (2) it wasn't nicely-spiced: quite to the contrary, it tasted heavily of turmeric and not much else. And I eat a lot of Indian food, so it's not like I need my food spiced like Tim Walz. Very disappointed. read more

Went in around 2pm on a Saturday with my friend. Got our seats right away after being greeted by the friendly staff. We had the option to sit indoor or the outdoor patio and we chose the outdoor seating since it was nice out. The patio was pleasantly decorated and surpassingly big! I ordered the shawarma with lamb and rice. You do have the choice to go half rice and half hummus. (+1$) for basket of pita bread. We decided the share the lentil soup since it has the most reviews. The shawarma & rice was really tasteful and juicy with the hint of sourness with some chopped up pickles mixed in. The restaurant also gives you free olives and pickled beets which is very generous of them. Spent about +25$ for the Shawarma and shared lentil soup! Not the cheapest but the quality was there so no complaining. Overall a great experience and I would definitely come back to try more dishes! read more

Old Jerusalem Restaurant - Shawerma (all rice) - Mediterranean Near Me - San Francisco, California

Takeout Review: The amount of hummus in the combo plate did not compare at all to the amount you get in person. We got very little. Not worth the $30/plate on Uber eats. The pita was too thick. read more

I'm so glad I tried Old Jerusalem! The dishes were full of flavor and the service was great. I opted to sit outdoors on a Friday night. The outdoor patio was nice and roomy. The waiters and waitresses were very attentive. They checked on you and asked how was the food. My significant other and I ordered two dishes to share and a side of pita bread. We ordered the meat combo plate which came with chicken, lamb, half hummus and rice. We also wanted to try the hummus and Shawerma. Both dishes came out to be flavorful, the right amount of spices and portion to size. We will be back to try more dishes off of their menu. read more

Old Jerusalem Restaurant - Hummus and Shawerma - Mediterranean Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Food is not warm, very low quality. Shawrma is not realted to the actual shawrma, they have turmeric sauce on shawrma. read more

Tucked away and easy to miss but this place is a real gem .take it from someone who had Mediterranean in some really great paces in the Middle East ! You can't really go wrong there - we were a party of 8 and tried many items in the menu - if you're a hardcore hummus and fava bean lover you want to try the quidsa- creamy and yummy . The feta hummus w meat was also excellent . We also got the chicken shawarma and the kebab- all dishes are large and very generous . We used to be regulars before COVID and the fire and are so happy the place reopened . Cant wait to come back and try some of the other items in the menu . Very recommended . read more

Very solid family restaurant serving very good Palestinian food. Has a strong neighborhood vibe and is a strong recommend!

We ordered DoorDash - have historically been huge fans of this restaurant but we found the quality had really dropped - baba ghanoush seemed to been made with bad eggplant and the chicken Schwarma was dry... read more

Delectable and unique flavors at affordable prices! Friendly staff welcome you to try new things and daily specials are offered. On a sunny day, the patio is worth a sit-down beautifully decorated with fountains and decorative plants. read more

Old Jerusalem Restaurant - Shawarma Sandwich - Mediterranean Near Me - San Francisco, California

Old Jerusalem is an old-school Middle Eastern restaurant with the typical array of dishes, set in an urban neighborhood. (If trash on the streets and local personalities saying hi on the sidewalk bother you, stay in the burbs). The dishes are exactly what one expects, and there were a couple of specials, but essentially it's the fare one expects from a good eastern Mediterranean kitchen. No surprises. Portions are generous, but prices are on the high side. (Ya think so? Well then, can I recommend a slice of our real-estate?) Service is friendly and prompt, even with a large party (as we had). There's a patio in back for outside dining, which was a COVID consideration given the ages and wide-spread geography represented by our party. They have heaters out there to ward off the San Francisco chill, but we didn't need them on that particular night. Hummus and baba-ganouj are must-gets on this menu. Service is prompt, and the owners are present and friendly. A worthy stop for some atypical Bay Area cuisine, and you don't have to leave the heart of San Francisco to find it. read more

I had this place booked marked many years ago when I saw Bay Area Check Please on PBS in 2014 and read articles about it. Yes I knew it was an hole in the wall and service was spotty which I experienced unfortunately because they do not function that well when it's busy. This restaurant has been around for a long time in the Mission District and it just moved to new location last summer 2018 which is larger and has outside seating which I couldn't see because it was dark and in the back. I came with a party of 6 for a Friday dinner around 6:30pm. I believe we ordered a good sample of different dishes. We had to order the Mousakhan which is a Savory palestinian dish of oven-roasted half chicken atop freshly baked arab flatbread with lots of sweet onions, roasted pine nuts and deep-red-sumac. This is a Unique special occasion meal found during family celebrations with Palestinians and Jewish cultures. I have never seen this dish before, but the chicken was very tender fell off the bone literally. Visually it looked dry, but it wasn't. It was pipping hot and the juices were soaked up by the pita bread underneath. The Vegeterian Combo with a Combination of falafel, hummus, baba ghanoush, Arabian salad, eggplant and cauliflower. You can tell it's freshly made in house. Falafel was unique being crispy and oval shaped. I love combos because you get to sample to see what you like. Baba Ghannoush was made with Roasted eggplant, blended with garlic, tahini, lemon juice and olive oil. This was amazing dish because it was very well blending and the flavors just popped out. I love eggplant! Kalaya- Seasoned coarse lamb with tomato, hot pepper, garlic and spices. This was a dish I never came across before either, but the lamb that was diced in squares was surprisingly tender and the sauce was mild spicy which was perfect for me. If you wanted more hot sauce, just grab bottle from the table and squirt it. Those main dishes were all very good and service was good up to that point. Then service kind of tanked because we had one soup with two French fries dishes and that still wasn't served yet. We had a vegetarian at our table and she was starving. We would have though the soup and fries would come first because it seemed like easier dishes to make? Be with the open kitchen we can see the fresh potato being sliced to prepare it to fry. When the fries arrived they looked interesting and taste was very soggy. We had to ask them to take it back to redo it. I don't normally complain nor do my dinner companions, but we were nice about it. Two of the dinner companions were experts about how proper fries were supposed to be made and we also had someone who used to be a chef. So I think it was about a 20-30 minute wait for new fries to be fried up and yes, restaurants do have some bad days and this section of the meal was a bad day. Our water was not refilled either. So for better service when you arrive just give them your order immediately and don't linger about it or order take out. And I guess, don't order fries and your dinner should be enjoyable. read more

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Unfortunately a bit disappointed. Want to support a local business in mission but it just became an overpriced hype. Ordered vege combo and quality wise, might not on par with $25 they are asking for while similar restaurants are charging $17. A little sad but glad at least I tried. read more

One of my favorite spots in mission. Food is incredible, back patio has great ambiance, staff is very friendly. Definitely a hidden gem!

Went here with a large group. We ordered everything vegan. We ordered several dishes family style. I spent six weeks in the Middle East a few years ago. The food here was authentic, fresh, and filling. Service was prompt and friendly. We sat on the outdoor patio that had heaters to keep us warm. We shared a couple vegetarian combos: Hummus, dolma, Baba ghanoush Arabian salad, eggplant, cauliflower and ful Ful is fava beans smashed then poured into a dip with garlic lemon juice and olive oil We also had lentil soup- yellow lentils cooked with Mediterranean spices. That food and experience was on point so that is five stars in my book. Recommended! read more

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Good food, courteous service! Staff agreed to close the back door to the back patio to reduce the draft, when I asked. read more

Might've came on a bad day because it seemed like they were understaffed. There was quite a bit of wait for our food but that is not stopping me from giving a 4 star rating because the service was excellent and the food was worth the wait! We had the meat combination plate with half hummus and half rice (comes with pita bread), stuffed fafafels and lentil soup. First of all, the portions were HUGE and that is coming from a girl with a big appetite. I still finished though but I was pretty stuffed. All the meat skewers were really flavorful. If I were to rank them from most to least favorite, it would be #1 chicken, #2 beef and #3 lamb (could be more tender, the lamb skewer was on the tougher side). The rice and hummus were also great. I love that they heat up the pita bread before serving, most places I've been to just serve it room temperature like fresh out of the bag. The stuffed falafels were crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. The lentil soup was on the house and also my first time trying it. It was quite unique, the consistency was on the thicker side and it definitely warmed me up. Would recommend on cold days! Service was probably one of the best I've experienced. The waitress serving us was really attentive. She brought out our pita bread first but the hummus wasn't ready yet so we waited. About 25 minutes into the wait, our stuffed falafels were ready. She offered us free lentil soup to go with the falafels to accommodate for the wait and even reheated our pita breads shortly before our entrees came. 10/10! read more

Old Jerusalem Restaurant - Meat Combination Plate, Lentil Soup, Stuffed Falafel - Mediterranean Near Me - San Francisco, California

The chicken shish here is amazing - the ONLY time my baby has ever kicked for protein!!* *could have been kicking after the hummus and pita spiking my blood sugar but those were great, too. read more

Old Jerusalem Restaurant - Mediterranean Near Me - San Francisco, California

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I was in the mood for some Shawarma, I was missing the easily available Shawarma on every other street corner in NYC. The food was fresh, good flavor, and service was a bit slow but things run at a different pace on the west coast. Not as slow as it is down south! I had a good time at this spot as I will return on my next trip to try out other dishes. I do have to say, I would prefer to come back in a large group so I can order several different dishes to try. I will be back! read more

I really enjoyed this place at its former location three doors down. I would dance the hora while the other Talmud scholars would hoist me on a chair they would carry on their shoulders. Oh wait, that was the wedding scene in "Yentl". No, I just ate like there was like no tomorrah, you should pardon the expression. I shoulda brought my empty Tupperware containers the food was so good. Anyhow, I was walking on Mission and feeling a little peckish, you know what I mean? I almost plotzed when I saw the place was closed, but then some mensch in a patio chair pointed me to the new place. Oy, that was such a relief I put my Rolaids away, mint-flavored. When I entered the new space, it was a lot brighter. I have to admit the older place made me feel a little claustrophobic with all those colorful murals. It made me feel like I was in the Holy Land, like I was in the desert in Masada with no iced tea. Oy veh, I felt so parched. Anyhow, the new space was nice but even better was the patio in the back. So nice. Like buttah (photo: http://bit.ly/2LEeOQD). Why wouldn't I want to sit out there even if I forgot my sun hat? I was the only one out there in the middle of the afternoon. It was like I was in the Catskills. A complimentary plate of beets and olives arrived right away (photo: http://bit.ly/2Lx5tdv). So tasty. I ordered the $15.99 Vegetarian Combo, which was such a huge plate of goodness that my mother mommala would love. It was filled to the rim with fresh hummus, baba ghanoush, and ful (cooked fava beans). Then there was grilled eggplant and cauliflower on the side with a nice scoop of Arabian salad, which was a fresh mix of tomato, cucumber, parsley, lemon, and olive oil. Two large falafel balls stuffed with fried onion, roasted pine nuts, and sumac completed the dish (photo: http://bit.ly/2MAgPCS). So good I'll come back with my mah jong club. FOOD - 4 stars...that veggie combo is more than just for your mommala AMBIANCE - 4.5 stars...that patio made me verklempt SERVICE - 4 stars...very prompt TOTAL - 4 stars...come for the food, stay for the patio RELATED - Hungry for Mediterranean food? Here's a list of places I've tried and reviewed: http://bit.ly/2O0l2Ms read more

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The bf had a Mediterranean food craving so we tried this place the other day. They started us off with some complimentary pickles, sauces, and pita. Loved how the pita was super warm. I also really liked whatever that green sauce was. For my entree, I got the shawerma entree which was slices of lamb and beef, and I got half rice half hummus. I thought my first few bites of meat were pretty tough and so I wasn't too impressed by it. Right after my bf asked me what I thought and I told him about the toughness, I then had a couple bites where the meat was more tender and a little better. He thought that the lamb was probably the tender meat and the beef was the tough meat. Portions were generous so I couldn't even finish my plate and handed off the rest of my meat to the bf. He meanwhile got the combination plate which came with 3 skewers: shish kebab, kofta kebab, and shish taouk. He finished all of his plate but thought it was ok too. He theorized that we should have gotten the chicken shawerma instead. We did like the hummus (which is actually why I opted for the entree plate instead of the shish kebab sandwich I'd also been considering, bc the thought of having hummus with some pita really appealed to me at the time). If I'd had room in my belly still, I would have wanted to try the kunafa for dessert. read more

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Old Jerusalem is one of our favorite restaurants in SF: the food and service are phenomenal and special and keep us coming back. The owners and everyone who works here are always friendly and welcoming. Special shout-out to Judy and Osama, who make us feel like family. We got an extra large order from Old Jerusalem for the family welcome event the day before our wedding. They went above and beyond: they helped us figure out how much to order, the owner delivered it himself, and the food was a big hit! Definitely order the soft kunafa for dessert: they're the only restaurant in SF that makes it, and they even ship it around the country! Our other favorites: mousakhan, hummus, stuffed falafel...really everything. read more

I'm so confused, I came here because of the great reviews and was so so disappointed. Where were y'all eating, because this place is not it. We ordered two wraps, one lamb shish kebab, and one beef schwerma, and an order of French fries. There were only 3 pieces of lamb for my entire wrap, the fries although hand cut , were cold definitely soggy and tasted microwaved, and my beef schwerma was mediocre at best. Service was friendly and I had to share with the staff that the food was not good. Maybe it was an off night?!... read more

Exceptional. The service was amazing, I came in for Kunafa - a traditional Palestinian dessert, I had a craving for. The heated up and served with warm rose honey syrup that was divine. Thank you for keeping the traditional ways of hospitality and cuisine alive. read more

The staff were super friendly and helpful, as it was my first time there. The food was delicious, and portions generous!

Great Mediterranean food! Affordable! Family Owned. Fast and friendly service. Been around for years! That says something.

Yum! Great hummus, dolmas and Baba. I am a vegetarian but my husband and friend loved the lamb. Only negative was the service. We were practically the only people there and it was very difficult to get their attention once food was initially brought. I had to go to them and remind them that we had asked for more water. read more

Old Jerusalem is a San Francisco and Mission institution. They have indoor seating, strong takeout and delivery, and a beautiful patio sheltered between neighboring buildings and off the street, with awnings, fountains, and general coziness. Their kabobs, hummus, and rice and pita are all fantastic. They have vegetarian platters of dolma etc as well that are delicious. I usually go chicken shawarma and then 50/50 rice and hummus - and then mix everything up because it's somehow even better together. Their hummus is some of the best in the city - our friend used to pride himself on the perfect hummus search and awarded Old Jerusalem top marks. Lovely spot to take friends and family for a low key delicious meal. read more

Decent flavor, but overcooked food; overall just mediocre. Small to average portions. Kifta kabob ($18) - hummus, rice, and 2 tinyyyyyy skewers of ground beef/lamb. Think, a quarter of the size of typical Persian skewers. Flavor was decent, but the meat was way overcooked. Menu states beef, but there is a prevalent lamb flavor--fine for me, but I know some people dislike the gamey lamb flavor, so just be aware. Hummus was nothing special. Way overpriced for the portion size and overcooked meat. Pass! Combination plate ($23) - 3 skewers (chicken, steak, ground beef/lamb). Again, all way overcooked meat, decent flavors. Plate comes with hummus and/or rice--ordered only hummus, and they gave only one portion of hummus (unlike some pictures online), and the other side of the container had some olives. Portion size was better than the kifta kabob plate. Babbaghanoush ($10) - small container not filled, portion size too small for the price. Flavor was ok, but I've had a lot better--needed a bit more seasoning. Overall very mediocre. Maybe it was just the cook who happened to overcook everything, but additionally considering the portion size, I'd say pass on this place. read more

It looks really tasty, right. The lamb chops is so fresh that I ate up all in ten minutes. read more

Old Jerusalem Restaurant - Mediterranean Near Me - San Francisco, California

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I've been to this resturant about two times and honeslty the workers are very welcoming and nice. The food is sooo tasteful and on point, you gotta try the mansaf been wanting to try it for the longest & thanks to this resturant I got to dive right into my plate haha. The hummas with meat very delightful. Love the vibes it gives espically in the back seating area. read more

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I was so happy to find a really good Mediterranean restaurant! This is a very impressive place because the food is so good and the service good. Very casual. The only downside is the neighborhood is not the greatest, but once inside you are fine. Really enjoyed this small and delightful place. read more

The food was amazing and the staff was super friendly. We ate the baba ghanoush, hummus, kifta kabab, mansaf, lentil soup, and knafeh.

Kindest people working there! We go for the food, and stay for the people! Owners are too kind. Will continue to support this business. Thankful they've there, and that we get to eat their delicious food as often as we do. read more