This is a SPECIAL and delicious place. Set aside any doubts and get your culinary curiosity going and GO! I am a serious Yelper. I believe my reviews are honest. I love to help folk who want to avoid bad restaurants and especially to have excellent culinary experiences. I am grateful for others who lead me to memorable dining spots. This is one of them. One Arabian Night is tucked away in a scrappy part of Utica, NY. It's a Yemeni place so authentic at one point the chef came out during a call to prayer, unrolled a little rug and prayed. It's a beautiful thing. People being authentic and showing devotion. These guys are also devoted to flavor, and very generous portions at very good, honest prices. I got the succulent mixed lamb, which had chopped veggies and little pieces of roast potatoes. The dish came with a HUGE "sheet" of freshly baked flat bread with sesame seeds (as big as a pizza) WHO DOES THAT?! Side dishes were a fresh chopped salad of tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion and lettuce with lemon juice and parsley, a bowl of very tasty lamb broth and a spicy chutney. I was blown away. When I was there it was catering only to Arabic families and men amiably chatting and eating with their hands. I was taught by my mom to respect other cultures and do as they do: so I observed the locals a little and dug in -ripping bread off and using it to grab finger fulls of food. It was wonderful. They also have an urn of self-serve sweet spiced tea to help make this a unique and unmissable dining experience in Utica. Go! And please leave your xenophobia behind. This ancient civilization (one of the world's OLDEST) has something to teach the most hardened burger-chomping American. read more

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I've only ever ordered delivery but it's always delish! I'll make sure to dine in soon.

Pros: Delicious food, subtly seasoned (not too salty), very friendly staff, large portions, complimentary lamb broth and salad, and easy street parking. Cons: the interior could use some more ambiance. I see in older pictures that the restaurant was painted and decorated nicely. In October 2024, the interior was a little cold in appearance. read more

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Friendly, airy space. The free tea was intensely spiced, and we loved it. The main courses were tasty, but they really needed salt. Thankfully, we were able to find a salt shaker. The brothy soup that came with our main dishes was quite flavorful. We got the dessert with bread and dates. I think the dates made it a bit claggy, but it did taste nice. I loved the black sesame, cashew, honey, and cream combination. The lamb was very tender and delicious, once salted, but the star of the show was the flatbread. Never underestimate a good bread! I will give this place another try sometime- I'm curious about the jute dish! I didn't know jute was edible. read more

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Friendly helpful service! Food was delicious! Would absolutely try again. The young lady at the counter made an excellent suggestion and I will definitely be back read more

Wow. Everyone must go try this new place serving delicious food. The dishes were fresh, flavorful, and tasted great. A very homely atmosphere that was kid friendly - of the kids will eat it the parents will be happier. All our tummies left overstuffed and content Hypes : - We ordered a few dishes. All were delicious - Chicken Muhammar was cooked so well. the meat fell off the bone. it was well flavored and marinated. - Chicken Ghallaba - reminded me of a well cooked chicken curry. it was flavorful and steaming and again delicious. Came with a enormous tandoori bread. - portions are huge! - the tea is delicious - every dish came with a lamb broth and salad - Service was attentive and welcoming We will definitely come back again to try more dishes. Great experience read more

This place is amazing. Beyond exceeded our expectations. We attempted to order two entrees but the waiter told us "trust me it's better to just pick one and share." Boy was he right. Less than $20 for us both to eat and share a multi course meal. We got a chicken dish with a giant piece of Yemeni bread, soup, salad, water and tea and extra to take. Do not sleep on this place! read more

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I'm no expert in the cuisine so cannot say if it is authentic, but can say it was delicious, with very generous portions. The warm flatbread is the best I have ever had. Great place. read more

We were greeted with a warm welcome, the menu runs to four pages, many of the choices have pictures. Huge portions, bread hot from the oven, a side salad free with any entree. The walls are painted a lovely warm butterscotch, and there are pictures of Yemen. My family loves this place! Street parking with lots of lighting, open late. When I went as a woman alone, I felt both safe and welcomed. read more

Newly opened halal restaurant in Utica, exceptional food and good service. We stumbled to this restaurant by chance as we were traveling back and we have another 2 hours before we reached home and it was dinner time. We were very pleasantly surprised as we were served right away within minutes with hot free lamb soup and salad. We chose lamb haneeth, lamb fahsa and tandoori rashoosh flatbread as our main. The lamb were so tender, just the thought of it make me salivating. The portions are big, we have to pack home the leftovers. We also ordered Adeni tea and Royal Araisy smoothie. Everything was scrumptious. To top it all, the restaurant interior and the bathroom are clean and nicely decorated. read more

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I don't usually negative reviews, but Marib really earned it today. I arrived at 2 PM. One couple were finishing up their meal. They were the only ones present. It took over 5 minutes for the waiter to bring me a menu. After I ordered a chicken Sharma sandwich, two young men came in, obviously regulars. There were served soup, apps, and main course before my sandwich arrived, sometime after 2:30. However, I still did not have napkins, utensils, ketchup for my fries. Absolutely ridiculous read more

The food was good! The service was great! The ambience was cool! I had the falafel sandwich which I do recommend. My husband had the chicken curry and that was also very good and flavorful. read more

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I took my family to check out this new restaurant. Wow! Amazing food! This is my first time having Yemeni food. What a fantastic experience! The appetizer sampler (mezza) was out of this world. It was the best falafel I have had in Utica. We tried 4 different chicken dishes. They were all amazing. The service was amazing. They make you feel like famiIf you're in the Utica area & you like Middle Easter cuisine, you have to try this place! read more

I walked in and one of the gentleman working there immediately jumped out of his seat to greet me and give me a complimentary bowl of hot soup! It's a thin, light bone broth and it definitely hit the spot on a cold day like today. I ordered the lamb shawarma sandwich which looked a bit small at first but it was actually very rich and filling once I started eating. It's packed with meat, fresh vegetables, hummus, and spices wrapped in a smoky naan (like a flaky tortilla). They also gave me a side of hummus with the sandwich which was a nice touch. I've had a lot of shawarmas and hummus in my day and I can tell you these guys are the real deal - if you're into middle eastern and especially Yemeni food, give this place a try! It doesn't look like much from the outside, but step inside and the dining area and bathroom are very modern and clean and the employees are happy to serve. I believe they also do Doordash so I will be using that in the future. Verbal confirmation from the employees the menu is 100% halal! read more

Highly, highly recommend this restaurant. This place is nothing short of amazing. The food is authentic and so flavorful. The portions are huge. Five stars. read more

One Arabian Night - Marib Restaurant - Lamb Zurbian - Halal Near Me - Utica, New York

I'm so glad to have a Yemeni place in town, and the food is fantastic. Marib has quickly become one of my favorite restaurants in Utica, and it is a nice complement to the plethora of (very good) Lebanese restaurants in and around Utica. Everything I've had has been wonderful, and I especially recommend the foul. I really hope Marib does well! My one suggestion (to other customers, not the restaurant), is that at least some of the dishes are best served hot and fresh. If you're able to do so, eating in the restaurant will likely be far more rewarding than ordering takeout or delivery. read more

Nice clean place with attentive and friendly service with good ambiance. INCREDIBLE food, all made fresh. Large, if not huge portions. Fair price, not cheap, but not high. Excellent value overall. The flatbread was freshly baked, still warm. Loved the Baba Ganoush. Wonderful grilled chicken and lamb. We hope to return soon. In a city filled with good local places, the Marib stands out. read more

In our search for something different to eat other than the usual Italian food, we found Marib on Varick street. The owner greeted us after we sat and served us complimentary salad with a spicy chutney and lamb bone broth soup which was delicious!! We realized we were in an authentic Yemeni restaurant and we were in for a treat! Next we ordered hummus with falafel that came with a fresh tandoori flat bread with black seeds!! This was the best falafel that I have had in the city-Amazing. The owner then brought us several assorted complementary samosa-cream cheese and ground beef. So tasty, not salty and perfectly spiced. After all of that we ordered the lamb haneeth special for 25.00. We shared the order since the portions of everything were so generous. The lamb was cooked to perfection, falling off the bone served over a bed of beautiful basmati rice. To end our wonderful meal we tried the Fettah dates dessert that was such a generous portion we had to take the remaining home. All of that food for only 67.00 before tip. Everything was so clean and the staff was very friendly. We will definitely be returning. read more

Wonderful find! Delicious and authentic restaurant. It's very casual and family friendly. Homemade soup comes with every meal. My only complaint is that it was nearly empty. Please support this restaurant. read more

This is a tough review to write because the food we received was quite good & I want to recommend it on that basis. But we only received some of the food we ordered, which I learned by checking the menu again after the meal & inquiring (was I mis-remembering the order?) Our server, a young man (who maybe was filling in for someone? only most basic service provided, did not check on us, had to ask for several things), acknowledged we hadn't received any of the included side dishes with our entrees because they had had many customers that day and had run out of the items. An explanation, not offered freely, no apology, no price adjustment. Not OK. Would not have been a problem if we were given this information when we first arrived. Please, do better. read more

Absolutely delicious Yemeni food! We're just passing through but I'm envious that Uticans get to have this restaurant. Hummus, chicken, falafel--all great. We ordered a side of the flat bread and got a serving the size of two massive pizzas; I think the price was 3.99 We got takeout but the inside of the restaurant looked cozy and nice. Definitely recommend read more

Amazing food and service. Came here with 3 teenagers who left stuffed and happy. Wish we lived closer because we would be regulars

My son and I visited this restaurant thanks to Yelp. We love Mediterranean food and were tempted by our usual favorites like falafel, hummus and shawarma. However, the specialties from Yemen were new to us and incredible. The service was incredible and they gave us a delicious salad and the soup at the outset. We had the Chicken Ghallaba on Hummus and the Aqda Chicken. Both were amazing. The Tandoori bread is size of a large pizza and amazing. I highly recommend this restaurant! read more

This was an adventure for me and my friend. We came in sort of unsure what to order and had the manager just bring us whatever he thought we would like. The food was 10/10 delicious. Everything had a unique taste. The lamb was tender and delicious. Chicken well seasoned and cooked perfectly. Try this out for an adventure! read more

One Arabian Night - Marib Restaurant - Great food! - Halal Near Me - Utica, New York

We needed a quick dinner spot and found Marib on Yelp. Having arrived around 4:30 the place was empty. We gave it a shot and so glad we did. Delicious Yemeni food with friendly and accommodating staff. The bread is picture worthy and so good! read more

One Arabian Night - Marib Restaurant - Lamb Fahsa - Halal Near Me - Utica, New York

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Stayed in Utica one night for a graduation and through internet search found this restaurant prior. Got there an hour before close and they were out of rice yet they catered to make sure we had dinner as we were taking back to the hotel. All I can say is I will be doing the two hour drive back to try the rice. We had chicken, hummus, falafels, flat bread and tomatoe/cucumber salad. So glad we made the choice to get food to go from there. The flavors rich and popped as you ate them. Definitely will go back! The environment was clean and friendly. read more

Amazing food!!! Portions was huge. Totally would recommend. The dish I ordered was lamb and it melted off the bones. Reminded me of my grandmothers cooking "Made with Love" read more

Wow..excellent food. Highly recommended. Their lamb dish and salmon were so flavorful. Bonus is huge bread and salad that comes with every entree. Considering limited non-Italian options in Utica, this has been a wonderful option when I'm in town read more

Tried to get lunch with parents, service was good but they were out of almost everything, and what food they did have prepared was sub par.

Great food-best described as middle eastern with similarities to Ethiopian, you eat with your fingers and the bread. The bread is to die for, it's delicious naan the size of a large pizza. The folks working there were very nice. Will be back! read more