Didn't have a big meal; garlic hummus and pita. But the portion was huge! I do wish they provided more pita because the hummus was fantastic. Also had their Yemeni coffee and their seasonal pumpkin mud pie; delicious! Service was fast and good. They have outdoor seating, which was great as it was a beautiful day. read more

I love the beat salad at Pomella, but I need to start reminding myself to not freak out the next day when I use the restroom.

Overall, this was a good place to have fast-ish Mediterranean dining in the Piedmont area. The food was overpriced for the amount of food however, but it was still good. The staff were friendly and the environment was beautiful. read more

Pomella - Lamb Sirloin And Hummus Plate - Middle Eastern Near Me - Oakland, California

Delicious and thoughtful food. Arrived to me packaged impeccably. Hummus, carrot salad, falafel, dolmas were all beautiful. I especially appreciated that nothing was too salty. ORDER THE BAKLAVA. Easily the best I've ordered from an Oakland resto. read more

We have stopped by to order pickup several times. Everything we have had is fresh and flavorful. It made me feel like I was back in a cafe in Jerusalem the first time I ate there. Unfortunately we moved out of Oakland so I can't go as frequently but I always order to go when I have to drive nearby! P.S. you must try one of their desserts when you order! Highly recommended! read more

Apparently this is the successor to my previous favorite Israeli place, Ba-Bite, and I couldn't be happier to have them back in my life. Had the lamb shawarma on mujdara and their mujdara remains the best. My girlfriend got the chicken shawarma on hummus and it was predictably excellent. Can't wait to try there rest of the menu. Also, make sure to definitely get some shug (da baby voice). Also consider the tzaziki and yogurt tahini sauces too. All the sauces. read more

Best Mediterranean food in the bay !! We loved Ba-Bite, and Pomella has the same food, so we're so excited it opened up this week!! We picked up a to-go dinner yesterday and it was a perfect combination of variety and tests. Just amazing :) Highly recommend ! Totally 5 stars read more

Pomella - Middle Eastern Near Me - Oakland, California

Really flavorful food. We tried two plates pomegranate and fried onion rice. Try different sauces read more

Pomella - Middle Eastern Near Me - Oakland, California

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Excellent Mediterranean food, great ambiance, Mika was friendly and very helpful. We had a great time.

Best. Hummus. Ever. So rich and garlicky. And the fresh baked pitas are A-mazing. I had the Chicken Shishlik and it was tender, juicy and sooooo flavorful with a fresh hot fluffy pita, pickled veggies and a generous amount of hummus. I also love the Beet Ras-Al Hanout salad. So fresh and full of flavor. And don't get me started on the desserts!!! Pumpkin Pear cake with cream cheese frosting !?!? So moist and delicious. And the Milky!!! Rich silky chocolate goodness. They do it right at Pomella using organic ingredients and making EVERYTHING from scratch. Highest praise for the team at Pomella. Absolutely every bite was delicious. Go see for yourself!! read more

Just finished a meal with some friends at Pamella Despite the fact it was a rainy night- we loved this place! Between the 12 of us we tried Cuscus, home made pickles all the salads on the menus and few of the desserts Everything was catted with love, spiced correctly and served fast. And the price? Less than expected ! Definitely coming back! read more

I love the composed salads and the warm cauliflower is out of this world! However, twice now I've chosen to NOT order dinner from Pomella because the packaging in Dispatch Goods tins is such a pain! It seems like this eco-friendly maneuver, but the having to return the tins is a massive deterrent. It's just another thing I have to do--a complication I do not want: Are all the tins here? Did the lids get separated? Did I schedule pickup? My husband just pointed his phone at the Dispatch Goods QR-code, then exclaimed "What!? Do I have a password!? Aarrgggh ...." I think these tins are more of a PR move for Pomella, and I'm not cool with the extra to-do that this places upon our busy family. (Plus, I don't think the food stays very warm.) Until Dispatch Goods containers are no longer integral to the Pomella take-out meals, I expect we'll chose a different restaurant (and be pleased if their competitors use compostable containers, of course!) Sorry, Pomella--it's pricey food that Dispatch Goods make burdensome and unfortunately will affect our patronage. Did I mention the warm cauliflower mezzo is to die for? Dispatch Goods is really a misstep. :( read more

Pomella - Middle Eastern Near Me - Oakland, California

This place has been on my radar and I should have gone sooner! The humble hummus is elevated with painstakingly fine creaminess. The falafel is fresh, green and not heavy. The butternut squash and arugula salad was delightfully balanced with sweet, tangy, and bitter notes. Definitely start with the tahini cauliflower though and take some pita chips to go, but put them in the trunk or they'll be gone before you arrive home. The casual laid back but happy vibe would be great for groups. The staff, especially Carmen, is top notch in hospitality. read more

Had high expectations from this place. Yesterday we came for lunch. The wrap. They use Tortilla. Suppose to be Lafa. Most of the meat was cold & very dry. Every thing was soaked in very watery thechina. Basicly like a burrito, but not enjoyable. Humus plate. Falafels were ok. Humus, so so. Pita, not really. Kind of flat bread (no pocket, not soft). Overall, disappointed. read more

This place seems expensive for what you get. I ordered the hummus plate with chicken, and since I'm gluten free, they would not give me rice instead of pita bread. They would just give me some raw vegetable sticks. Yuck. It was a HUGE bowl of hummus with 5 TINY pieces of chicken. I also ordered falafels on the side, which is yes, more chickpea. So not quite a complete meal. I ate a reasonable amount of hummus and most of it was to go. I suppose that is not a meant to be LUNCH plate, but a share plate/appetizer. However the fact that they offer a "protein" with it made me think it was a lunch plate for one person. I was still so hungry afterwards for some solid food, I went next door for a carnitas taco. $25 + tip is too much for what I got, and leaving hungry. The hummus itself was bland. Needed more tahini. The falafels were good and crispy, dipped in the tahini sauce. read more

Probably some of the best food I've had in a while. So fresh and innovative for "fast casual" and felt like a restaurant quality meal. I tried the pomegranate eggplant majadra and it was perfect! So flavorful and full of textures. Would order that again in a heartbeat. Pita and hummus also solid. Bright and airy space with lots of seating. Be prepared to show your vaccination card if eating indoors. Parking lot with meters was convenient and I got a spot during busy lunch time. read more

Pomella - Pomegranate eggplant Majadra Plate - Middle Eastern Near Me - Oakland, California

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I was looking very much forward to my Thanksgiving lunch (I'm an ER nurse working nights), but unfortunately I was very disappointed. Of the large order I placed (turkey roulade, gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans, salad, biscuits, pie & cheesecake)- the only truly palatable items were the desserts. The turkey was extremely dry, gravy tasted of raw flour, green beans were undercooked, and everything was underseasoned with a strange, off-putting sweetness (tarragon?). I shared the meal with my neighbors but was almost embarrassed to do so- and I can't help but consider it a waste of $145. read more

Pomella - dry mashed potatoes - Middle Eastern Near Me - Oakland, California

With one vegan and one celiac in the family, it is hard to find restaurants that accommodate everyone. Pomella does an amazing job with delicious food. Everything is good, but the butternut squash and quinoa salad is fab and the cheese filled falafel are a favorite. read more

Tasty food and quick service, outdoor seating was plenty and they have space heaters. I enjoyed my veggie tagine, it had lots of veggies and was well spiced. Their yemeni iced coffee was great too. my husband liked the lamb hummus. the falafels weren't crispy enough for me. There's plenty of street parking, would visit again if I'm in the area read more

Pomella - Veggie tagine (falafels in background, separate order) - Middle Eastern Near Me - Oakland, California

The food from this place is very fresh and delicious!! We keep on ordering online and we are always very satisfied with the food and service they provide! We highly recommended!! read more

The cheese stuffed falafel, eggplant mezze, and baklava (especially the pistachio!) was excellent but the rice we got with our majadra plate was surprisingly less flavorful than expected. I like the idea around reusable sustainable takeout containers (from Dispatch Goods), but I'm struggling to figure out a pickup window with my work schedule, especially since I live in a locked apartment complex where I can't just leave the containers outside. I'm a little hesitant ordering again until I've figured out how responsibly to return the reusable containers so that they don't pile up, perhaps when I have time to drive to a drop off site. read more

i haven't been to pomella in quite some time but memories from my last visit were all good. yesterday's visit was very bad. the second star is for the kind and patient service we received at the counter. the food was not good. we ordered the hummus with chicken shishlik, the lamb kefte, and the cauliflower. hummus was tasteless. i have had better hummus from from a store bought version at home for a fraction of the cost. but the worst part of this dish was the chicken. horrible. tasteless shards, unrecognizable in any way as chicken. no taste, nothing. cauliflower was the best dish but that's not saying much. it was more like a soup than a dish because of all the sauce they slathered on the cauliflower in the bowl. lamb kefte was so bad, rubbery and tasteless that we had to send it back. we explained how inedible it was and the cashier kindly replaced it with the lamb sirloin mezze. but that was subpar too. thankfully we only had the mezze so our bill wasn't too outrageous. but for the quality of food, i definitely feel that we were short changed. read more

Best hummus you'll find around here. In fact everything is very good. The attention to detail, the balance of flavors is excellent.

I was a big fan of Ba-Bite when it was open. One of the nice things about it was that they took care and time with each thing that was ordered. Unfortunately I do not see that happening here. I'll try to outline this succinctly: 1. they used to wrap their wraps in paper, and now they do it in foil, and insist on cutting it in a diagonal shape, for looks. This lends itself to the chance that your wrap will have aluminum shavings in it, which is precisely what happened to my partner. I also bit into some aluminum and now I'm overanalyzing whether my kidneys are going to do me well in the coming days. 2. their wraps are now extra soggy. We tipped the wrap and liquid literally just poured out onto the plate. This means that the lavash gets super wet and the wrap falls apart. Upon ordering a replacement (for the aluminum shard extravaganza), we got a wrap that wasn't cut, so we needed to share and as soon as we opened it up the whole thing just fell apart. No structure at all. 3. The prices are at least $3-4 more than they were at Ba-bite. There is no way that this is due to the pandemic. It's plain and simple price gouging based on their new location. 4. I feel like a lot of the flavors are not as good anymore. You can still taste Ba-bite in some of the bites, but it doesn't pop the same. Especially when your entire wrap is mushy. I've tried many of the other items, including the hummus (which used to be amazing) and it's simply not as good as it used to be. The recipes have changed, including the falafel which has not been fresh in the last two visits I've made (I've gone three times, just to be sure) 5. There are a number of items on the menu that cost too much. For example, the schug should be free; at least a small container of it. They now charge $2 for a small container, which I think deserves a star taken off just for that. But things like the coffee (which is overly sweet and doesn't have much caffeine) shouldn't cost $5. And I'm not sure I know _anyone_ who wants to order a $15 piece of strawberry rhubarb crisp. 6. The food seems to take a long time to come out, but in my experience has been generally cold. A lot of ingredients that should be hot, like the chicken, falafel, etc., are not. I don't know if this is an issue with them making orders in advance and them going bad, or if it's just a general lack of quality control. I would love to see the quality increase and the prices decrease, but I haven't seen that happen very often in the bay. I'll get back to my obsessing about the dangers of eating aluminum. read more

First let me say that I LOVE the food here but there's more to it than just the food. After multiple tries I can't help but admit that the attitude at this place is just plain aggressive. Basically the customer is ALWAYS wrong even if you haven't said a word. I've been 'scolded' several times for showing up too early to pick up an order, for online ordering something that they didn't have (my fault), asking for dressing on the side (not possible) - which is unfortunate as I've been a big fan and supporter, even subscribe to their newsletter. But this has happened enough times that I unfortunately think I'm done. I just don't want to deal with the aggression anymore read more

Pomella is one of my favorite places to eat in Oakland! I was deeply saddened by the closure of Ba Bite so I'm glad to be here, writing a review for Pomella in hopes that others can discover and sustain this great restaurant. Whether dining in or grabbing to-go, the meals are nourishing and the flavors are fresh and delicious. My partner and I regularly order the the butternut squash composed salad and chicken tagine with a side of hummus and pita bread. I recommend adding a large container of soup to any order, it's a great value, the options are rotated regularly, and it's a lovely way to stretch your Pomella experience to next day. The seasonal desserts are also delicious and not readily available at other establishments in the area. Due to Covid, I haven't attended any potlucks since Pomella opened but I'm looking forward to ordering large quantities of their salads for future picnics and potlucks with friends. I did this in the past at Ba Bite, ordering 3-4 composed butternut salads with the cheese on the side and it was always a huge hit, being a delicious, healthy addition to any group meal. I want to keep Pomella to myself but after losing Ba Bite, here I am, writing a review to share with the world. Keep this lovely restaurant growing! My only regret is that I cannot feasibly afford to eat here as often as I'd like (most days of the week). Mica, if you read this, please add a cookbook to your list of possible endeavors, I would treasure it and still continue to frequent your restaurant. Note: Parking can be tricky, whenever possible, I like to ride a bike or bring a friend along for pick-up process. read more

I really wanted to like this place and splurged on $60 worth of food for just myself because so many things seemed promising, and I don't mind leftovers but... the saffron rice - dry, had a weird stale taste, wasn't fragrant majadera - dry, lacking in flavor kefta kebabs - dry, lacking in flavor Pita - dry and tough, I ordered 2, and only ate 0.25 Schug - it was fine but overpriced for a tiny container Hummus - the Only good thing I got here. Creamy and delicious, but not very acidic so could use a squeeze of lemon juice if you like. I hate wasting food and tried really hard to eat everything, but ended up throwing most of it away after only a few bites. I only finished the hummus. Sadly, I will not be getting food from here again. read more

This places deserves to be outed...for having terrible food. It is dry, and poorly spiced, not authentic to the Middle East or Med region AT ALL. I can understand if you like it if you are unfamiliar with these flavors, but you should know they are culturally appropriated from Arabs (as this restaurant is Israeli), and can be much, much, much better. I had the lamb kefta and hummus and these are far, far, FAR cries from what these things usually taste like. read more

It's way too casual to be so pricey. Literally they got my order wrong and the guy walks out with a raiders jersey all casually asking what i want instead because all the salads have cheese on them. When i asked him what other salads were there he said "hold on, I gotta go get the r menu." I ended up paying $30 for a plate of falafel and hummus with brussels sprouts. Won't be back. Tahina in Alameda is 10x better and half the price for a fast casual spot. read more

I'd been wanting to try this place for a while. We ordered the salmon mezze, hummus plate with chicken and side of tzatziki. The salmon was very fishy tasting like it wasn't fresh, and undercooked for my liking. There is definitely better hummus and tzatziki for less money around, it wasn't bad. For the amount of food this place seems overpriced especially when there are places with better food. read more

When I want to treat myself for a beautiful yet healthy lunch this is where I go. Be warned it is a little pricey but definitely worth it. Everything I've had, mostly salads have been very fresh. At first you think the portion wouldn't be enough, but realize as you're eating it that, boy, this is a lot of salad. I usually pet a pita with it and I'm set the rest of the day until dinner. read more

Came here with friends during Halloween~ the inside is really pretty with the colour mural and the open space let's in a lot of light. I rarely have Mediterranean food but it was good! Felt very healthy eating everything ahaha. They even gave us complimentary cucumber ginger juice sort of thing. I loved their eggplant and falafel mezze. There are also real saffron in the rice plate which was great. read more

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Disappointing unfortunately. I should preface by saying I had high expectations and was hoping to like it. I live in Santa Cruz, so when I come to the East Bay or The City I'm seeking peak foodie experiences. I love Israeli food, the menu looked great, and seeing the high stars on yelp convinced me to try it. It was really difficult to choose what to order. I told the girl at the counter that I was trying to decide between lamb shawarma and felafel and she explained I could get the shawarma with a side of felafel so I could have the best of both worlds, which I thought that was very helpful. So I got the hummus plate with both. When the order came, it was a huge bowl of hummus with shawarma in the center, a small bowl of felafal balls with no accompaniment, side of techina, side of pita, side of beet colored assorted pickles. I was really shocked; there was not the usual accompaniments and important flavor elements that I'm used to seeing with a hummus bowl -- nothing like schug, amba, hot sauce, chopped salad, herbs, or other embellishments like pine nuts, French fries, or zaatar or what have you. The hummus was not a good Israeli hummus; it was a chore to eat it. It was paste-y and bland. The shawarma had a good melting texture but lacked flavor. There was no other elements to counterbalance so it was dryish. The shawarma came doused with oil, presumably olive oil, but the oil didn't have a good taste. What did taste really good was the pita and the pickles...but i was hoping for more Israeli cucumber pickles and there just two little slices there; the rest was cauliflower and beets. I asked someone who was bussing the surrounding tables if I could get a little side of schug. She said no but I could go inside and pay for one. Since I had already spent $30 on this lunch of a hummus bowl and iced coffee, I didn't really feel comfortable going and paying more for things like sauces, a side of Israeli salad, more pickles, etc. I'm not cheap in general but for a casual lunch at a cafe where you order at the counter, $30 seems like enough to get a satisfying plate of food at lunch. I would have liked to see a bit of schug, amba and Israeli salad come with the hummus bowl. That would have made sense to me. I think if that all was there I would have been able to enjoy the lunch even despite the hummus and shawarma being bland. But as it was I left with wrong side of the bed when you wake up feeling when I left. I hate leaving a review that may feel negative for an Israeli small business owner who I would love to support. Please don't see me as some cranky Hadassah lady style reviewer, as it's very rare for me to ever say anything negative about a restaurant on Yelp. Please take this as constructive criticism only, as I can sense the love put into creating this restaurant and don't wish to offend. read more

I love this place. The food is fun, delicious, and varied. I especially love the falafel, brussel sprouts, the arugula squash salad with quinoa. I also really appreciate their environmental commitment with reusable containers, which is a huge impetus for us to keep coming back to Pomella for take out. Oh, also their desserts are also off the hook (soooo good). Pomella sets a high bar and I'm so glad to have found such consistently great Middle Eastern food. read more

Just discovered this place by accident while eating next door. Menu looked good so we dove in. Great find! Healthy, casual, fast--a real winner! Great Middle Eastern Food is not easy to find in a fast casual setting. Highly recommend! read more

Yummy and healthy! Why did it take me so long to come here. I enjoyed both the the lamb kefta and the lamb rice plate. Maybe a little too much yogurt sauce, but I would just ask for them to go light on it or have it on the side for next time. Good seating. Heaters for outdoors as well. read more

Everything I have eaten from here is either great, or good. Particularly the falafel and eggplant. Their pita is delicious, as well. The food is fresh and delicious and I would gladly go back. Their tagine is more a soup than what I have experienced, which isn't bad, but it's a soup. The only problem I have is their salads. As of writing this they have six salads on their menu. All of them have cheese. Why? 1. The salad is often the refuge of the vegetarian / vegan / lactose / food intolerant and dairy is definitely high of the list of problem foods for those folk. 2. Cheese has a higher carbon footprint than pretty much everything except beef and lamb. 3. If you need to add cheese to a salad to get people to buy it, you need to make a better salad. read more

The place has a lovely casual patio, perfect to enjoy their delicious sangria. I haven't had a bad dish there. Especially love the hummus they make it with such a creamy texture and the pitas are so pillowy but have a nice chew to them. My favorite protein dish is the lamb kefta, very moist and seasoned well. To the people who complain about pricing if you want restaurants to pay a living wage and have good ingredients in a time of uncertain logistics its going to cost a little more! read more

When they say small plates, they really mean small plates. The food here is delicious, but the portions are a serious joke. They said the plates could be split between 2 people, but I'd say they're for 1. $7 for what's essentially half a chicken breast. $7 for 3 strips of eggplant. I will say they go heavy on the carbs and the rice and pita were enough for 3-4 people. Quality is good and the patio is nice which is why I gave 3 stars, but am always left feeling hungry after. read more

Unfortunately this place isn't what I wanted it to be. Loved Ba-Bite and was really happy when Pomella opened. It is painful to watch customers try to order from the confusing menu and the unwelcoming staff. We have had items missing from to go orders and the prices are just not worth what you get. I also am totally turned off by the gross reusable metal containers. Last time I ordered a beet salad to go and it was in one of those dumb containers and the whole ($16) side was no good by the next day because of all the holes in the lid. I bet most people throw the containers away instead of returning them. Oh and there is some sort of bag or packing fee on top of the already very expensive price. The food's just not that good to be nickel and dimed to death. read more