Fez Bistro

i miss this place :(oh well!

Gear service nice music great bartender donya good hookah try grape mint and good merlot

First, know that this (apparently) is a hookah bar, first and foremost, not a restaurant. I mean, it’s a restaurant, sure; but the prices, and especially the décor, give it away that it’s really something else. People told us it’s packed on Friday and Saturday nights late — maybe that’s true. But it was nearly empty when we went around 7pm on a Friday night just for dinner. So know that this review is based on it as a restaurant, not a hookah bar or music venue. If you’re into that, maybe this is more for you. But as a Moroccan restaurant on its own… it ain’t that great. In particular, Taste of Morocco in Arlington blows this place out of the water, and for less money.
About that décor — this is the most outrageously disco place I’ve ever stepped foot into, at least since our neighborhood roller rink when I was a kid. As in, there’s an actual disco ball spinning on the ceiling. There’s also a whole wall of LED lights flashing in patterns and rhythm behind the stage, giving the room a vibe about as sophisticated as watching a life-​size Colecovision. At one point, it shows a galloping horse in glorious low-​def. Seriously, it’s so cheesy I kept looking around for the stripper pole.
We figured our coupon would cover a soup, an appetizer, a bastilla and one main (a couscous), which should have been more than enough for us. Well… the harrira soup tasted like Campbell’s tomato that someone added lentils to, and based on the texture I strongly suspect that’s what it is. The bastilla was okay, but smaller than I expected (it was supposed to be for 2 people), and soggy on the bottom. The eggplant appetizer was nice, spiced with harissa and tangy tomato paste. But the lamb couscous was less than expected — just a few bites of lamb in a plate of couscous, a few raisins, and literally nothing else. By the end, I actually was still a bit hungry.
The bill — they overcharged us for the lamb couscous by $ 2. The waitress just shrugged her shoulders and said it was what the system charged, despite the menu clearly stating a different price. It’s one of the main menu items. She did to her credit go back and change it, but that’s a clear red-​flag.
As others have said, every customer also gets charged an automatic 18% gratuity, no option. Given that service wasn’t that great — other than bringing water when we walked in, we basically never saw the server again, and my glass went dry most of the meal — that’s insulting.
Bottom line, for about $ 8 – 10 less (ignoring our coupon), we could have gone to the far superior Taste of Morocco in Arlington and had one of their meals for two. That would have yielded a) much more and better food, b) a superior bastilla, c) belly dancing (which doesn’t start until after 10pm at Fez, and as others pointed out, likely would have garnered us a cover charge), d) real mint tea (which Fez also apparently doesn’t have), and e) way better service. We only went because we had a LivingSocial coupon; without that, it’s not likely we’d go back.
Sorry Fez — you’re not my cup of (overpriced plain black) tea.

We bought a coupon for Fez Bistro on Living Social and decided to give it a try. Thinking that there would be more activity we went on a Saturday night. Wrong. Upon arrival there was one other couple, a bored bartender and two waitresses in the whole place. I wonder how they are still in business. The dining room was tired with ripped seats and was next to a dance floor with small flashing lights. No atmosphere at all. I ordered the chicken shawarma which seemed dry and my husband had lamb and cous cous. The lamb was grisly and there was too much cous cous on the plate. The sodas cost $ 2.99 which was a rip off. Service was OK but could not make up for the poor food and atmosphere. They added 18% to the bill for a tip which is too high for this type of place. Our bill for two entrees, a soup and two sodas was over $ 40. I can see why people are flocking to fast casual restaurants like Panera Bread. No tip and good low priced food.

One of the Worst Restuarant I ever visited. Went there via livingsocial deal on Sunday night around 7.45 PM. No hostess and loud music going on. I had look for waitress/​hostess after waiting on door for 3 – 4 mins.
There was just one more table occupied besides ours, which I dont worry about. First they give us a menu which did not have any vegetarian dishes. Upon asking for veg dishes, they bring a different menu. I am like what is going on?
Since their Bastilla was so famous, we ordered one. Turns out they were out of it @ 7.45 PM. We asked, why cant they make it, then we hear that Chef left for the day. We are like it isnt even 8 yet. First we ordered hummus and soup, which were alright.
We also ordered Morrocan Mint Tea, which was super expense ($ 5 for tea) and super crappy. All we got was black tea with boiled water. I love morrocan mint tea, but this aint it. This had no mint, no flavor. It wasnt even a good black tea. And they charged $ 5 for it??? This was begining of RIP OFFS.
Anyhow, we ordered two dishes, one vegetables with Couscus and another chickpeas with vegetables. All we got is rice and couscus with boiled vegeratbles. No spicing of any kind on these. I am like, what the heck. But at this time, we just wanted to leave as soon as we could. We asked them for boxes, for which I had to go and find the waitress again. Then we waited for another 5 mins, but no check was forthcoming. So we again went and personally requested for the check.
Here is where rip off goes to next level. The check had automatic 18% gratuity added. We are like what is this. They tell me that they do that automatically for everyone. We are like why? Then she had audacity to tell me that it is for the SERVICE. Service? What service? I had to go find you 3 times, even though there were two tables occupied in resturants with 2 servers. Needless to say that, we told them to take that charge out and ran away from the place as fast we could.
DO NOT GO THERE. IT IS TOTALLY A RIP OFF PLACE

very disappointed with the service this place had to offer. I am somewhat of a regular here and I only come for smoking hookah therefore, I’m not familiar with much on ordering with them. My previous visit however was why I’ve decided not to visit them anymore. I asked for a glass of water alongside with the inexpensive hookah (Al-​fakher) which was $ 14.99. Two bottles of water were placed on the table for my friend and I and I told the server I wanted a glass of water, I did not ask for bottled water. The server went on to argue to me about how they cannot void an already started transaction and I was stuck with paying $ 10 for something I did not even ask for. After removing the bottles from our table and promising to «be right back» I never saw them approach us again. They kept pointing at us and fiddling with the register. When I was ready to pay for my hookah, I had noticed they charged me for the more expensive hookah ($ 17.99) and took off the water. I went ahead and paid with the promise never to return. Very unprofessional, horrible customer service & little to no communication. I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone.

6 PM Friday night, we walked in. Nobody else there. DJ setting up. A couple of wait staff. They were friendly. We ordered a dish that would supposedly have nice chunks of lamb, instead got lamb pieces that were ½ bone. Took the bones home for the dog. Fresh bread with couscous was delicious however. Very dark inside, which is maybe great for a party but challenging for diners. Zero atmosphere. To be fair, I assume we weren’t their target clientele. Looks like a late-​night disco joint.

We went here on a Tuesday night around 7. The place was dead, as (mostly) expected. There was a Bolivian teenage dance group practicing when we went in, but it didn’t really bother us– at least there was some entertainment. The place was oddly decorated for a weeknight– black lights and rope lighting everywhere. I think there was a strobe light too, and a disco ball.
We ordered the most expensive prix fixe meal for three people. We asked the waiter if we could substitute one of the tagines with the royal couscous (since the menu indicates this is possible for an extra $ 4), and he said it was no problem.
At least 35 minutes later, our salads arrive. There were a few tablespoons each of eggplant spread, baba ghanouj, and hummus along with 3 falafels. 35 minutes to deep fry 3 falafels?! Also, the platter was missing two salads according to the menu. Next was the bastille, which was admittedly tasty. Then, our spicy chicken tagine and «royal couscous.» The spicy chicken tagine was amazing and our favorite item. The royal couscous… the menu said it came with «lamb shank, roasted chicken, merguez (sausage) and seven kinds of vegetable.» What we got was couscous with 3 pieces of lamb and 4 vegetables– that is if you count chickpeas as a vegetable. We asked our waiter where the merguez was and he responded with, «well, we ran out of it. I thought about telling you earlier, but I… I forgot.»
Then, the bill came, with an 18% tip added. I’m not tipping a waiter 18% for «forgetting» to tell me that they were out of the key ingredients to the dish we specifically asked for. I went up to the bar and very politely asked the owner to remove the 18% tip so I could add in an amount that I felt was appropriate. When I explained the couscous debacle to her, rather than apologize for her waiter’s rather rookie mistake, she snippily responded, «Oh the feast doesn’t come with the royal couscous, that’s another feast on the menu, didn’t you read the menu?» She didn’t seem to care much that we specifically asked the waiter if we could substitute the royal couscous for one of the tagines the feast came with, the fact that the menu says you can substitute any entrée on the menu for an extra $ 4, or that her waiter had told us that he would in fact substitute said entrée with the royal couscous.
In short, weak ambiance, bad service, but decent food– if you are dying for Moroccan, either get take-​out from here or go somewhere else.

Delicious and flavorful food. My husband and I had not had Moroccan food since we went to Morocco 4 years ago. We ate so much Tangine dishes to the point that we were so happy to eat pasta on the last day of our trip.
We found this place through Living Social and decided to purchase it since it had been a long time that we last ate Moroccan food. We arrived at 6:30 pm and the place was empty which was fine with us since we don’t want to be in a smokey environment anyway.
We ordered Harrira soup and Eggplant Salad for the appetizers and Chicken Bastilla and Spicy Chicken Tangine for main course. We enjoyed our dinner and wished that we had not waited so long to eat Moroccan food.
18% gratuity was added to our bill. I’m not sure if that is the regular practice or it’s because our voucher was $ 40 and the amount of food we purchased didn’t come up to $ 40 so they were trying to reach that amount. Either way, we were okay with it.

We got a AmazonLocal coupon for this place so we thought we would give Fez Bistro a try.
For a Saturday night — this place was almost empty. We were one of three couples in the place. The ambiance was awful. There were bright white fluorescent lights on in the ceiling near the front door — and one in the middle of the inside of the restaurant. Awful. And there are really nice Moroccan lanterns hanging from the ceiling that would cast a much better glow than the fluorescent lights do!
The restaurant had the feeling of a nightclub with disco lights and the disco ball going with no one on the dance floor and in the middle of dinner hours. The food was great, but the service was painful. There were two women servers to cover the entire restaurant — and being that the place was empty — that was okay. But the whole time we were there the two women were at the end of the bar playing on their cell phones laughing.
I ordered a house red wine, and received what tasted like a wine that was a month old.
Although Fez Bistro is located in a small, no-​name strip plaza, this place could have done better for itself. The servers didn’t even try to make their customers feel welcome with a smile or small talk. And what makes matters worse — the restaurant’s front lighted sign wasn’t even turned on to attract passers-​by.
I probably wouldn’t even go back for lunch, because Fez divided a portion of their restaurant off for a daytime «lunch-​only» section. And that part is so stark and bleak that you feel like you’re in a tiled restroom.
Although there was a full bar — there was NO ONE there on a Saturday night. Granted we were there at 7pm — but again — they could have better attendance.
I will not go back — because there are so many restaurants out there that show that they appreciate your business — and on your way out the door they thank you for your business and ask for you to come back soon.
And what added insult to injury — like other raters already covered — they added an 18% tip on to the bill automatically. We gave no more than they already charged us.
The only redeeming value is their food. So if service, ambiance, and décor don’t matter to you, then come on in.

First of all this place doesn’t even deserve one star. The service was horrible. I asked for them to replace the tea two times because it was lukewarm and didn’t taste right and still couldn’t make me a simple black tea without sugar and without mint after giving specific instruction in what type of tea I want. The are way overpriced. Compared to other hookah places this place by far has the worst service, worst food and worst hookah. By the way they charge $ 18 for their hookah during the normal weekdays too. Their glass of tea is $ 5. Its insane how overpriced this place is. I don’t recommend this place at all. I don’t know how this place got 4 stars. Ive been to most hookah bars in the area and by far this is the worst. If you wanna have fun and have a great meal go to friends kabob, fairuz or Moe’s hookah lounge.

I stopped in here late one night for a drink with a buddy. They had a really great duo playing music on an everchanging combination of electric keyboard, violin, flute, etc. The drinks were good, the atmosphere was very pleasant, and the people very friendly. I’ll definitely be going back. I saw some hookahs behind their bar, not sure if that’s an option, but will certainly inquire next time.
They lost a star because they added a $ 5 cover to our tab for the music, without anyone telling us. I would have paid it voluntarily, but unadvertised charges are never a good thing.

It’s been a while since I’ve been there, but it was great both times. Delicious food, not very expensive, service I forget so it couldn’t have been too bad. I think we had bastillas and tagines; I seem to remember particularly one with chicken and almonds.
BUT…
We just went there again last Friday… or at least we tried to. Now that I check the web site it seems to be open only 9 PM to 2 AM, having converted from «restaurant» to «nightclub» or some such. Bummer for us, we were there at 7, which is a bit late for us (wife and self) anyway. That’s how we wound up at Myanmar (a couple doors down), which I can’t really recommend.

Rip off!!! Cover charges, expensive drinks, slow service for an «okay» hookah experience in the middle of nowhere

Terrible service, average food, overpriced ($ 5 for a bottled water?!). Went because I had a
certificate, but I’d probably not go again.

I would give it 0 stars if I could! First time I have ever walked out of a restaurant. AWFUL SERVICE! We were there for 2 hours and never received more than bread. No one around us did either. We had a groupon so we ordered the «feast» that was supposed to come with soup. I asked what kind of soup and the waiter went to ask, he came back no problem. Then 30 minutes later he came to say there wasn’t any soup and would I like a salad instead. Wondering why he didn’t find this out the first time I said yes. 90 minutes later no salad either.

Try to make this short. Gave it a try because had a groupon and have noticed it a few times driving past for work. We went on a tuesday at 6pm we were the only group in the whole place, which was fine with me. Ordered the Lamb couscous and gf got the Spicy chicken, we shared the dishes both thought they were great. I would go back again if I lived in the area. Service was good, nice guy

I had a different experience then some of the folks below… We walked in, party of 2, and the place was empty. Granted it was about 9pm on a Wednesday night. We were seated, choose a seat, any seat, and there was a DJ that was getting ready for the 1030 «club night.»
Food was superb. Best Bastilla… mmmmmm beat out a place I went to in Morocco. Ordered the Chicken… scarfed the thing, it was so good.
Also ordered the Lamb with Vegetables Tangine and the T’Faya Cous Cous with meat (lamb).
The dishes were all excellent and of decent portion as well.
Used a groupon… 18% gratituity oddly enough was added to the check. That’s fine though… as I would’ve tipped that much for the solid service and excellent food.
Definitely recommend you try this place– get the Chicken Bastilla!

I really want to give Fez four stars, but I cannot because the service was so dismal. Now, I know our server was really inexperienced, but the service was just painful. It was really busy and our server was really nice and seemed to be trying, but service was slow, our bill was wrong, and we were given incorrect items. In addition, restrooms were out of towels and soap by the end of the night, though they were clean.
The food was great and I would probably go back. I mostly went for drinks, so we had some appetizers — tabouleh, grape leaves, and stuffed kubbe. All delicious and filling, though I do wish pita would have been served with the tabouleh. The table next to us got the bastilla, which I love, and want to go back to try, along with a full meal. The drinks were really strong, so that is a plus. Apple hookah was enjoyable.
This restaurant is fairly new, though the owners have another restaurant, but some kinks are probably being worked out. I wish Fez well and I might be back!