Al-Hana

I usually get the shawarma sandwich, it is awesome! Their garlic sauce is divine as is their hummus. Today I had the chicken shawarma plate. Juicy and tender and full of flavor. Love their little meat pies too and one must always leave room for desserts! Customer service is good.

We had the chicken and beef shawarma sandwiches and it was delicious!!! Would definitely come back to eat and try different menu items.

I spent 9 months in the middle east and fell in love with street shawarmas. Ive recently moved back to the Valley and my cravings started so I went on a hunt… after trying a few spots out I finally found (for now) the closest thing to a street shawarma. this thing might even be better as the ingredients are much fresher than a shawarma made in the slums of Bahrain. they wrap it the way its supposed to (ive noticed a lot of places around here are turning them into sandwiches) and the chicken is thin enough to be crispy but it is still juicy and the veggies are fresh and crunchy. I believe they even had cucumber chunks in there. dont forget to stop in the back and get the best Baklava known to man. good job guys!!!

I have been going to Baiz for a while now. My mother introduced me to the store. I usually get like 15 bags of the freshly baked pita bread. And I always hit up the Backlawa counter. I have tried everything back there. They have the best Backlawa I have had in PHX period. I then go to the cooler and get 2 – 3 different flavors of Aziza soda. Baiz is the only middle eastern store/​rest I have been to in AZ to carry authentic middle eastern sodas. These sodas go so well with the food and are absolutely gourmet. As I do my shopping I am usually waiting on my food from the rest. I usually get the shish kabob plate. Today they accidentally gave me lamb kabob. It was very good. However I prefer the shish kabob. The food at al-​Hana rest is absolutely delicious. I mean authentic to the core. I am pushed to say the Middle East may have (some of) the best tasting food. And Baiz does it better than right. Middle eastern food is good anyway. However, Baiz gives you excellence.
I will say one thing though.
I have had many experiences unfortunately of bad customer service. Mainly from the Mexicans working in the rest, and even some of the middle eastern girls. I have made several complaints. Some of The staff have been very rude. I’ve even resorted to wearing a hijab once to fit in. Middle eastern girl at counter Still rude. However the owner is truly a nice man. Your experience there does depend on who is working for the day.

I used to come here all the time and it seemed like they had way more business before when they took phone orders for pick up. They said they no longer do phone orders because people dont pick up. So why not take credit cards over the phone to ensure payment? If they dont show up then they charge the card… simple as that. So now i have to go through the trouble of waiting 15 minutes for a to go order?

This deli/​café is excellent. In my opinion, the most authentic place in town. It’s located inside of Baiz Market. The pita is fresh, the shawarma is cooked on a rotiserie. No complaints with the quality of food.
However, you will have to put up with some chaos. They do not take orders in an orderly manner. You just stand near the counter and eask the patrons «are you waiting to order or waiting for food» There is no line.
What is worse is the parking lot situation. It is too small for the volume that they do. So people make up parking spaces or wait for someone to leave. The last two times I was their there were minor accidents in the parking lot.
They are supposed to be opening a new Baiz Market on Dobson/​Baseline. This needs to happen sooner rather than later. They have out grown their old location.

It’s inside Baiz market. I got the lamb kabob plate it’s only $ 8.99. It comes with great hummus, onion, pickle, tomatoes, and a amazing yellow Jasmine rice. Two pitas come as a side. You can bring your own bottle of water or buy one here. Chicken has been dry a few times so I only order it in a sand which which has a sauce on it.
If you like to travel take a look around the market and it will make you feel like you are in a distant land. I love the candies and butcher shop area. It’s another world!

Not sure what happened to this place over the years. Customer service has gradually gone down and they no longer take phone orders for to go food. But if you order the Shish kafta, they warn you its at least a 15 minute wait… so you’re forced to wait amongst the sea of annoyed and somehow always angry customers. The food is good and fairly priced, which is the only thing that brings me back every once in a while.

I was looking forward to some good Middle Eastern food when I went to Al-​Hana and did not have a good experience. Maybe the food used to be better, but it was not good when I went.
I ordered the Chicken Shawerma, and it was not good at all. The chicken was over cooked and cut into little tiny pieces (mistake number one chef). It was over salted and was not seasoned well at all (lot’s of cury). The rice was very very greasy??? Why would you want your rice to be greasy and your chicken dry? The pita was fine, but that was out of a bag.
I didn’t come here for the ambiance, and this in no way is reflective of my review, as I almost exclusively review on food quality and service standards. But, there was a guy sitting next to me who kicked off his shoes and sat indian style with the bottoms of his gross dirty feet staring up at me. When his food arrives he starts ripping apart his chicken legs with his hands and mixing them with his rice and lettuce and whatever else was on his plate. Then he starts eating with his hands, shoveling the meat and rice mixture in his mouth a handful at a time. Witnessing this did nothing to help my experience; but again, this is just what I experienced and not a reason for my rating of this restaurant.
I love Middle Eastern food and I hope this establishment can turn it around, as I want everyone to succeed if they work hard at something. However, currently I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone.

This little restaurant is amazing. As authentic as it gets (as far as I know). With cheap prices and traditional food, you cannot go wrong.
Chicken Shwarmas, babaganoush, hummus, falafel, pies, and kabobs are delicious.
Baklava from the bakery area is amazing as well.
I do suggest covering up your shoulders and wearing pants, as there are a lot of Muslims who frequent the store and restaurant. I felt uncomfortable wearing shorts and a tank my first visit (which was during the summer) but it was my mistake.

Ordered some tabouli and hummus, both delicious. Comes with pita bread which was a nice surprise. I was able to order, get in line and pay for my groceries, and waited a few minutes before my food was ready. It spilled a bit in the bag, but that may be from the drive home. It was busy too, which is good to see. That means people enjoy the food.

It was alright. After reading reviews, I expected better.
Restaurant is located inside a really cool market, so spend some extra time looking around. The produce and meat is worth a trip back.
You order at the counter and the girl who took our order repeated some special instructions, but they were either not written down for the kitchen or the cook just ignored them. After waiting for the food, we just decided to pick out what we didn’t like rather than return the item.
You have to get your drinks from a cooler. There’s more than the one near the counter, so look around if you don’t see what you like.
The menu is pretty standard middle eastern fair. I got a chicken shawarma sandwich. It was okay. The hummus was good. The pita a bit flat and dried out for my taste.
Prices were good.
A word on the neighborhood. Yes, it’s not your typical trendy location and there’s a lot of poverty around, but that can be said for a lot of neighborhoods in the Phoenix metro area. I’ve been afraid in some South Scottsdale places and there are some areas in North Phoenix that are down right nasty.
Part of the charm of places like Al-​Hana is where you find them. It’s those immigrant, ethnic places that you know are authentic and have yet to be stamped with watered down big box culture. I guess if you’re not up for an eating adventure, there’s got to be an Olive Garden holding a booth in your name!

Really good stuff. Authentic. Wide variety of food on offer. The staff is small so sometimes they can get really busy and you see the staff working really hard right there. The restaurant makes the knefah dessert right there so it’s fresh (and good) — very few restaurants make their own.

I visited Al-​Hana for the first time today for an Unofficial Unilocal Event with Rand H., Robyn N., Mike C., Jackie C. and the other Jon H. I enjoyed some great Hummus and Pita Bread plus my main course of Lamb Kafta for $ 8.99 and a can of soda for $.099; this meal set me back $ 10.75 today.
Prior to arriving, I perused some reviews and the menu. Pro Tip — this place is not located in the ghetto as some reviewers have mentioned. I did not have to use any of my martial arts training to get into and out of the restaurant. There was decent parking at about 11:10 when I got there.
As I’m writing this review 4 hours later, I can tell you that I’m still stuffed. I really enjoyed my food along with conversations with my awesome lunch companions. Thanks to Rand for «inviting» me. I probably would have not tried this place otherwise.

Food in this place is alright and it is a little overpriced compare to other MiddleEaster eateries.
I ordered Lamb Kebob sandwich. It tasted alright not something I will ever order again. It had only three small pieces lamb and the rest was vegetable.
I won’t eat here again that is for sure. I rather do the drive and go to Haji Baba

— — — — — -CASH Preferred. Credit Card — $ 10 minimum — — — — —
This is important if you’re a single as most things on the menu are less than $ 10. This place does not have filtered water or even water from a tap. So, don’t forget to grab your drink and pay for it with your food. I didn’t realize I could not get a cup of water when I ordered/​paid for my food, so I ended up drinking a bottle of warm water in my car when I was done eating. Meh.
This restaurant is down a street I would never drive down. Most people would probably never pass this store in their commute to any place in the Valley. The restaurant itself is located inside of a middle eastern (maybe Islamic/​Kosher/​?? as there are no pork products in this store) grocery store. You will not see the name «Al-​Hana» on the outside when you drive up, so don’t be confused.
I had lunch here last week with the Unilocaler lunch UYE group with Rand H. I tried their chicken schwarma and the fatoosh. Both tasted very good to me. I thought the chicken was over cooked, but the flavor was still there and exceptionally good.
The fun part about eating here is exploring the grocery store and standing out like a sore thumb. I loved checking out all the products. The herbs and spices you find in whole foods for astronomical prices are not so expensive in there.
I would love to go back and try this place, when I have cash on me. I hope the 2^nd time is the charm!
— — — — — -CASH Preferred. Credit Card — $ 10 minimum — — — — —

I used to love you, Al-​Hana. I have fond memories of enjoying good food and good company while sitting at your little wobbly tables and chairs. I fell in love with your babaghannuj. Yes, you had a lot going for you.
I was disappointed, but kept coming back, when you decided to raise the price on Every Single Item I Like, while making all of the portions smaller. I understood that you have to pay for those new glossy menus with the pretty pictures somehow even though I liked the old menu board with the plastic letters just fine, thanks. I settled for slow and sometimes surly service from your staff. Why? Because I loved you.
Well, I think our one-​sided relationship has come to an end. That last visit — you know, the one where you gave our food to another customer (uh, you were confused?), and left us waiting for over 35 minutes without an apology while fulfilling orders for people who arrived and ordered much much later? That will be my last one.
I especially will cherish the charming way in which the ‘manager’ grudgingly provided a refund for the food I never received. «Do you want to return the water as well?» Um, no. Since I had to get it out of the cooler myself, I actually received that portion of what I ordered. Thanks.
Keep your rising prices and shrinking portions. You are no longer worth my affection.

Lebanese food is one of my favorite cuisines. Having heard about this combined market/​restaurant, and seen it on Howard Seftel’s list of top Middle Eastern restaurants in Phoenix, I decided to check this place out. I couldn’t decide whether it sounded more like a Haji Baba or Café Istanbul type place.
Upon entering the facility, it became clear that this place is much more market than the aforementioned establishments. It’s basically a grocery store, with a little corner cordoned off for the restaurant. There is no table service; you order at the counter. The menu consists of appetizers, salads, pies (I may have to venture into this territory; it’s something Café Istanbul and Haji Baba don’t have), plates, and sandwiches.
I was disappointed to find that they don’t have lamb tongue, and that they were out of soujouk and ma’anek. I went with the lamb sandwich, which didn’t have the lamb in kabab form like you would expect, but rather as a ground-​up kafta type of consistency.
The sandwiches weren’t huge, but I will say, that lamb was nicely flavored. And my dining companion mentioned that the beef shawarma was pretty tasty as well. The food really is pretty good.
Café Istanbul still has this place beat. This is true when it comes to food, but even more so when it comes to ambiance. But it’s nice that there is a respectable place to get Middle Eastern food in downtown Phoenix.

The City of Angles, Los Angles, has to be one of my favorite foodie destinations. Pretty much every food trend over the past 5 years or so has its epicenter in LA. From Korean style frozen yogurt to cupcakes and now food trucks, the people of LA know a good thing when they taste it. While all of these trends have some how made their way to the Valley of the Sun, there’s one thing that I’ve never been able to find here, garlic sauce like the one that’s served at the LA institution Zankou Chicken.
If you’ve heard of Zankou and its amazing Lebanese chicken and tangy fluffy garlic sauce you know exactly what I mean when I say it’s ethereal. For those who’ve never tried it either pack an overnight bag and head to LA or drive down to 20^th Street and Van Buren to Al-​Hana inside of Baiz market, its the closest thing to Zankou Chicken in Phoenix and its close location makes it even better.
The area located around Baiz Market might seem a little rough around the edges but the market itself is clean, well lit and packed with all sorts of interesting Middle Eastern grocery items from dairy and fresh produce to meat and hookah paraphernalia. Tucked in the corner of the market is Al-​Hana, a postage stamp sized restaurant specializing in, you guessed it Middle Eastern cooking.
While the offerings might seem typical the flavors are bold and shouldn’t be missed. The creamy roasted eggplant dip Babaghannuj ($ 4.49) had a smokiness usually not found in many other places. Al-​Hana leaves their version thick and chunky with just the right amount of olive oil drizzled over the top.
Ordering the Falafel Plate ($ 5.99) will get you 6 deep fried cumin scented pucks of ground chickpeas and fava beans. Pile a couple of these onto a freshly baked pita, slather with tahini and enjoy the crunch. Id also highly recommend the Labneh Pie ($ 2.99) which is filled with labneh, a Lebanese cream cheese, onions and tomatoes all baked in a light tender crust.
The main dish for me was of course the Whole Roasted Chicken ($ 9.99). It comes with pita, pickles and garlic sauce. The chicken itself is so well seasoned and juicy it would seem like a crime to adorn it with anything until you get some garlic sauce on it. The texture is light and fluffy, almost like a garlicky mayonnaise. After one taste you might ask them for another container, seriously delicious.
After a wonderful meal you’d think there wouldn’t be enough room left for desert, but my rule is there’s always room. With that I sauntered to the back of Baiz Market where their in store bakery is located, most of the case filled delights are around $ 2 each including a flaky syrup soaked baklava.
While I love LA, knowing that I don’t have to drive 300 miles to get my garlic sauce fix makes the drive across town all the tastier.
Al-​Hana inside Baiz Market
Open Daily

Holy price increases value man!
We knew something was up when the faithful menu board was down, there are new glossy printed menus, with new higher prices to match. The falafel is now 4.49 up from 2.99 a 50% increase. Most other items went up by $ 1 to $ 1.50
For that price the falafel is rather small and does not include any sides.
I still like the overall quality and taste of the food but the value factor bottomed out with this one move.
One a positive note we finally found a can of hummus on the grocery side that is good, and the fresh bags of pita are still .99 so you can still have a ton of pita and humus for $ 2.50 or less.