Damascena

I’ll have to come back for a proper review– we just popped in for a quick drink and some cake. It’s instantly got a great Arabic feel, with dark wood and low sofas, plus of course the menu! I had a Moroccan mint tea and some baklava– we sat outside in the lovely little courtyard, where we felt we could be anywhere but Birmingham.
As others have said the service was immensely slow– it was tea and some pastries they already had prepared so not sure why, but it was worth it on arrival. My tea glass was stacked with mint, and came with crystalised brown sugar on a stirring stick. Very refreshing, and I love baklava so always a win!
They serve Turkish coffees, and very interesting sounding hot chocolates…
I’d love to return for a lazy lunch– it shuts at 8pm so sadly not really a place I’d go for dinner really, but great atmosphere.

Fantastic café — felt like being in Morocco or somewhere similar. Love the décor and the sweet pastries are something to die for — simply delicious authentic middle eastern food. Loads of different teas too!

The restaurant has now expanded into the building at the rear. Far more covers, far more comfortable. Lovely food at very affordable prices.

It was one of my favourite places in Moseley. It is however sadly let down by snail paced service and inconsistency with food. Lamb shaslik, for example can be stunning or very dry, whereas the chicken wrap too often is drowned in oil. The hummus is as good as anywhere in the city. On its day it is an incredible middle-​Eastern experience, though it’s increasing popularity, and struggle to deal with this, mean those days are rarer than ever

Terrible customer service. Staff were very rude and couldn’t answer simple questions with regard to my dietary requirements.

Love this café. Great selection of teas, delicious food and friendly staff. A bit different to your usual cafes and I like it

Came here for a lunch meeting with Unilocal CM Vicky and I am so glad she introduced me to this place. Gorgeous drinks (I sampled a vanilla chai latte and a peach iced tea) and some wonderful middle Eastern food… It was tough to make a decision but in the end I went for some falafel, flatbread and hummus. The best thing is the price! Only just over £7 for two drinks and a large portion of lunch. I cannot wait to introduce this gem to my friends.

I spotted this place a while ago but not living in the area it has taken a while to get here-​luckily I got a living social voucher which made the afternoon tea even better;)
It’s a great little café situated right on the cross roads, so easy to get to and was easy to spot. There is outdoor seating, but the large windows mean it’s quite light and airy inside-​apart from the cosy snug area at the back:)
We were first given a selection of Mediterranean savoury pastries, which included lamb, pumpkin, feta cheese and mint-​they were light and fresh and would make a great snack! They were polished off very quickly;) There was a huge drinks selection. My friend had a chocolate milkshake, whereas I had a lime, mint and honey drink-​which was so zingy and thirst quenching-​yum:) I made a good choice, but next time I might go for the cinnamon tea.
After this our plates and drinks were cleared away and although we’d enjoyed it, we were disappointed not to try the tantalising desserts. Just as we were about to leave the waitress asked what we thought of them –lucky she did! A few minutes later a tray if baklavas and other traditional sweet pastries were brought out-​I absolutely love these! If you like honey and pistachios then these are for you! Definitely had our money’s worth!
There was a small deli section for Mediterranean spices, teas and coffees to take away, which was a nice touch.
I like the fact it’s open until 8pm during the week and even 6pm on a Sunday! I think Saturday is the busiest day so you may not get a seat. We went on Sunday as it was almost full at 3.30, but by 5pm it was nearly empty.
Definitely recommend a visit to anyone!

First time I came here was to meet up with the famous Richard T. and Jacqueline H. for our meet-​up. I adored the peppermint tea! I drink peppermint tea every single day, in fact I don’t drink anything else, seriously I don’t! Okay water too.
Their food is magical, it’s different and very fresh and something for every tastebud. And of course you have to try the cakes as well, because they are delicious. Great service and love the fact that you can have free Wi-​fi an essential ingredient to a really great place in the heart of Moseley.

Sat on the crossroads in Moseley Village, Damascena is the newest coffee shop and eatery to open its doors in the area. Described as ‘your local, far-​away coffee house’, with Middle Eastern stylings, food and drink, they offer an unique café experience.
As well as the familiar range of coffee drinks made using espresso as a base, smiling and welcoming staff will serve you to speciality hot drinks too, like Walnut and Cinnamon Tea and Moroccan Mint Tea, the latter made with a handful of fresh and zingy mint, which fills the air with sweet aromas.
There’s a naturally well-​lit main seating area at the front and in the back is a more dimly-​lit, cosy snug area with low level tables.
Damascena serve good, fresh wholesome food at amazing prices in the form of salads, mezes and sandwiches.
If you want to send your calorie intake through the roof, (and why not, you need them, it’s cold outside), then treat yourself to Afternoon Tea. Choose between different freshly-​baked meat, fish or cheese Fatayers, (Arabian pastries), served with pickled chillies, olives and hummous, and a choice of baklava and drinks.
Sat sipping authentically-​served Turkish coffee in the lantern-​lit back area in a cloud of e-​cig vapour, we feel a thousand miles away from the Midlands Winter. Talking of lanterns, Big Tent and the Gyspy Lantern were in there on the same day that we went. If it’s good enough for a world-​class folk band, then it’s good enough for us. Take the road to Damascena yourself sometime soon.

I just want thank Vicky for suggesting this place. I loovee this little café. I always see it when on bus to town or home and never gone in to try. I was meeting Vicky for brunch and this was the Point of interest. Good excuse for both of us to try this place as had opened for months now and never been.
Interior is really cool and middle eastern influences (atleast from thoughts of my small mind) they had arabic music in background playing and the stuff were pretty good.
I wanted to order everythig on menu. We were pretty hungry so we went for more than one thing. Had chicken shawarma and Lamb Pastry. And a Morrocan Mint Tea (weirdest tea I seen, but very cool looking) I love the sugar-​stick you get with hot drinks. I want to know how they did that. Anyway… tea was really nice.
The food was AMAZING. Chicken shawarma was juicy and delicious, lamb pastry was also very tasty. I wanted to keep eating but I knew I was full. Will be back for the other stuff and the cakes me and Vicky resisted
Highly recommend Damascena to all. Great to have a variety of cafés from the Starbucks and the Costas.

I have found a little slice of heaven in Moseley and it’s name is Damascena. I spotted this place once it had opened on one of my many summer jaunts into the area and had it picked out as a place I had to pop into. Time went by and the time never really presented itself… A lunch with Unilocal Elite Mohamade provided the perfect excuse to head down and check it out.
This Syrian themed gem isn’t huge, but the warm welcome will make you feel like the most important customer of the day. I popped in and initially grabbed a table by the big glass windows and ordered a Moroccan Mint Tea whilst I waited for my lunch partner to arrive. As you can see from my photos, this was something really special. Packed full of fresh mint leaves and served with a sugar stirrer, I felt whisked away to a land of hot, dusty streets and endless sunshine.
After I had finished, I moved to the snug at the back of the venue to get a bit of work done. This area provides sofa style seating and big squishy pillows, perfect to chill out in of a day or an evening (the venue is open until 8pm most days).
Once Mo had arrived, we moved to a larger table area back out the front and ordered more drinks and some food. I opted for the Damascena tea (a black tea, this time) and three Tahini lamb pastries, alongside a lamb soup. I couldn’t get over the prices. The soup was around £2.15 and the pastries were 95p each (although there was a deal to buy three). All the food was tasty, warming and fresh; perfect to chase the cold wintry chill away.
I ended up spending a good 4 hours in this venue and never once felt ill at ease or rushed. This place would be great for a catch up with friends, a date or a lunch in the week. I WILL be back, it’s just a matter of how soon I can make it… Highly recommended.

Stopped in for a quick bite, and discovered one of the nicest cafes I’ve been to in years. It’s cozy, with cute seating. Everything is pretty and tastefully decorated in keeping with the Middle Eastern vibe.
I had a tahini lamb pastry, and it was some of the best food I’ve had! I can’t rave enough in one review. The meat pastries are cooked to order, not microwaved or served cold out of the case. The whole café smells of herbs and strong coffee.
I will be back to try one of everything on the menu!

Lovely Coffee shop in the heart of Moseley. A Middle Eastern theme, with traditional tea and coffee as well as Hummus, wraps and a wide selection of tasty cakes!
Free Wi-​Fi throughout the café, as well as outdoor seating.
Try the Mint Tea! :-)