Mazza - Salt Lake City

This is one of my favorite restaurants in Salt Lake. The location is amazing and the atmosphere of the restaurant is just as fantastic. Every time I have been there the staff is so kind and genuine. There’s not a bad item on the menu and the wine recommendations are always spot on.Food: 5/5

This was our first time eating at Mazza. In order to be fair with this review, I acknowledge I have not tried many Middle Eastern restaurants. My best friend loves this restaurant, and that's worth mentioning. Service was good, I appreciated the recommendations. There are many food options that for all, including vegan and vegetarian. It's small, so reservations are a must. I would like to go back and try their Lebanese wines.

We have a few favorites in the neighborhood so we thought we’d give Mazza a try. The service was adequate, just enough attention, but nothing spectacular. Similar to the food. Not bad, but nothing to get too excited about. I don’t mention salads much but mine was saturated with vinegar, super sour. The lamb shank was tender and tasted good but about average flavor for what I’ve had before. The chicken shawarma was the same, decent flavor but forgettable. The ambience was great and quite busy right before closing time. Maybe I caught them on a bad night but not sure I’d go again with better options nearby. Edit: Management reached out to me. For that, I bumped them up a star and will probably stop in again sometime. Folks who can take criticism and not get upset are super admirable in my book. Nomad East and Sasa Kitchen are two of my local favorites.

Night two of our three-night visit to Salt Lake City was to Mazza 's restaurant. We were most excited to dine here since the chef was selected as a finalist for the James Beards Best Chef Mountain region. We will be at the awards program in Chicago and will cheer for Ali Sabbah, the owner of Mazza for the past 23 years.Mazza, like Oquirrh the night before, has an intimate dining room. But unlike Oquirrh, it has a extensive menu of incredible Lebanese and Middle Eastern delicacies. If you care about what you eat, you should know Mazza uses all-natural, vegetarian-fed and mostly locally sourced chicken, beef and lamb. What you notice about intimate restaurants is the quality of their wait staff. Our server, Christina, was uber friendly and excited to greet us and make our meals spectacular. But the best part was when the chef came out and started working the tables. Ali is super proud of his restaurant and his legacy. He oozes warmth and pride. He gave us his recommendations on what to order and checked in on us several times to get our reaction to what we just finished. This quote really sums up Ali: I don 't call myself a chef. I 'm just a cook. A chef, to me, is someone who has attended culinary school and has a degree. This is the restaurant to come to if you have a big appetite. The house specialties are large servings. No cocktails, but a large selection of Mediterranean beer and wine. We started with Labneh, which is a Lebanese thick strained yogurt drizzled with olive oil, and the twice-fried House Fries with aioli sauce. Both were super delicious. Ali suggested our entrees, the Chicken Potatoes Mutabbak and the Lamb Spinach. Mutabbak consists of slices of fried potatoes arranged around moist, tender chicken breast over moist basmati rice, drizzled with a tangy, sweet tamarind sauce. The lamb features chopped spinach and onions, garnished with toasted pine nuts and almonds, served over basmati rice. Incredible flavor and authenticity. For dessert, Ali suggested Samantha 's Special, which is a cream and rice flour pudding, cooked with orange liqueur, topped with fig compote and garnished with pistachios. Wow! Wow! Mazza is an incredible dining experience, even if you 've never tried Middle Eastern cuisine. The service, ambiance and amazing food are worthy of your visit. And a check for only $116 before tip was amazing!

Love this place even as a picky eater. The lamb was great, the lentil soup was my favorite dish. The owner greeted us introduced himself, he was really nice. The kanafe dessert was really good to. 10 out of 10 would always recommend.