Sahara Cafe Restaurant and Spirits
Middle Eastern
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Location and hours
Location
143 Highland Street , Worcester, MA
(508) 798-2181
Hours
More details
Reviews
Overall rating
(138 reviews)
Prepared very quickly, delicious, was able to get back to the office on time.
Seafood is amazing. Had blackened redfish with butter sauce, topped with crabmeat, delicous! My wife had the seafood platter with oysters, catfish, shrimp and stuffed crab, so much she could not finish it, even with a little help from myself. Had the kings rolls as an appetizer, very good. We will definitely be back for more.
Service was so so. Not all items on menu available.
Service was so so. Not all items on menu available.
Service was so so. Not all items on menu available.
If you love Mediterranean food, you'll love Sahara. We generally go during the week because that's when the Restaurant.com coupons are valid and it's usually not crowded. Our server, Andre, was excellent and so were our dinners, especially the beef shwarma and eggplant dishes. No complaints!
The food was beautifully prepared, very fresh and delicious.
Entrees brought too soon after receiving appetizer.
Entrees brought too soon after receiving appetizer.
Thank you for service
Lamb shish dinner had 3 pieces of meat for $21.00. Vegetables very skimpy also. Meat over-cooked.
Vegetables very salty
Very musty smelling when we walked in the door. Could be cleaner.
This restaurant. Has a very nice ambiance and the food is really good. The service was excellent.
Flavor are authentic but salmon and chicken were dry and over cooked. Everything else was fine. Servings could be a bit larger for the rice
the food is very good
service was a little slow, But food was excellent
Not fancy but excellent service, delicious food and good size servings. Prices are reasonable. You can spend a lot or not so much.
Super Food and Service
The food was great and the atmosphere was nice.
Never seen this place with more than 4 or 5 tables sat with people. Not sure how it stays in business. Perhaps the bands on the weekend draw in the college crowd to the bar.
The food was excellent. Our server was friendly and attentive but not.too friendly.
This restaurant is a great find. Consistently good food for a reasonable price.
Our server was excellent, attentive but not hovering. The food was delicious, portions were generous, and consistent with our last visit.
Great food
The food is terrific. Great spices - everything done to perfection.
better service than other visits--quicker.
Excellent food, attentive staff and their own parking lot in a crowded neighborhood - love it!
Very nice surroundings, excellent service, very good food.
The service was fantastic! The waitstaff were extremely friendly and helpful and the food was outstanding!
Food was very fresh & delicious
Two "just courtesy" comments1. Waiter should have brought 2 dessert menus to the table.2. Waiter took the money from the table without asking if change was due.The dinners was excellent. However, the desserts tasted old, which was disappointing.
Food and atmosphere were excellent!! Everybody at our table LOVED it!
Great food, great service.
Love the casual atmosphere. We like to get several of the tasty appetizers to share, then top those off with some of the yummiest baklava around.
Love to order several appetizers and share them.
Server and bartender were excellent. Meat was not tender and had little flavor.The sauces were bland with little flavor.Usually the lemon and gariic and middle east should jump out but not so. Dreadful experience for family night out.
The dishes were excellent. The service toward the end, particularly getting the check, was slow. The lamb was overcooked, but all else superb in the food.
Excellent food, good service.
Great food great service at a great price
Once again our dining experience was marred by loud, profanity-laced discussions from bar patrons. While we always enjoy the food, this is the 2nd time in a row a few bar patrons disturbed our quiet dining. If the management is unwilling to control their bar patrons we may stop dining here.
Great food
Usually we go at times when there are few diners. This time there was a large group at an extended table, and their normal chatter seemed amplified by the restaurant's acoustics. Could use some sound dampening.
Food was very good, waiter was very accomodating, especially as we had dietary restrictions. Atmosphere was fine, until 10 PM when a techno music band set up, then it was time to leave.
Several young men sitting at the bar used some profanities, which were easily overheard in the dining area. I know this is an eclectic restaurant, but they need to find a way to separate the bar from the dining area better.
Food was good. Not the most authentic middle eastern menu I've ever seen.
Well when evr I'm going some place new I always go to your web site to fine a new place to eat, I being Lebanesse saw this place which serves Arbic food, it was authentic fare !! HUMMY , Do give it a try
Good food and service.
The ambience was very poor and dirty
The Atmosphere was great! The food was superb although a little too salty for me.
Food and service were both very good!
As always, the overall experience was wonderful. We were wondering if perhaps there was a new chef as the food was not as good as we have experienced in the past. Both our appetizer and my main course were quite salty- we chalked it off to a bad day in the kitchen the lobster raviloi was fantastic though! We will go back as it is our favorite spot for middle eastern dining.
Really a wonderful experience. I'm looking forward to another visit.
Arrived at 5 p.m only bartender Paul was there no customers
Not a fancy place, but server (bartender the time we were there) was attentive and friendly.
The food was very tasty and the waiter was very friendly.
Food was ok, nothing special. Good coffee and dessert. Good waitstaff, although there was one staff for approximately 7-8 tables plus managing the bar, so you had time to relax.
Great service, excellent server, and food.
The food was good.
The service was great and the food was delicious!
Clean, nicely decorated restaurant. Excellent food and wait service.
the meat in the lamb kebob and said was way too overdone despite having requested it medium rare. the rice pilaf was lukewarm. the meal took half an hour to come out--probably why the food was not hot. disappointing
The food was excellent. We felt a little rushed because we came in a half hour before closing but will definitely return.
WE WERE THE ONLY ONE IN REST AND MY WIFES LAMB WAS OVER COOKED BY A LOT
Waiter was very helpful with the menu. The restaurant was beautiful. Nice dining experence
Best kibbe in town and the fattoush was to die for!
The wait staff is probably the best of any restaurant I've been to. The food and quiet ambience are fabulous.
The sandwiches were delicious. My daughter loved the lentil soup.
One of our party did not care for the different spices in the dishes. Myself and the other person expected the unusual because of the ethnicity of the restaurant. It is pricey, though. Even with the coupon it cost us over $30 per person.
Food was great! Our waiter was very knowledgeable and friendly. Good place to dine:
Delicious food and exceptional service!
Service could have been more attentive and less "pushing" of ordering additional wine.
Loved the atmosphere, the music, our waiter Kyle was the best!
Food was very good!
My friend and I were going to visit her daughter in Shrewsbury and I looked for a restaurant.com certificate for lunch on our way. I remembered eating at Sahara regularly when I was at WPI and decided to bring my friend. She enjoyed it so much that she told her family that they should go there.
Food is good, portions are on the small side
Our waiter, Dylan, was very nice and accommodating and the food was great
The food was great, as always.
Oh wow yum
All agreed the dinners were delicious! However, once the lights were lowered, it was a little difficult to read the menu.
Very quiet with good Middle Eastern background music
Waiter seemed bored, we were the only customers in the restaurant and he took forever to check on us during dinner and then to bring us our bill. Food was good.
very friendly staff and good service but the place is old and dirty. Food was ok
excellent waiter
The food and service are excellent.
more lighting- hard to read the menu
They were understaffed this evening, so the wait was longer than acceptable for items to be delivered.
Our server was great. He was a bit awkward but very sweet. My melon margarita was great. It was a bit hard to taste the lobster in the lobster ravioli, but the beef kabob was great.
Always a great meal! Relaxing atmosphere.
Our Waiter was excellent and the food delicious.
Thr portions were small for the price and the food was dry.
love,love,love this restaurant and the service- I have never had a complaint about anything there- the waiter who we totally enjoy has been there since we have been going there and the restaurant.com coupons make eating whatever we want there affordable. We would reccommend the Sahara to everyone!
Sara was our server. She med us feel welcomed, very accomodating, and helpful with the wine selection and choice of appetizers etc. Awesome
The waitress was terrific and the food delicious! We will return.
It was nice that they had a different soup available other than the usual lentil & cucumber ones. They were out of my usual stuffed cabbage meal.
We were disappointed in the size of the portion for the high amount charged.
Have been there in the past . Years back always a great restaurant. Even though the food is fabulous if they have a must needed updat this place is doomed ! Ashame if they don't listen! Call restaurant impossible!!
I was very impressed by my experience at this restaurant. The food was excellent. Service was a bit slow, but acceptable. I will definitely come back.
Great service, friendly staff, food tasted really good, slightly over priced.
We were very pleasantly surprised at the quality of the food and the excellent service by our waiter Kile. We will definitely be back.
I've eaten there twice and both dining experiences in regards to the cuisine and atmosphere were exceptional. Food and desert EXCELLENT...atmosphere tranquil-social. Highly recommend!
We will never go back. The service was very slow and other customers were complaining. My husband did not get a menu, than utensils, than his salad. Server forgot my drink. It took about an hour for us to finally get our food. Seemed like the manager was just hiding in the back and not taking charge of what was going on in his restaurant.
get the baba ghanoush!
Very nice meal...there was a large party that had been seated just before us...so the service was a little slow. But the food made up for it. We will definitely visit again.
Great dining experience.
Our server Josh was wonderful! He was attentive, friendly, helpful, and knowledgable about the menu. He had several large tables to attend to, but never forgot about us. He made our first trip to Sahara worth it! We will definitely be back!
Using the coupon was simple. The waiter was excellent. He asked if this was our first time dining here and proceeded to explain our dishes in detail. He was very courteous when explaining the bill breakdown (including recommended gratuity). A dinner salad included with meal was actually a pleasant surprise since that is not very common these days.
I think that the atmosphere of the restaurant is great. It is quiet, dimly lit, with interesting decor and good food at reasonable prices. I will go again soon!
Kibbe could have been a bit more meatier. Like your atmosphere in the evening, Prefer the food at Shiraz
My server (Sue?) was friendly, prompt, and helpful. The food was unique and delicious, and came to us quickly. I will definitely go again!
Food is always fantastic here. A great local place to add to your go-to list of restaurants.
Delicious food, delightful server, quick service, will go again. Thanks!
The food and service were great, however, they had a band thqat should be told to respect the diners, and not throw their equpment and coats right at the diners. Food was great!
understaffed - too few waiter.
On a Thursday night, you would expect to see more than 3 other tables in a restaurant. Must be a reason why. Food quality was definitely not worth the cost, (not including the cert.)
It was nice and clean. The food was just "ok".
we waited at least 5 mins to be greeted, nevermind seated in an more than half empty restaurant. once seated, i immediately ordered the mezza knowing that the service here is slow. some members of my party ordered drinks which took more than 15 mins to arrive. the place was not busy and any extra staff that was available seemed to ignore requests to be serviced ( one member of my party did not have silverware and raised her hand to flag down a bartender or other waitress which seemed to be intentionally ignored until our server returned ). i would highly recommend getting some lessons on overall customer service and better waiting service.
Good service great food
We lived near sahara a couple years ago and always wanted to try it. It was great and this gift card gave us more of a reason to go!
Great find! Loved the food!!
love the Sahara- I recommend it to my friends
I thought the food was very bland
The service was not that good. We waiting way too long until anyone even approached us to seat us. The food was only OK, and was overpriced for what we got. We will not be back.
Wife always wanted to go, but we always forgot about it. Definately would go back. Need better lighting in the restaurant.
My wife and I both had Lamb Kabobs. It did not come in traditional syle with skweered vegtables. I have traveled in that part of the world for decades. The lamb had great flavor, however, if you are a fan of tendon and grisle!! Go there. I would never go back.
This restaurant is fabulous - the food is fantastic and the wait staff is very professional and personable. This is my favorite restaurant.
Service was fine and food ok. Entre was a generous amount, but flavor not exceptional. Salad was small and lacking in ingredients: one slice each of tomato and cucumber, with lettuce, & dressing, nothing else! Would have preferred drink on the rocks, not frozen, but served a frozen one. Didn't order it frozen, so not sure what happened. Had to request pita that was listed as included with the meal.
Wonderful staff and good atmosphere. Food delicious and fresh :)
The evening was wonderful. The food was great quality and quantity and the atmosphere was very relaxing and inviting. The chef and waiter were friendly and very helpful. It was a great dining experience.
We were the first customers to arrive for dinner. I ordered Salmon, and five minutes later I was told they were out of it??? Ordered chicken curry instead. Too much sauce, mixed with rice, and a bit salty. I'm not a good cook, but my Tuna Curry would have been a lot better!! Very expensive, most likeley would not make the trip again. Sorry. The decor is nice though!
We liked the food, but would have enjoyed a bit more variety in the dish. We'll be back to try other dishes.
not worth the price if i had to pay regular price. portions were very small and not worth regular price
total bill was $111 before discount and tip
Have been to this restaurant before and loved it. The certificate was an added incentive to eat here again - food and certificate are both fabulous.
The service and food are less consistent that I'd previously thought. We were the only patrons there but they sat us in the far corner, right in front of a vent blowing cold air! The Kafta patties were super dry. The hummos and rice were delicious as usual. Waiter seemed like he was a rookie, but I'm pretty sure he's been there awhile. Maybe it was an off night... I'll go back, but I'm not as enthusiastic about Sahara after last night's experience.
If you are looking for authentic middle Eastern cusine and atmosphere? The Sahara is perfect.
Service was a little slow.
Overall experience was great. One of the meals (Kibi) was overcooked. Our waiter was excellent and very patient with two friends who were busy catching up and not looking at the menu.