Mediterranean Kitchen

Large Portions and Yummy soups, dipping sauce, and my favorite the Chicken Shwarma. Not super kid friendly as inside is a bit crowded, unless it's a sunny day and you can sit outside. more

This is a great restaurant. I wasn't sure exactly what to get so I let them choose, and I had the Lamb Couscous, which they said they only make one or two of every day and people will call and reserve it a few days in advance. Not to be undone, it came out on separate plates, with the amazing couscous on one plate and the quite impressive lamb shanks simmered with whole potato, carrot, onion, zucchini. It was very good. The flavors were mild, but very complex, and the whole thing was worth the amazing smells. Other folks had the mixed kabob, salmon, and spanakopita, all of which were delectable... the spanakopita was uniquely good compared with other places. Also, I don't usually like Turkish coffee, but it was excellent here. And the baklava was also good. more

Definitely the place to go for garlic. Everything is amazing here and as others have said, servings are enormous. My husband and I like to get it to go and take the food to the park in Bellevue which is very close by. If you go for dinner and bring your own container, they give you soup, otherwise you miss out on their amazing soup of the day. Also, bring spoons. One time we forgot spoons but remembered the container. They were nice enough to loan us metal spoons as long as we brought them back. Excellent service above and beyond. The waiters will make suggestions and they don't even make fun of you if you can't pronounce the menu items. Just make sure your date is also eating the food. It's better if everyone has garlic breath. more

This place is just amazing. Cozy, intimate atmosphere, great food, generous servings (unless you have a huge appetite, you'll be getting two meals for the price of one). I've been addicted to the Shish Tawook for 7 or 8 years now. The only downside is that it's not a good place for small children, so I can't eat there nearly as often as I'd like. Fortunately, they deliver through Dinner Delivery Plus. :) more

This restaurant in one of our favorites for dates. My husband and I enjoy the romantic, candlelit dining room and the quiet energy of this place. The menu is fantastic and flavorful and the servings are huge. They have a very interesting wine list and I love to try new things here. They do go heavy on the garlic, which is fine by me. Great eats! more

If you like garlic, hummus, cardamom, cinnamon and the like, this is the place for you. It's a cozy, friendly place and the food is consistently delicious. The Turkish coffee they serve following the meal is the best I've had outside of Israel! more

I was looking for a new place to eat other than our regular destination, Bamiyan, the Afghani restaurant in Issaquah, (who still has the best-seasoned chicken kabobs I've tasted). I decided to finally try Judy's Book for some ideas. I'd grazed through it before, but never with a real need. I found several reviews for Mediterranean Kitchen in Bellevue and they were all good to excellent. We took the recommendation to get a reservation (good thing – it was a Friday night). We enjoyed this place enormously, which also happens to be the size of their entrées. The ambiance was warm, dark, intimate. The music, which was terrific and ethnically appropriate to the menu, was a bit loud at first. We asked if they could tweak it down just slightly for conversation's sake and they were glad to. The place was full and obviously enjoyed by the local community. As soon as you sit down, the very competent and helpful waiters served a bowl of lentil soup (I tasted hints of lemon and clove). Then they brought salads and drizzled a delicious and garlicky house dressing over them. We ordered after getting recommendations from the waiters for both entrée and wine. Everything was delicious and the portions so large that my husband & I had two more meals each from the leftovers. My only suggestion would be to take some digestive enzymes as a preemptive. The portions, along with the generous amount of garlic, can wreck a little havoc with the digestive system. Never mind. A little moderation the next time will help. Or go with a loved one. Thanks Judy's Book. more

Hopefully this little gem will stay quiet and secret! This restaurant has long been a favorite of my family. Servings are ridiculously generous and very flavorful. Servers are knowledgable and just flirty enough to make my sister and I crack up. Small and intimate, this is a great date restaurant. Although there's crazy garlic in everything, you'll both have the same breath, so it isn't that bad! Love the lentil soup and the Shish Tawook. more

This is a wonderful family restaurant that creates just about all of its offerings around garlic! The dishes are superb and plentiful -- plan on eating well at the restaurant and then taking enough in leftovers for another meal. (You can also buy the garlic dressing by the bottle.) The service is always good. If you stop by to order take-out, you are offered a cup of delicious soup while you wait. Provide your name, address, and birthday month and receive a card for a free meal. more

This tiny restaurant located on Bellevue Way offers a great dining experience. The service is professional and friendly. The waiters know the menu very well and will gladly recommend appropriate beverages to accompany the meal. Try the wine from Lebanon -- it has a distinictive taste that pairs very well with the majority of the entrees. Speaking of entrees, you get a lot of food. My advice, unless you are really hungry, is to think about dining family-style. One entree can easily serve two or three people. The lentil soup is tasty and a very nice introduction to the meal. The salad presentation is made special by the waiter pouring just the right amount of the dressing on the salad in an almost ceremonial fashion. My favourite entree is the Shish Tawook, a charbroiled chicken breast marinated in garlic, lemon juice, and spices. The Baba Kanouj (mashed eggplant with spices and tahini) along with the Lebanese Labnie (drained yogurt with olives, tomatoes, and spices) are great appetizers. I recommend sharing an entree if you want to try an appetizer, though. The atmosphere is wonderful. There is an energetic buzz in the dark dining room. Candlelight is the primary source of illumination so I count it as one of the most romantic restaurants on the Eastside. However, families of all sizes would be as comfortable here as a couple on a date. I recommend Mediterranean Kitchen to anyone who loves the flavours of the Middle East. Since it is so popular I recommend you make reservations. more

Tiny little eastside restaurant but what it lacks in size and glamour; it makes up for in quality of the dishes, service and the intimacy you feel with the employees. They tend to go pretty heavy on the garlic; their house salad dressing and hummus are very tasty, but quite strong and if you’re having a main course with garlic; I might recommend skipping the salad dressing. The Lamb Kabobs are very good, but the Farmers Chicken Wing dinner is amazing (again, quite loaded with garlic; so be prepared) - Fantastic place for a date as it's so quiet and small. more