For our first visit to Habibi, my ""foodie"" family took some relatives who were new to middle eastern food. My brother in law is used to eating familiar American fare and my 9 year old nephew is a picky eater whom I've only seen eating french fries. My family ordered shawarma and other items we have come to love at other middle eastern restaurants. (My 11 year old daughter was in heaven.) To our delight, my brother in law tried the meat mezza - a combination platter of several different menu items - tried everything, and loved it. My picky nephew bravely ordered the lamb kebabs and liked them. He also tasted everything on his dad's plate and pointed out that he liked most of his dad's meal, too. (And we thought he'd stick with pizza!) Both kids loved their mango lassi. Overall, the food was great and we will remember Habibi then next time we visit Portland. (We're from Salem.) My chef hubby asked what was in the shawarma and kibby. They refused to share their recipes, which we expected, so we'll have to return again and again when the cravings strike.\r
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A couple things to note: we were seated upstairs because the tiny main floor dining room was full. After delivering our meals nobody came up to check on us and one beverage order was never delivered. When finished, we had to wait a long time for take-home boxes and the check. I finally ran downstairs and asked for boxes, thinking the waiter would come up with boxes and our check. He only brought the boxes and we had to ask for the check downstairs as we were walking out the door.\r
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Also, one review here commented on parking. This shouldn't be an issue if you're planning a visit to Habibi. Since we drive in from out of town, we parked in the SmartPark on 4th near Morrison, then rode the Max up Morrison to Habibi. Our total parking cost was $2. Cheap.\r
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Despite the service issues, we will definitely be back - and will make sure we sit downstairs.
Pros: Nice menu variety, great flavors, food is absolutely delicious!
Cons: slow service to the upstairs dining room
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