Babylon Cafe Reviews

The MENU is middle eastern,freash from the word go..the Mixologist Smooth has a great personality and spirit.. makes the best drinks in town the food is great..

I visited a friend in the neighborhood and got hungry on my way home. When I travel, I try to make sure that I eat locally and this Middle-Eastern place caught my eyes. After reading the menu, I realized that it was Iraqi cuisine and that got me really intrigued. I have had Turkish, Greek, Afgan cuisine before and this is the first time I am trying an Iraqi place. So I ordered falafel as an appetizer and a beef schwarma as entree. The flavor in the food is definitely different from what I had tasted before. The spice that I taste is different. It is a totally new flavor profile for me. I was pleasantly surprised. I think this kind of food takes a few visits to adjust to but I am very happy that I tried. If I am ever in the neighborhood again, I would definitely try this place again. It's great to have diversity and something new. Service was great. The waiting staff were very attentive. The owner also introduced himself to me and told me that he and his wife cook every order. The owner cannot be nicer. When I asked local questions, he offered tips and directions. You can tell that he wants his customer to have a great experience and to be well taken care of.

Honestly-we dined in this restaurant a while ago After reading written reviews that were very complimentary, we rushed there The interior was depressing. We had a young waitress who had no idea what was in the dishes We sent her to the kitchen to find the answers to our questions - she rapidly got tired of this and started to ignore us. Finally she stopped coming to the table and hid behind the hostess station sucking on a hookah with the other servers. At least the seemed to be more attentive to their customers..I see not cars their for dinner or lunch. I will wait for my friends to go their, or someone who seems to have a better palate for a new review before I even think of spending money there YES IT WAS THAT BAD Maybe it has changed let me know the reviews did not tell me much, spend your money elsewhere.

Curiosity drew me in to try Babylon Cafe, but it was the high-quality, lovingly-prepared food and the wonderful hospitality will bring me back. From the start, I knew I was in the right place. The atmosphere is cozy and a bit exotic, and the menu hit all the right notes for authentic Iraqi cuisine. I ordered the Falafel (which was fantastic -- large balls split in half and perfectly prepared, crisp-but-tender) and a lovely fish dish called Samak Masquf. This traditional Iraqi specialty involves a whole, fresh fish, butterflied, rubbed and marinated in a crust of aromatic spices, and grilled to crisp perfection over charcoal. It was presented beautifully, on a large, colorful platter, surrounded by grilled tomatoes and onions, as well as a variety of house-made pickles and fresh herbs. It looked and smelled wonderful (Babyon Cafe is big on presentation), and it tasted just as good. This is a true craving dish -- I will be back soon to give it another go. I've had nothing quite like it before in Atlanta. It was plain to me that Babylon Cafe is a labor of love on the part of its owners -- a married couple named Kelly Rafia and Saad Marwad. Kelly introduced herself and proved to be a helpful authority regarding Iraqi cuisine and its place in Middle Eastern cooking more generally. She was charming, hospitable and funny. Kelly explained that they make everything in-house at Babylon Cafe -- and you really can tell. Saad came out from the kitchen a bit later to introduce himself, and he's as righteous and talented a chef/owner as you could hope to meet. Great guy! The entire experience was much more like dining in someone's home than like going to a typical restaurant. I rarely write food reviews, but I was excited to find Babylon Cafe, and I wanted to get the word out. Please give this homey, foody little restaurant a try. They're doing something really special there.

We came after a working a trade show looking to get away from downtown. My buddy always comes here while visiting Atlanta for something different. The waitress recommended Bryari with Lamb Shank based on our conversations and it was a great choice. Everyone was pleased with their meal and we ordered their desert just to be decedent. The owner came out to check in with us and explained how his wife prepares the different meals. I will come back next time I'm in Atlanta.

Wonderful place at the corner of Lenox Rd and Ceshire Bridge Rd. It servies food from Iraq and it is so good. I love the lamb kababs and the grilled eggplant was excellent. I have had baklava before but this is one of the best I have eaten. Parking in front of the restaurant and you can also park at the shopping center next door. Need to try this place once and you will love it.

I'd purchased an Amazon Local coupon for this restaurant and went with a neighbor who also wanted to try the restaurant. He ordered beef shawarma (so many spellings for this word), and I ordered the Babylon combination (which had shawarma, chicken tikka, and a beef dish whose name I forget). As far as the beef shawarma, both of us agreed that the meat was overcooked a bit. Now, I'm more used to shawarma than my neighbor, having experienced it in the Middle East. It's usually less well done than we got it. I will say that the lemon sauce that was on it made it taste better, but the meat was still overcooked. My chicken and beef dishes were OK. The baklava and ice cream combination was delicious. I'd not had ice cream with pistachios on it in a long time, so it was a welcome surprise.

Earlier this year the AJC paper gave this a nice review. The actual experience was not up to the review but there were many good features and I may return. We were a party of three men all very hungry. The service since we were the only patrons for nearly an hour was smothering with insistence to place our order instead of time to relax. We ordered for appetizers a platter with Dolma, Baba Ganoush, and Hummus. The Babe Ganoush and Hummus were fresh, a little oily but very tasty. Unfortunately the pita was a bit too cardboard in texture and taste for my liking and only luke warm. For entrees one of us had the beef salad which he deemed very good, another had the grilled eggplant with rice and again he was satisfied. I had the grilled chicken over a dark glazed rice with yogurt sauce and a hot sauce. My dish was moist and tasty and enjoyed. After dinner two in our group ordered hot beverages one an Iraq tea and the other Turkish coffee which came out with little liquid and lots of sludge. Prices were fair, service good, food good to better. Cleanliness was ok but some fresh paint and attention to scarring on woodwork would be good. Parking is available but a challenge due to street configuration.

The owners, chef Said and wife Kelly, have put together a wonderful cafe (with Hookah if you desire). The hummus is amazing (so nice not to get a commercial product.) Of course the whole fish (US sourced tilapia - anything else I won't eat) was amazing. The tea is brewed perfectly. Inexpensive and Fun

To grilled fish dish was unbelievable the fish was tender juicy well seasoned the best fish I've ever had in Atlanta.The falafel was handmade and was very tender and perfectly seasoned.

None of the dishes we ordered were tasty...our waitress was very attentive, so attentive that she would replace our club soda when the glasses were still half full.....then charged us for every refill. Bread seemed day old. So bad that Babylon will not get a second chance.

You will love this cozy little restaurant. The decor is warm and inviting. The food is great. Our meal started off with a wonderful little cup of Addis soup, followed up with some very tasty falafel. Very flavorful & tasty. Loved the chicken dish served over a bed of lettuce and hummus. The Chef's Babylon Special with 3 meats, bread and tzatziki sauce was great. The lamb was fantastic I personally thought the menu was a bit pricey, but I will be going back. I am a little disappointed I did not try the Iraqi coffee, but we were eating late at night. Oh well, there is always next time. The Iraqi bread seems to be a condiment for you to scoop up hummus with rather than grabbing a piece just for its flavor. WARNING: If you wear dentures, you might want to skip the bread.

If you want true authentic Baghdad region food, this place is spot on. We had the Falafel appetizer koofteh kabob and baklava. It was amazing

We came for dinner with our teenage son. We all really enjoyed our meals. The hummus, falafel and breads were all fresh and tasty. The lamb and chicken dishes were very flavorful. And the entire meal feels really healthy. Our waiter, Steve, was terrific!

We stopped in for dinner early on a Sunday. We were the only people there besides the staff. It felt like this was a place that was more exciting on another day of the week at another time of the day. They asked if we wanted to smoke hookahs so I think they have an area you can do that. We were just excited to try the food. We were quickly seated in the dining area which was nice. Our waitress was helpful with our questions and patient with us. They have some very nice-looking entrees that seemed interesting in the 15-20$ range. That night though we were thinking a little more casual of a meal so my wife and I went with a couple of sandwiches. We got the hummus mezza as a starter which was a large serving of hummus with bread. The bread was just okay, but the hummus itself was tasty. I had the chicken shawarma and my wife tried the chicken kabab sandwich. Both came served with salad but you could pay extra for the fries. I liked mine and tried the kebob and thought it was tasty too. The bread for the sandwiches was much better than for our hummus. I would go back to try their biryani’s, stews, and other specials. They looked like they would be even more interesting.

A warm greeting and helpful friendly service made you relax and opened an easy dialog about the menu that expanded our knowledge and food choices. The Arab tea was delicious. We had the hummus and tabouli appetizer. Our entree was delicious and enough for two. We were encouraged to try the baklava which had a unique presentation and great way to end the meal.

For several years one of our favorite places to meet friends or take visitors in Midtown is the Babylon Cafe, where we find a friendly atmosphere, charming people and most important, really interesting and tasty food! Iraqi cuisine is similar to standard Mideastern, but with more stews and sauce, like Iran. The flavorings of some of these are not spicy hot, but rich and flavorful. We always enjoy a chat with the owner or his wife, lovely folks. We like the Babylon, and hope that it succeeds for many years!

Having read a good review about this restaurant on a Buckhead magazine and being myself a great fan of genuine homely Middle Eastern Cuisine (I have travelled to Egypt,Turkey ,Jordan and have been exposed through friends and acquaintances in those respective countries to the equivalent of Michelin starred restaurants),my sister ,my brother in law and myself decided to head on over to this restaurant and try some of its specialties. Well,I can only rave about the culinary experience in this restaurant. The menu might not feature many many items,but,I can definitely say that it is the quality of the items offered which count over the quantity . Each single item is prepared with TENDER LOVING CARE by the owners ( a charming,delightful couple)and with attention to detail. To start with,for instance,the felafel were amongst the best I have ever tasted out of the Middle East. They were so tasty,crunchy and yet,moist in the inner part. They blended so well with another mezze,hummus which I was pleased to have tried. The hummus was definitely not the typical hummus you find in some of the pseudo middle eastern restaurants in Atlanta. On the contrary,it tasted so fresh and "home made". The pièce de résistance was however the baby "bamia" (okra ) stew ,which was so deliciously prepared in a phenomenal tomato based sauce and accompanied by one of the tastiest basmati rice,delicately dusted with saffron and cinnamon. The Middle Eastern pleasant music mixed with some fusion Buddha Bar ,along with the very original ,personal décor ,blended perfectly with a shot of pure Arak. To complete this wonderful gastronomic experience ,the carrot cake,which was prepared so delicately by the Owner Madame.This dessert was spruced up with exotic spices and ,with due respect,far superior to any of the carrot cakes I have ever eaten in the USA...The history behind this particular carrot cake recipe dates back 6000 years ago to Mesopotamia and Babylon, The delucious ,cardamom aromatized "Ahwa" (Arabic coffee) was brought by Madame and served slowly and artistically from the "Fenjan" in a demitasse ,creating a rich coffee frothy surface on the top. I praise both Monsieur and Madame ( the owners themselves) for finally bringing to Dixie the true flavors of Iraqi cuisine,which is not to be confused with the rest of other geographically close cuisines . They are both doing a great job,with full heart and a totally unpretentious manner. My compliments to both of them for their achievement and my best wishes to them for continued success. InshaAllah.

We had a delightful lunch at the recently opened Babylon Cafe. The interior is lovely with booths, tables, and lounging areas for hookahs. Our server was lovely, welcoming and helpful to us making choices in a cuisine we were not totally familiar with. The atmosphere was warm and freindly and the service was excellent. They brought us cold water flavored with cardamon seed, which was a unique start. We got a medley of appetizers (tabula, hummus and falafel). All of the appetizers were excellent - and similar to most other good middle eastern restaurants. I got qurma sabzi (a wonderful stew of spinach, parsley, chickpeas and lamb) - something I had not had before - and it was delicious. Probably the best cooked spinach I've ever had. My friend got the Babylon Special which included beef shawarma, kufta kabob and chicken kabob. It was all good, served with rice and grilled onion and tomato. The shawarma had a different seasoning than most I have had and a great taste. The chicken was extremely juicy and perfectly seasoned. The kufta had a wonderful meaty taste which was not overwhelmed by the spices. All of the meals come with rice, bread and a starter of some very unique, but delicious, Iraqi lentil soup. Our server told us that the chef formerly worked at the Ambassador Hotel in Iraq. I will definitely return to explore more of this menu.

Food is very tasty and priced right. There is an outdoor seating. Waiting time is very reasonable. Waitress was very attentive and prompt. Parking available in front of the restaurant. Owner is very welcoming and friendly. His wife works with him preparing some of the sweets. We had samak masgouf (grilled fish) dish and beef Kabab kofta. Very delicious. Ancient historical atmosphere with beautiful architectural designs.