As others have said: a lot of what is served as “Middle Eastern” cuisine in/around central L.A. is often Armenian or Lebanese, with some Persian mixed in, but in Anaheim, you get other cultures represented, especially Palestinian, Yemenese, Iraqi, and other Arab communities. There’s overlap between these cuisines but they’re hardly identical.
In any case, Al Baraka for lunch wasn’t busy at all but even with just two dishes (plus a small side of falafel), it felt like a feast. I can’t remember the name of the chicken and rice dish we ordered but look: you had me at “chicken and rice,” especially when the chicken is prepared well and the pilaf is full of flavor. It’s big enough to feed two but I could have polished that off by myself. If I recall, it’s meant to be paired with a yogurt sauce; really reminded me of eating biryani that way. 9/10
The bamya was what my friend wanted and while I normally don’t go out of my way to order okra — it’s fine but not my favorite vegetable — it worked quite well in this very tomato-forward stew with tender beef chunks. I thought it could have used something to balance the flavors a bit more but it wasn’t a bad dish by any means. 8.5/10
The falafel was fine but nothing to write home about. 8/10
Each order comes with pita and I couldn’t tell if it was house-made or store-bought but if it was store-bought, it was way better than that flismy sh— they serve at Zankou. You also get a side of pickles with every order but I didn’t try any this time around.
I would 100% come back here to try more of the menu especially since each day gets its own special, FYI. On Mondays, for example, they serve maqluba, a rice/onion/potato/chicken dish made in a pot that’s then flipped upside down for serving. I’ve seen it in a ton of cooking videos but I don’t think I’ve ever had it in real life.
Each of the main platters was ~$20-25 and with the falafel, I think the total bill was somewhere ~$55 with tax/tip. Keep in mind, there was so much food both my friend and I had enough to take home an extra serving, each.
CardiologicTripe
Looks great. Thanks for sharing!
twoheartedthrowaway
Will have to check this out next time I’m in the Anaheim area. Looks great!
PapaverOneirium
Damn looks great. Added to my list. Haven’t been down that way since going to Forn Al Hara (also amazing) a while ago.
Orchidwalker
Zankou pitas are actually pretty good.
tgcm26
Hell yeah, am never out that way but this place is high on the list
BetterArugula5124
I love the Little Arabia area 😍 I’m in Irvine so this looks worth the short drive. Thanks for posting.
pennyfanclub
Looks fantastic, thanks for posting. Next time I’m out there this is on the list
[deleted]
[deleted]
musicwithmxs
This looks incredible! There’s also an amazing Palestinian place in Garden Grove called Sababa. Kind of a chipotle style bowl situation, but with phenomenal ingredients. You should check it out!
pr0tag
Looks delicious
McFoley69
Thank you for supporting local Palestinian businesses ♥️🙏
IsaacHasenov
We catered from here for work a few weeks ago. Got maqluba, dawali, and hummus and a few other things.
It was a huge amount of food, and phenomenally good. I ate leftover dawali for breakfast for a week and was blissfully happy the whole time.
Can’t rate this place highly enough.
AmericanBornWuhaner
Is there anything comparable in DTLA/Hollywood or not really?
Rick_Cranium
Bamya is not it for me either 👎🏼
Try the molokhia next time. If it’s similar to an Egyptian one (which it appears to be) then I would love to hear a non middle eastern persons thoughts on it. It’s made from jute plant and has lots of garlic.
Also as an Egyptian, many of the dishes they have on the menu appear to be super authentic and stuff people would eat at home everyday.
asakurasol
They had the best hummus I have had anywhere, and it wasn’t particularly close.
gobblegobblebiyatch
Isn’t Anaheim in the OC?
JahMusicMan
Looks amazing. Rarely in Anacrime unless I’m visiting family or going to an event out there, but bookmarked anyways! Thanks!
18 Comments
[Al Baraka](https://albaraka-restaurant.foodjoyy.com/) is a Palestinian restaurant in Anaheim, [near Little Arabia](https://maps.app.goo.gl/4uh4L3A6z6MKJ3gT8), in a minimall off of Brookhurst. Dedicated parking lot.
As others have said: a lot of what is served as “Middle Eastern” cuisine in/around central L.A. is often Armenian or Lebanese, with some Persian mixed in, but in Anaheim, you get other cultures represented, especially Palestinian, Yemenese, Iraqi, and other Arab communities. There’s overlap between these cuisines but they’re hardly identical.
In any case, Al Baraka for lunch wasn’t busy at all but even with just two dishes (plus a small side of falafel), it felt like a feast. I can’t remember the name of the chicken and rice dish we ordered but look: you had me at “chicken and rice,” especially when the chicken is prepared well and the pilaf is full of flavor. It’s big enough to feed two but I could have polished that off by myself. If I recall, it’s meant to be paired with a yogurt sauce; really reminded me of eating biryani that way. 9/10
The bamya was what my friend wanted and while I normally don’t go out of my way to order okra — it’s fine but not my favorite vegetable — it worked quite well in this very tomato-forward stew with tender beef chunks. I thought it could have used something to balance the flavors a bit more but it wasn’t a bad dish by any means. 8.5/10
The falafel was fine but nothing to write home about. 8/10
Each order comes with pita and I couldn’t tell if it was house-made or store-bought but if it was store-bought, it was way better than that flismy sh— they serve at Zankou. You also get a side of pickles with every order but I didn’t try any this time around.
I would 100% come back here to try more of the menu especially since each day gets its own special, FYI. On Mondays, for example, they serve maqluba, a rice/onion/potato/chicken dish made in a pot that’s then flipped upside down for serving. I’ve seen it in a ton of cooking videos but I don’t think I’ve ever had it in real life.
Each of the main platters was ~$20-25 and with the falafel, I think the total bill was somewhere ~$55 with tax/tip. Keep in mind, there was so much food both my friend and I had enough to take home an extra serving, each.
Looks great. Thanks for sharing!
Will have to check this out next time I’m in the Anaheim area. Looks great!
Damn looks great. Added to my list. Haven’t been down that way since going to Forn Al Hara (also amazing) a while ago.
Zankou pitas are actually pretty good.
Hell yeah, am never out that way but this place is high on the list
I love the Little Arabia area 😍 I’m in Irvine so this looks worth the short drive. Thanks for posting.
Looks fantastic, thanks for posting. Next time I’m out there this is on the list
[deleted]
This looks incredible! There’s also an amazing Palestinian place in Garden Grove called Sababa. Kind of a chipotle style bowl situation, but with phenomenal ingredients. You should check it out!
Looks delicious
Thank you for supporting local Palestinian businesses ♥️🙏
We catered from here for work a few weeks ago. Got maqluba, dawali, and hummus and a few other things.
It was a huge amount of food, and phenomenally good. I ate leftover dawali for breakfast for a week and was blissfully happy the whole time.
Can’t rate this place highly enough.
Is there anything comparable in DTLA/Hollywood or not really?
Bamya is not it for me either 👎🏼
Try the molokhia next time. If it’s similar to an Egyptian one (which it appears to be) then I would love to hear a non middle eastern persons thoughts on it. It’s made from jute plant and has lots of garlic.
Also as an Egyptian, many of the dishes they have on the menu appear to be super authentic and stuff people would eat at home everyday.
They had the best hummus I have had anywhere, and it wasn’t particularly close.
Isn’t Anaheim in the OC?
Looks amazing. Rarely in Anacrime unless I’m visiting family or going to an event out there, but bookmarked anyways! Thanks!