Bab Tooma York in York

We arrived late in York and this was one of the few places with availability. Starting with the positives: the place had a buzzing ambience and the sharing cold mezze (selection of dips was tasty), however, we experienced the most bizarre service from our waiter who just kept answering 'no' to everything we asked for. This was meant to be funny but it was literally at every single thing we said all night, it was just quite odd behaviour.... Food also arrived at odd times with one person at our table without their food until we pointed it out. The explanation was that we hadn't said we wanted his dish at the same time (how about the fact we weren't asked?) and that there wasn't enough room on the table (there was), then one of the dishes was also missed off the order, and when it arrived the portion was miniscule for the pricing and also not as described on the menu. When this was mentioned to staff we got a very odd explanation about the prices being set 10 years ago... All in all quite a strange evening. Gave us a good laugh because of how weird it was, but not somewhere any of us will be rushing back to!

Good place to eat for a halal option. However, I wouldn't rate the food anywhere near the Bab Tooma Grande on Leeds Rd, the rice was like warmed up, and not the normal flavour we're used to from the chicken skewer or lamb kobeda. The chicken liver was excellent.

Extremely poor. Both food and service. We had to ask for them to take our order, staff were standing around on their phone laughing and messing around. We ordered the feast sharing platter which was pathetic to be paying £42 for, under seasoned and completely lacking in meat and flavour for £42 worth, they give the tiniest amount of sauce and give you mostly bread. A waste of money and time going, there are much nicer places to go just a couple seconds walk down the road which we wished we had gone to instead. Immature staff and lack of flavour, not worth your money at all.

The food and the portion sizes are absolutely disgusting. Absolute rip off. Never again.

The food was perfect so delicious 😍 and the staff very friendly 🤍 and the vibes is amazing 🤩

Absolutely fantastic food,so delicious! We booked early online and got a £25 of voucher if we spent over £50. Definitely would visit here again

Food was amazing!!! Good value and quality. Friendly staff. One thing not so good was they moved us for our dessert which was a bit odd but can understand if they needed the table we were sat at. Other than that was very good and would recommend!

The best Arabic restaurant in York

Great atmosphere, decor and delicious food!! The portion was great my wife and I got the kebbeh, yalangi and the mixed grill. Abu Ali the owner of the resturant was very welcoming and friendly to talk to. Ended the night with some special Shami tea. Great time overall will come again if and when I come back to York!

Friendly service, delicious food, wonderful atmosphere. Will come again!

Food came with almonds dropped in, no mention on menu, no good for nut allergies. 2nd course arrived , whilst wexwere still on first course, felt rushed, and watched. Possibly because it was a groupon.

Excellent authentic Syrian food and reasonably priced (for central York). Had chicken shawarma and looking forward to lamb shawarma next time. Staff lovely too!

Delicious freshly cooked Syrian food. Staff were lovely. The lentil soup was incredible. The restaurant doesn’t serve alcohol, but the food more than made up for that. We loved the Middle Eastern decor too, which gave it a nice atmosphere. So delicious!

Really welcoming Host with great food!! I highly recommend it to everybody who is very hungry

really good food you have to check it out

It was a truly new experience for me to have Middle Eastern food in the heart of such a classic British city like York! The food was okay, though the spice was a bit too strong for my taste. Tabouleh salad was amazing 🤩 #HALAL

Spotless, superb service, excellent value and fabulous food. Thoroughly recommend this restaurant to anyone! Will be back!

Visited as part of a Taste Trail in York Food Festival. Loved it! The samples were delicious, particularly the falafel and hummus. The staff were friendly and chatty while we waited for our freshly prepared tasters. We shall certainly return soon for a full meal.

I visited Bab Tooma and I ordered for starters tabbouleh, hot patata, muhammara, and haloomi. It was absolutely delicious! For the main course, I had shish tawook, which was above excellent. I would definitely recommend the restaurant to anyone looking for authentic and delicious Arabic food.

Such pleasant staff. The food was delicious, our 2nd time here and will be back for sure. Thank you Dikshya for your professional service

Based on my visit I'm really not sure why this place gets such good reviews. The food was 'ok' at best, the service mixed with one of the waiting staff pretty useless and other a bit too over the top. Starters and mains were all dumped in the table at once, which is fine if that's how it usually works but at least give us a heads up on it. Cold sharing platter is a complete rip off for 18 quid, chicken shawarma was pretty bland, lamb shawarma was a lot better. Atmosphere was a little odd with some background music playing at the beginning which was nice but then it noticeably stopped and wasn't started again. One of our group used the toilet and reported back that it was pretty rubbish, with a broken seat, slippy floor and a flickering light. Maybe it was a one off given the other reviews but I won't be rushing back.

It is amazing play the scarves was first class from Dikshya so friendly and always with a big smile on her face

Fantastic experience had an amazing time great food highly recommend

Great food, great service thank you

Just wonderful! The food was so delicious and I wanted to eat it all! Brilliant range of vegetarian and vegan options which were all incredible. The staff were so lovely and knowledgeable. I would highly recommend giving it a try! The falafel were perfect.

Gorgeous food and gorgeous staff! The manager is an absolute star!

We had such a wonderful experience at this restaurant. The food was amazing, including the free lentil soup which had a beautiful aromatic flavour. The lamb kebbeh was our favourite, we would have been happy to have plate after plate of this! We didn't get to experience the desserts as we were so full, however the Arabic tea was delicious.

The food was actually lovely, however the service was pretty slow given it was lunch time and there were only 4 other tables eating. The food was has was reasonably priced & tasty. The shawarmas were delicious as were the lamb chops. However I feel like the children’s menu is over priced at £10 for nuggets & chips. Also watch out for ordering lemonades & being given mocktails at a cost of £6.50.

This was a wonderful meal between 13 of us, the staff were welcoming, the restaurant was busy and the atmosphere was warm and friendly. The vegetarian fare was exceptional, and we were all very well fed. I would advise anyone going to try the lemon mint drink, I know I will be if I go again.

Atmosphere is nice, food is average Tabbula Salad was great

Best shawarma in York, prepared by the kindest people. You will not be disappointed.

First time eating here. Really enjoyed. Would recommend.

Lovely service, fantastically spiced meat and free soup!

Great restaurant, extremely tasty food. Loved all the Syrian food I could get my hands on. 1000% recommend. Service was excellent, staff was super friendly and the food was impeccable. Heavy on the meat side as expected but there is a few vegetarian/vegan options.

Highly recommend the restaurant. Food it’s delicious and the staff are amazing too! Definitely coming back.

I had an excellent dining experience at Bab Tooma! The meat I tried was perfectly cooked, with just the right amount of seasoning. I appreciated that it wasn’t over-spiced, which allowed the natural flavors to shine through. The food was delicious and authentic, and I look forward to coming back for more.

Very good and clean. Breakfast open buffet was a good idea and wasn't expensive

Wonderful breakfast in York Centre..

Second time eating here and the food is great. York struggles for Middle Eastern/Turkish/Syrian but Bab Tooma ticks that box perfectly.

Chicken grill was decent but Mandi was totally disappointing. Nowhere tastes what an Actual mandi tastes like. The place is run by authentic people and it’s sad they’re not serving the authentic food. It was more of a boiled rice like a spice less biriyani.

outstanding experience from start to finish. The service was excellent—staff members were attentive, prompt, and made sure every need was met with a smile. The atmosphere was warm and welcoming. The food was absolutely delicious, and beautifully presented. I highly recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for a top-notch dining experience. I can't wait to return!"

A lively restaurant with quick and friendly service, maybe too quick - there were no gaps between courses and it felt like a pile-up of dishes. The food is tasty, simple fayre, of a home cooked standard and the portions are large. I enjoyed the experience but don't think I would go back.

The food was very authentic and delicious. We went there to celebrate a friends birthday and all staff were extremely helpful and we had a very good time

We had a beautiful experience here for lunch celebrating a friend’s birthday. The food was excellent and such friendly staff and owner. Would 100% recommend and will be returning in the future

This restaurant offered a memorable dining experience with its delicious, complimentary lentil soup and fresh, flavorful dishes. The sweet and humorous staff made us feel welcome and valued, adding to the overall enjoyment. I was impressed by the quality of both the food and the service and look forward to returning.

Really nice quality food and great service from the team

Food was delicious, so much flavour. The complimentary Lentil soup was flavoursome! Great place to share plates. Worth a visit!

Lovely restaurant and food. Asma was really friendly and played with my little boy- he loved her!

Such a lovely place, delicious food and drinks with friendly staff. Highly recommend.

Absolutely superb. We went for my birthday, from the moment we walked in to when we left, the food and service was exceptional, thanks for making my birthday a great day, highly recommend

Wow, the food was amazing. We had The Beast between the 4 of us. Followed by a selection of desserts and an Arabian tea. We will be going back at some point.

Delicious and clean food, the place is very beautiful and the service is excellent. Honestly, I am enjoying eating and I have not eaten such delicious food in a long time ♥️

The food is excellent, the atmosphere is great, and the place is homely and helpful.

What can I say! The taste of home is in the heart of York city centre!🤩 I can't recommend the food and the place enough! I couldn't decide what to order because they had everything I wanted to have! So i ordered some hot mezze and I was NOT disappointed by any of them. I Each plate was full of authentice flavours, well prepared and presented. Oh and the freshly baked arabic bread is just another level! The waiting staff were amazingly friendly and very attentive to details. The service was quick and excellent. The interior design and the Damascus atmosphere with the Damascus doors painting and pretty glass lamps are so atmospheric! Thank you for making me feel at home! If you are ever in York city centre, Bab Tooma restaurant is a must to try!

excellent experience staff was lovely and everything was perfect

Great food very friendly and good portions.

really nice restaurant and attentive manager!

3 lasses had a lovely meal here and spotted it by chance when passing by. Also catered for gluten free and nipped to Tesco next door for wine and no corking fee. Waiting staff very pleasant. Would highly recommend

The food was great and absolutely fantastic and delicious and Ram was a lovely guy too. Helping all around I highly recommend it 🥰🥰😋

So kind and welcoming, everyone is lovely and it’s a beautiful environment MashaAllah

Great service. Very accommodating, providing blankets for outdoor eating! Great tasting food and drinks.

Took my partner for lunch today, we had a warm welcome and were lucky enough to get the window seat. The decor is charming. We both ordered the Lamb Shank Mandi and a side of bread which was so fresh it was piping hot and still inflated! We shared a pot of Moroccan Tea. The food came quickly and was delicious, starting with a complimentary bowl of lentil soup. It all reminded me of my time in Morocco. The service was top notch. Even better when later on we realised my partner had left his wallet behind and they'd kept it safe and sound for us. I can't recommend this place highly enough, especially if you fancy something a little exotic.

I cannot recommend this place enough. It was our first time here and we enjoyed it thoroughly, definitely planning another visit. Very tasty, very flavourful.

On Tuesday evening We visited Bab Tooma. We ordered the Halloumi starter to share and both decided to choose the chicken Shawarma for our main course, in between courses we were brought complimentary soup. One main meal was served but not the other, we were told the other meal was on its way. We wanted to eat together and waited and waited. Eventually the second meal arrived without seasoning on the fries. A staff member apologised for the delay. Although the food was really nice and tasty the whole experience of the meal was spoilt by forgetting one of our meals. We will not be returning to Bab Tooma.

Fab food! Would recommend. Great service from Ram too!

Some of the best food I have tasted with excellent friendly service Top marks

Nice place for authentic Syrian food

Excellent service, exquisite food, superb atmosphere and very pleasant staff!!! Certainly will recommend!!!

We arrived here without reservations and were welcomed in. The food that our server recommended was absolutely delicious! I can’t recommend enough!

Really beautiful food. Poor service. I appreciate they were busy but we had to wait ages for the bill. And was initially charged for two bowls of bread we didn’t receive. Over spill in front of the other shop (what appears to be a discount shop selling home wares) was fine but not ideal!

Lovely, friendly atmosphere, and the food was delicious. I would recommend .

What a delight! My husband and I stumbled on this place by accident and had an absolutely outstanding meal. The ambiance service and food were all exemplary. Next time we are in York we will definitely be back.

Everything was perfect Meat was perfectly fine and rice was just right

First visit, excellent ! will be back

Delicious, beautiful place and friendly staff.

The food is beautiful and the service is excellent

AMAZING AND DELICIOUS. Every single dish was a 10/10!

We have taken several large groups, the food is always excellent and the staff are always happy to help us

Best food in York and best service

Thanks for your service The riz with lamp is very good And I like the personnel of this restaurant, very professionnel and make a good ambiance

Excellent meal and great hospitality! Will definitely be returning!

Lovely authentic place, enjoy every visit!!! Food is delicious, and atmosphere is charming!

Beautiful restaurant, comfy seating, great service by Asma always smiling and cheerful, and fantastic food 👌🏼 provided delicious soup on the house while we waited for our order. Starters we ordered the humous and halloumi with arabic bread. The main was Karen Yarek. Delicious, high quality ingredients. Kahwah was provided on the house after our meal which topped everything off. Delicious all around and fantastic service, will come again 😋

very delicious food quick service friendly staff recommended 👍

Friendly welcome. Wonderful freshly cooked food. Very enthusiastic staff.

Wonderful food, an authentic taste of Syria. If you’re visiting York you must try!

AMAZING! Food was delicious, service was impeccable and the recommendations were fabulous. We will definitely be back. Thank you a fabulous evening ☺️

The best place for some comforting food. It never disappoints. The staff is soooo friendly and welcoming. 10/10 recommend

Lovely owner, takes great care. Great food, fresh and authentic

Good food and nice atmosphere! Highly recommend )

Honestly a lovely meal, highly recommend the Kebbeh and Karen Yarek. The mint and lemon drink is to die for as well. We will be back with the kids

Fantastic food and wonderful staff. Make sure to order the Grande Kanufa

This restaurant is truly something special. From the first course of lentil soup, to the cardamon tea (be sure to get this) to the ice cream in baklawa, everything was delicious. I had the lamb and chicken fillets and can highly recommend these. For a bonus tip, ask the manager to pick you a dessert as you will not be disappointed!!! I will be back, and look forward to visiting the Leeds and Bradford restaurants to compare and try more of the menu. Thank you Bab Tooma :-)

Absolutely fantastic! Beautiful food, wonderful service.

Extremely friendly, very cosmopolitan, really worth a visit or two. The Arabic tea to finish was delicious.

Osama was an amazing host, the lamb was incredible!

Excellent food n excellent service

Top food, lovely experience, will come again

Fantastic food, fantastic service, will definitely be back

The food was delicious and the service was outstanding! Made our trip to York and we’ll be returning the next time we are back!