Lebaneat in County Durham

It was a bad experience yesterday we will not go again

We returned to Durham after seven years, and the first thing we searched for was Lebanese food. During our time at Durham University seven years ago, we were addicted to Lebanese cuisine and visited the local Lebanese restaurant weekly. We were delighted to find that the restaurant's food quality and atmosphere remain just as exceptional as they were seven years ago. It’s impressive how they’ve managed to preserve their standards over time. This time, we had the qozy lamb and lamb meshwi. Both dishes were incredibly delicious and flavorful. We highly recommend trying the chocolate baklava—it has a uniquely special taste that’s unforgettable.

Lovely food but would be nice if I got all of it! I uber eats ordered for context I ordered hummus with bread- got no bread Shish Taouk- got a wrap not bread and no sauce! Will try again for benefit of the doubt but check your order before leaving in case.

Once on of the best authentic restaurants in the city is now tired, with poor service and average food. Chipped plates, rubbish in the corridors, broken toilet seats, no paper towels and a broken hand drier. Nice lemonade though.

Very delicious authentic Lebanese food. We came all the way from London to eat here and will definitely come back here again and again. Highly recommend for everyone.

Authentic Lebanese food. Real delicious! Came from London and will definitely be back again! Service was a little on the slow side even when we all arrived at a quiet time

Noche fantástica. La comida es tan sabrosa y no te quema la boca. El personal era maravilloso tener que lidiar con nuestra fiesta loca. Ya planeando una visita de regreso

I recently ordered takeout from Lebaneat Cafe, and unfortunately, my experience was disappointing. The chicken I received had an unpleasant taste, almost like old meat, and there was a strong, off-putting smell. I’m concerned about the hygiene standards at this restaurant, as I believe food safety may not be a priority here. After eating, I was diagnosed with food poisoning, which I suspect is related to the quality of the food. Based on my experience, I believe a thorough health and safety inspection is urgently needed, especially considering reports of similar issues in the past. I hope the restaurant takes these concerns seriously and makes improvements to ensure the safety of its customers.

Great experience, we went just 20 mins before shop closing however staff was really friendly and served us table services without any hesitation with great food

Had a great lamb dish! Other dishes were also nice and the homemade lemonade was excellent.

El servicio espantoso no consiguió que el personal de entrega pusiera el teléfono abajo en nosotros dos veces todavía esperando. . . . . . . no se le dijo reembolso para llamar a alguien en Egipto? ? ? no malgastes tu dinero

Both of our meals were still hot even though it was from the other side of the city. The fact it was early was a bonus! Both tasty, great quality.

The food was a mixed bag. The cold starters where awful good being largely bland and not fresh, especially the houmous, dolma and falafel. They where not authentic and they weren't even good to balance that. The main course was nice with the shish being the beet thing on the mixed but the rest was mediocre at best. Service wasn't the best with our starters and mains coming together (not a huge deal) and the waiter being very cold and abit rude.

Huge and tasty meals, loved the shared starter

The potatoes in my wrap were dark brown and had an unusual texture. I am no expert but I don't think they're meant to be this way, looked rotten and quite offputting. Everything else was good.

Very tasty food and the driver was very professional

No para alérgicos ni para cualquiera que siga un estilo de vida vegano. Pedí un envoltorio vegano, el resto de mi pedido, incluida mi bebida, era correcto, pero el problema clave era que mi envoltorio se servía con pollo incluido - ahora entendería si tal vez hubiera personalizado el envoltorio y causado confusión al pedir un envoltorio de carne, pero pedí el envoltorio VEGANO indicado en su propio menú. Afortunadamente, no como como una persona normal y uso un cuchillo y un tenedor para cortar en mi envoltura en lugar de solo morder en la envoltura, así que me las arreglé para evitar comer esto, ya que he sido vegano 5 años y habría estado bastante molesto. Mi hija también sufre alergia a los lácteos y afortunadamente no le pedí nada, ya que ofrecen pizza vegana, etc. y ahora dudo de toda la oferta vegana y cuánto entienden lo que significa vegano. He pedido muchas veces a lo largo de los años y nunca he tenido un problema, pero el último error ha puesto en mi mente grandes dudas en cuanto a los pedidos anteriores y el tratamiento de estos al leer que recientemente se ha impuesto una multa a Lebaneat por no control de alérgenos o medidas de contaminación cruzada establecidas. Realmente decepcionado y no voy a pedir de nuevo o de visita, he añadido una foto, solo para respaldar la envoltura llena de pollo cuando claramente pedido era una envoltura vegana.

My husband and I loved the meal. The portions are very good for the value and we were very welcome by the staff. To me everything perfect!!❤️

very recommended for halal menu in durham. The food super delicious and dont miss to order chicken baryani..try your own!

I personally found this place value for money. The staff are really welcoming and we didn’t really wait long for our meal !!

Wonderful food, at affordable prices. And great service to go along with that too.

Large portions with good taste.

Excelente elección y calidad de platos, todo sabe fresco. Servicio amable y eficiente. Muy recomendable para un almuerzo sencillo cuando se está en el centro de Durham.

Had a great sharing plate with wine

very good vibes. 10000% recommend :-) good cushions, good tea, I miss u lebaneat

Delicious food, super menu. Lovely restaurant good service..

2024 -Convicted owner of deliberate contamination of allergens resulting in one person being hospitalised. This after being fined in 2019 for employing illegal workers and breeches in food hygiene law. I wouldn't eat here if I was starving to death. Coz there's a chance if you do it could finish you off. AVOID AVOID AVOID.

Food was lovely as always but waited two hours for it

Food is tasty, howeverthere are not enough people to serve fast. Also the water jug was not clean meaning the water it was served in was disgusting.

El servicio no era genial y la comida era muy sosa. Pedimos un pedido de papas fritas que se asfixió con sal. Muy decepcionante.

Ordered from lunch menu, food was amazing and portion sizes were huge and very good value for money. Electrics went off quite regularly!

Delicious food every time. Great vegan options and gluten free options too.

the food is phenomenal and fairly priced, victory to the Lebanese people, they are not forgotten around the world ☝️🔥🔥

Very good but not amazing. Some of the sauces and meats (liver) were not perfectly seasoned. Sadly, not a lot of guests, so atmosphere was lacking. The menu and selection are fantastic!

Enjoyed the mixed platter for two. Staff were generally friendly. Would return is we get back to Durham, slightly off the beaten track but worth searching out. Maybe a bit utilitarian, not canteen style but maybe not homely. But would recommend to friends.

Tried as my son is moving to Durham. I am sure i will be back. Food was excellent.

They didn’t have arak even though it’s in the menu, so we just ordered water, which came after our starter. We didn’t get cutlery for the starter, which for me was fine as I had hummus and bread, but my friend had salad, she had to go take cutlery herself as the waitress is not really around, she comes occasionally, but you can’t see her when you need her. The hummus was really good. I had a wrap with chips, which was ok. I was thinking of giving 4 stars, but then I saw knefeh in the menu, which is my favorite dessert, and I said to my self: “If this is out of this world, I’m gonna give it a 5.” In the end, I think what we got wasn’t even a knefeh, it looked more like baklava to me. And it was not super tasty.

Lovely food and very friendly staff. This was my first time eating Lebanese food and it was so delicious we went twice for dinner during our short stay in Durham. The staff are very friendly. The atmosphere lovely and the food delicious

One of the worst visits to this place. Kitchen staff getting angry. Ordered drinks large rose and a lemonade , sorry no rose but clearly had bottles As served another table a glass of rose. Wrong starters came to go with the long wait. Only 2 waiting staff on. Then main come on a plate that served with an inch chip on it. Then the food was OK.

Poor service, everything took a long time, from ordering to drinks to food. This is despite there being more staff than customers. No urgency at all to staff. Food was bland and underseasoned. Give it a miss.

Food arrived very bad quality. Garlic sauce extremely watered down and pizza rock hard and not flavourable at all. Very small potion of chips with wrap for £10. The wait time was terrible and won’t be ordering from here again. The Lebaneat express is much better than this one.

First rate middle eastern cuisine and wine. Probably the best restaurant in Durham overall. *2024 update* Lebanese is still great. I still salivate thinking of their fatoush…

Delivery initially lacked items I’d ordered. Had to phone Leaneat and they then support the missing items, but by that point the items in the first delivery had cooled down … not acceptable.

I bought a £50 voucher on the website as a birthday gift and it never arrived. Emails, queries through the website and phone calls un answered. Neither voucher nor refund requested arrived. I’ve basically been scammed.

Management must do better !!! The staff are amazing - very friendly and hospitable - however they are very understaffed which mean quality of food is very poor - weird smell coming from biryani and shwarama - drinks coming long after meal. Staff very apologetic but management must do better.

Seems like a good place at first, one of the only halal options in the area, but the location is weird, up a hill up a random road. The place is a bit cramped but was able to get a group of 8 in. Food took more than 30 mins to arrive, which is understandable. However, we ordered 2 DIET COKES, which came AFTER we had finished our food? How long does it take to pour 2 cokes into a glass? Other people were getting their cocktails and beers and lachis before us… biryani was shocking, there was something off with the smell of the schwarma wraps, some food was cold, BUT, the staff was understanding, cannot fault their service, maybe they were understaffed

Tried out this place as it was one of the only Halal food option available in Durham. Diet Coke and Garlic Bread that we ordered was given at the end of the meal which we returned back. Asked multiple times for this while eating our mains so it cannot be acceptable to be given this at the end - needs to be greater communication with customers. Food did not taste the best, chicken the wraps tasted off, biryani was flavourless. As a gesture of good will management gave us a 15% discount and returned us the Diet Coke and Blakava on the house and explained there is a staff shortage and apologised.

our mixed grill didn't have any lamb on as advertised and it also didn't come with the chips as advertised. food we did have was tasty

First time ordering from here, the food was beautiful! Ordered the chicken sharer meal, it was divine, came with lots of sides! Everything fresh and delicious and delivery man was very friendly. Will definitely be ordering from here again.

Always piping hot and on time. Many thanks

7 years ago I did a review of how amazing it was, and i used to visit all the time! I visited 2024 and the waiter didn’t know what Kabsa Lamb is, the food was off, I ordered the Biryani and the meshwi. Though edible it had a weird smell to it, almost as if it’s off. No music, the atmosphere also for a Friday night, alittle bit too quiet.

Great food and service . Really nice place for some good lunch.

I'm glad we discovered this little hidden gem in Durham Town. The menu was interesting, the food fresh and brilliantly made and the service above standard. If you're bored of the usual fare try Lebaneat... You'll not be disappointed!

Very small chicken 🐔 though , but very tasty. Poussin size !!!!

Amazing food, fast and quick service! Friendly staff especially Ahmed!

Once a real destination spot in the city centre, it's now difficult to pop in and expect a quick service, even as a twosome. We arrived on a Sunday afternoon hoping for a light, stress free meal. We arrived around 4pm, and our order wasn't taken for 50 mins, with very few staff around to try to catch. Larger walk in groups appeared after we were sat down, and their orders were promptly placed and served. It felt as though we were forgotten about. Our starters arrived after 1 hour 10 mins, with the drinks (after another reminder) turned up shortly after. The staff apologised, but seemed very rushed off their feet, with a service that only filled 70% of the restaurant. We left 2 hours later, and even though the food was relatively good, it was marred by the VERY slow service. We even had to ask for the bill...twice...over 15 minutes... I do not want to discourage people from visiting this place if you're after genuinely good grilled food (and pretty amazing hummus/sambousek cheese), but I won't be recommending it to any of my friends.

Wonderfully helpful and attentive staff serving delicious and plentiful food for a family of vegetarians. We ordered a little if everything veggie... It was super tasty, and washed down with the home made minty lemonade which was delicious! Don't be out off by the scaffolding!

Amazing place, amazing food and amazing maneger Ahmed so kind, helpful and made sure to socialize with every table very professional.

Very good food, good atmosphere and Ahmed good host

We had an absolutely delicious lunch at Lebanese. We were in a bit of a hurry (sadly because I could have stayed a lot longer) and Ahmed, the manager, got us in and out super-quick while being friendly and welcoming. Great menu with some delicious wine too — if only we could have stayed longer. I very much hope to be back soon.

Excellent, really enjoyed the cold starter on this order. Many thanks.

The food is pretty good, and generally good value for money, especially with the mains - had a half chicken and chips for £13. Having said that, £7 for tabbouleh - basically just some parsley with onion, tomato and herbs - is a bit steep. The service, though, left a fair bit to be desired. Our food arrived quickly enough, but without two of the ordered items - when this was made clear, there wasn't an apology, and while one of the items was brought to us, I was told - pretty coldly - that I hadn't actually ordered the other, and everything we'd ordered had been brought out. I'll admit my mind does slip from time to time, but it hadn't this time - I did order it, and even if not, I'd have appreciated being spoken to a little less dismissively. It was generally difficult to get the attention of staff, and when we did get it, it was unenthusiastic, seemingly unhappy, and confused. I'd be more understanding if it had been peak service time and massively busy, but we went at 5pm, and it was pretty dead. I don't mean this as in any way an attack on the individual who served us, and I don't want them to be harshly dealt with, but the service just wasn't quite right and did bring the mood down somewhat. I

Very nice food, tender and juicy lamb with bones. And the lemonade is the best in Durham!

Careful to order only one course as the starters and mains all come out together. Better Lebanese restaurants are available.

Can't tell you still waiting to taste it 😏

Cosy restaurant serving excellent food. Lebaneat has a good selection of vegetarian food. The staff were very happy to talk through the menu.

We went here really for a change to see how different it was from Turkish food and we've really enjoyed the takeaway wraps -which I would recommend. However the sit-down restaurant experience is quite a different one. It feels like the main business still is takeaway, and the sit-down customers are a bit of a distraction. Service was painfully slow and confused. Reservation at 7pm and the mixed starters didn't arrive till nearly 8pm. And it's not as though it was packed either. The main course was supposed to be lamb but I'm not entirely sure... At the start of the evening I had wanted to try the kunefe desert, but that never happened. Our main plates were left for another 15 mins after we'd finished, and then cleared without an offer of a desert menu. But by then, I just wanted to go.

We had a delicious dinner at Lebaneat. The staff was friendly, the food was plentiful and flavorful, and we had the most delicious Moroccan wine (highly recommend it). We ordered the Cacik, stuffed peppers, chicken skewers and ended with a gorgeous baklava. Everything was divine.

1st time having this and was like was lush, will try again

Went at the weekend with friends for a double birthday celebration as l'd been a few times during the day a while ago, so I recommend we go on a night time.How wrong was I, first they had none of the drinks we wanted, then they didn't have one of the starters. The place itself was extremely noisy which was expected as it was busy but once the loud table went they turned the music up really loud, we literally couldn't hear ourselves talking.l've never wanted to get out of a place so quickly.I was so embarrassed to have recommended the place.The food was nice but not as nice as the other times we'd been & top it all off the place was really smoky,which again I'd never had on past occasions.I had emailed and rang up beforehand to explain the two birthdays and asked for a little cake with a candle in for them both, but that never happened and to be honest we just wanted to be out of the place.Also the service was extremely slow,even though their was a waiter stood right behind us doing nothing most of the time,I had to keep asking for drinks,condiments,cutlery, etc.It was horrendous,the only thing that was ok was the food but we won’t be back and definitely won’t be recommending it to anyone,it’s such a shame.

as usual, awesome flavours amd quality

Amazing food. Great service would highly recommend and can't wait to try more from the menu

Lovely staff, tasty food at great value with mixed grill deluxe to share

Lovely staff and very attentive. Great gluten free options and amazing value for money. Tetiana was so kind

Have ordered from here before and the food is great, so went to eat in for the first time. Having ordered one thing, a completely different dish was brought out as they had ‘run out’ and it was served without any apology or question as to whether i wanted the alternative. To my surprise, this was also added to the bill, where we were charged for the original dish which hadn’t even been served. After questioning this, we were met with rudeness and no apology, hence we paid anyway. Albeit, the food here is great, so my suggestion would be to order the food and avoid the rude customer service you face in the restaurant.

Fresh, fragrant and flavourful food cooked to perfection. Great deals at lunch time with a side and a main costing approx. £13. Friendly service. Vegan and veggie options available.

Portion was a little small, but tasty. I had a hard time getting the attention of the server. It was really chilly inside, which impacted my ability to enjoy the meal.

Absolutely beautiful will definitely be buying again highly recommended 5 star ⭐

Food was amazing. Got the shawarma wrap and was full of flavour. Staff are so friendly and welcoming while waiting for the takeaway got to explore the location and it was beautiful. Would highly recommend. I can’t stress the level of hospitality from the staff. They really make you welcome and always going the extra mile!

Wrap was a bit messy but other than that, 10/10.

Bit pricey. For the prawns you would expect more than 2 for the price you pay. Otherwise food was really nice and service was good too! Would recommend.

lovely food and delivery was really quick.

The place looks inviting, the food is great also. However, it was a little difficult ordering as the waitress did not understand what we were asking. I asked if there was beer on draught, but she did not understand. I just ordered a bottle. I later found out there is no draught served only bottles, which are quite expensive, nearly £4 for a 300ml bottle. So, come to ordering food, 2 of my party ordered wraps - pointing to it on the menu as her English didn't seem too good. The food came, very good quality, very tasty and worth the money. Only thing was, the two who ordered wraps, didn't get wraps at all, but just left it at that due to the difficulty in ordering food. Apart from that little issue, everything was great. Food absolutely gorgeous and staff very polite and friendly. Would I go back, yes, would I recommend this place, definitely. Only thing I would say is make sure you are clear with your order. Update 06/04/24: My wife and her friend were there about 4.30pmish, food was good as always - final service TERRIBLE. First of all, they were overcharged and when my wife spoke to the girl who served her - the girl said she couldn't do anything about the refund of the overcharge, as the manager wasn't available. My wife stood her ground and eventually received her refund of the over charged bill. Also, people were calling up on the phone, the girl said something to the man she was working with and herad him say, "just block the numbers..." - is this more people who have been overcharged and tried to get their money back?? Terrible service, this lets the place down - with think long and hard before returning, and if we do, we will scrutinize our bill, as i suggest you do, before paying!!!

Absolutely disgusted with place came 2 nights ago ended up with food poisoning got Jordan the managers number however no response we will be taking this further

My experience was very average. The server spent more time talking to friends at another table than serving customers. The food was good, but not great. Atmosphere is good but feels a bit old inside...

Food was a bit cold and a lot of the meat was dry. £1 for one small bit of bread didn't feel great and none of it was hot

I've eaten here on a regular basis, both in the restaurant and ordering takeaway. Food is great! I'm definitely a fan of the mixed kofta or shish taouk (either as a main course or a wrap). Lunchtime prices are very reasonably priced also. Staff are friendly and helpful. I'd recommending booking as it can get busy in peak times.

It's OK. We had a chicken shaway each, which was quite nicely spiced, although the half chicken was edging towards dry, but everything was rescued for me by the fantastic Lebanese lemonade with a hint of mint. I was actually glad I was the nominated driver. Delicious.

Great Food. Very tastefull. Great customer service.

Disappointed for wife's 40th birthday. Waited 15 mins before anyone came to take any of our order. The starters came with the main courses instead of before , too much food at once to eat which ended up wasted. My wife's food was forgotten about which she had to wait longer again for which by this time the rest of the table was finished eaten. Very noisey, couldn't hear what each was saying because of the noise of students at the other side of the restaurant swearing shouting cheering and breaking glasses. We were sat next to the door which let a very cold draft in whenever anyone came in or out making is all cold. The door is constantly open with just eat and takeaway orders folk exiting and entering the restaurant. Terrible experience for the family for wife's 40th birthday.

wanted something a little bit different and were not disappointed with our order. Absolutely stunning food, still hot, arrived in the time window given. Totally delicious.

Second time here. The lime lemon juice is amazing! This is why we came back. The food although tasty was not made great on our visit. Our Lebaneat wrap had only a couple of pieces of meat and I am not exaggerating here I could count the meat on pieces in one hand. Also got the sides wrong but we waited so long I couldn’t be bothered to get it corrected. (Which I’m sure they would have). The food is tasty and some menu items are decently priced. Service is bad. Ended up waiting a long time for mains, had to get the servers attention any time we wanted anything and often they would avoid you. There was one woman and she honestly was the saving grace for the service just because of how lovely she was. We ordered a second round of drinks which didn’t come but were continently added to the bill. Which when asked to removed was done with no trouble. So it’s dropped down a star based on the food (lack of meat) and service times. But still great and would go back. But would ask for no salad in the wraps. Would recommend just organising the service a little better so that’s it’s more effective.

Nice food. you've got to be patient to get a seat though.

One of the wraps did not have the right sauce in, "Chicken Shawarma pizza had none of the toppings requested just Aubergine and Red onion which was supposed to be an extra, Was delivered 30 minutes late and no care taken or updates given had to call three times before they told me that the driver was out and lost.

The food did not reflect the order very accurately - e.g. chips substituted for rice and chips substituted for salad on two orders.

Food was nice but overpriced for the amount you get.

The food is delicious, definitely worth the money, however prices cheap as well.

What a fantastic place for a quiet, late lunch. Excellent food- took a little while to come - definitely not fast food! It was freshly prepared (I was sitting next to the kitchen) - well worth waiting for! Unhurried, unhassled and not over priced for their lunch time menu (available until 5pm!).

Tasty food, big portions. Mixed starters plate was excellent! A great option for those visiting the Cathedral!

Absolutely lovely meal. Try it!