Once upon a time Abu Zaad was our favourite restaurant in London. Back when they had a small little spot on Edgware Road, this was our favourite eatery there (found it to be way better than the numerous fancy Arabic restaurants there). It was small, cosy, the food was delicious, the staff were super friendly and nice, and the vibes were authentic (due to its small size). On a side note, they’d always give free mint tea and Muhalabiya (Arabic ric pudding type of dessert) in this branch (and not in any of the others): this was a nice touch. So, understandibly, we were gutted when we heard of the closure of this particular branch.
Nonetheless, a few years back, we tried out their Shepherd’s Bush branch. This branch is a lot bigger and fancier looking. Taste wise nothing was different. Everything was absolutely spot on. Abu Zaad has to be the single restaurant in London that we have frequented the most (we are not from London). Easily. We went there often and whenever guests were round and we wanted to take them somewhere special in London, this was our go to. And it was always a big hit. Our go to order included numerous mezze dishes (always a hit here) and that would usually fill our table up with delicious goodies without the need for mains really. We did once get a truly standout main, which was their lamb mandi – so good! Their Muhalabiya for dessert is absolutely to die for. However, for one reason or another we hadn’t visited for a long time and recently at the back end of 2021 we headed back for a delicious munch… or was it?
We went for our usual, which was numerous mezze dishes and lamb mandi. Before we discuss the food, the first thing I want to touch on is the presentation. They have clearly worked on that it looks more prettier now as opposed to the rough round the edge look they had going on prior. Now, let’s get on to the food.
Fattoush salad
This was fresh and we liked the addition of pomegranite, which we don’t remember from last time. It was tangier than what we remember, but still refreshing and nice for a salad.
Hummus with shawarma
We remember this as being one of the standout dishes. I liked it, but the wife felt it didn’t hit the heights it used to back when we used to be regulars. Nonetheless, I think we both agreed that this was also our favourite dish of the day.
Mixed Mezze
This includes falafel, cheese sambosa, halloumi sticks and kibbeh. One of each, so perfect to share between two (or for one if you’re hungry I guess). Each of these were fairly good, but we both agreed that they weren’t as good as what we remember. There’s a common theme here. It was just not hitting the “speechless WOW” heights that this restaurant and its dishes used hit for us.
Lamb Mandi
This was a dish we only got the last time we visited, but it was oh soooo good that it became one of our favourites from here. I mean essentially, this is a Syrian restaurant, but they have some Moroccan and Yemeni dishes (i.e. this one). This lamb mandi was mind blowing the first time we had it. We were full, we were stuffed!! Yet, we were able to devour it with absolute ease. The rice was perfectly flavoured with this char and meaty flavour, it was so good. Coupled with succulent meat and this is a gorgeous dish. How did this taste this time? Unfortunately, this was the biggest let down here. It tasted nothing like what we rememebered. In fact we were convinced they had changed chefs lol.
Usually we’d get dessert and tea. Muhalabiya here is a dream of a dessert. The perfect post meal dessert as it is light and packs a surprising fragrant punch. It is an experience for your taste buds. However, we were feeling down from the whole experience, we decided not to go for dessert this time.
Overall
We were leaving this restaurant quite disappointed to be honest. Our expectations were way up there and they were no where near being met. This saddened us to be honest as this was literally our go to in London. This is the one we would recommend to others and visit with loved ones. But after this experience, it felt like they are not what they used to be. I am willing to give them another try with the hope that they can live up to our expectations (according to what they themselves set), but yeah not in a hurry to do so anymore.
Getting there
Parking: Bloemfontein Road – free parking evenings and weekends.
Nearest Mosque: Masjid Daar us Sunnah
Nearest station: Shepherd’s Bush
