660015 Fri Oct 16 11:45:17 -0700 2009 15 16 Mid-Atlantic 0 5108452 This new middle eastern restaurant http://www.elshamrestaurant.com/Site/Home.html opened yesterday on S. Olden Ave near I-295. We were there for lunch today and not disappointed. A storefront strip mall restaurant with a counter and about 8-10 tables. Excellent food served on plastic plates after ordering at the counter. We tried the vegetarian mixed platter (hummus, grape leaves, and very, very good falafel served with bulgar wheat & onions [rice also an option]) and the lamb shish kebab combo with rice, tabouleh & yogurt salad. All very good. The lamb was tender and spiced in some way I can't describe but enjoyed. Hot tea was only lukewarm, the only disappointment. The desserts are to die for: top quality baklavah, basbusa & kahnafea! Not at all a fancy place, but very clean, and the food is quite good Fri Oct 16 11:45:17 -0700 2009 130019 carl555 1 5112192 I must say i have to agree you. This place is the real deal. I went their on saturaday for lunch me and my family, We had the Hummus and Baba ganusih for an appatizer and a Lamb shawarma for me, my wife had the Lamb kabob and my kids split the kafta kabob. First the presention looked real nice and taste was outstanding. We finished our meal with a cup of hot tea and turkish coffee (i guess they got the tea problem taking care of). The owner let us try their desserts (Baklava, Basbusa and Kahnafa).Their was only one problem we had and that's we can't decide which dessert we like best their all the best we had in a while. Keep up the good job. Sun Oct 18 10:12:34 -0700 2009 5108452 1117257 hungry4food 1 5112865 I was there for lunch today and i was very happy. Excellent food served with a smile I tried the El Sham platter (lamb, chicken, and kafta kabob) it was very healthy and tasteful. I also had the tabouleh & yogurt salad the owner threw in a laban with olive oil for me to try ( i winded up taking an order of that home it was so good). . The desserts are top quality baklavah, basbusa & kahnafea! very clean, and friendly. All in All, very good 10 out of 10 Sun Oct 18 15:31:31 -0700 2009 5108452 1117347 nour 1 5132081 Do any of the posters know how this place compares to other middle eastern restaurants like Marhaba in Lambertville or Ibby's in Freehold? Mon Oct 26 11:33:06 -0700 2009 5108452 13350 glutton 2 5132103 Anyone remember what their hours are, I didn't see them on the web site? Mon Oct 26 11:40:30 -0700 2009 5132081 11228 BeeZee 3 5135723 I was talking to the owner and he said that ibby's is his cousins place and Mamoun's falafel in nyc is his uncle. I have to tell you i been to Mamoun's and the food is outstanding. The food at the El Sham taste just as good. the sign on the door say 11-11 7 days a week. in my eyes i been to the one in Jersey city and i think the atmosphere is more relaxing. Hey i just found out that they also have hookahs outside. i think that's a plus. Tue Oct 27 16:24:15 -0700 2009 5132103 1117257 hungry4food 2 5164195 I answered my own question by eating at El Sham last night with my wife and friend. It is definitely not on par with Marhaba or Ibby's. In fact, it was all in all a pretty lousy meal. I say that for two reasons: Food: We ordered hummus, baba ghannouj, stuffed grape leaves, tabbouleh, falafel, and chicken shawarma. The hummus and baba ghannouj were fine, but honestly not much different than what I could buy at a grocery store. The grape leaves came out of a can. The tabbouleh was different, and not as good, as what I've eaten at other restaurants -- it was more of a pasta dish and less of a salad of parsley, etc. The falafel was pretty good. The chicken shawarma was terrible -- dry, overcooked, bland. Value: This is not a fancy restaurant and that's fine. You order at the counter, the food is served on styrofoam plates, and there's little to no ambiance. All of that does not bother me in the least. However, the prices they charge are more expensive than places with waiter service, linens, ambiance, etc. The combo plates were $15 and we got some lousy chicken shawarma and two sides (hummus, tabbouleh, etc.). The sides were tiny. To charge fifteen bucks for that is highway robbery. I'm not usually the guy that complains about value at restaurants -- it's a tough business to make a nickel, so I'm usually content to pay a bit extra to keep a good restaurant in business -- but this was over the top. I don't think we'll give this a second chance. We've got Marhaba and Ibby's close enough and if we're looking for great middle eastern food, we can head up to Patterson (as we did today, in a desperate attempt to erase bad memories of subpar baba ghannouj). Sat Nov 07 18:32:13 -0800 2009 5132081 13350 glutton 1 5137781 After reading the reviews on Chowhound, we decided to try El Sham today for lunch. We both took the day off from work today, and it was very fitting being our anniversary. After watching the Rick Steves episode on Iran this morning, I was craving some middle eastern cuisine, and this was th perfect fit for my cravings! El Sham is just a 10 minutes drive or so for us, so it was nice and close. The place is in a strip mall, and I have no idea if this is a new strip mall, or if it has been there for a while. As you walk in, the counter where you order is tucke into the back ledt hand corner. In the front of the restaurant, 8 tables occupy the open space. The walls are a light blue color, and the restaurant is trimmed out in yellow. The place may not be fancy or romantic, but I can tell you that it is clean! You can eat off the floors in here, and it just loks pristine. They also have nice dark colored tables, and the place is no frills. For lunch, we started out with the hummus, that was served with a nice light oil on top, some green herbs, and 4 fresh pita slices. This was very nice, and I could eat a ton of it. For an appetizer, it is the perfect portion, and I actually left a little on the plate to use on my sandwich. Zelda opted for the falafel sandwich, which was a nice sized portion, with lettuce, tomato, and a tahini sauce served in a pita. She said that this was much better than the last one that she had at Moustache in Lambertville before they closed. From the bite that I had, the spices were very nice, and this had some damn good flavors to it! I opted for the shish kabob sandwich, which was a nice grilled lamb cubed and seasoned. Let me tell you that this was awesome! The lamb was hot off the grill, and when I say hot, I mean hot! It was served with a nice lettuce, tomato, onion, and tahini sauce. The seasonings on this were absolutely perfect, and I love the hot temp on the lamb. It was cooked perfectly, and was just damn tasty. I added some hummus to the sandwich, and I recommend doing the same. It makes for a nice combo. All in all, for $20 with a couple of sodas, this made for a bargain lunch! The ambiance isn't the fanciest, but what is important is that the food is authentic, and damn good! We definitely plan on going back and I look forward to trying one of their many different platters, and Zelda looks forward to tryng their falafel plater or vegetarian mixed platter! It's nice to have a new place like this in the area, with goo service, and great food! Kudos to the crew at El Sham! El Sham 1641 South Olden Avenue Hamilton, NJ 08610 Phone: (609)931-0513 Fax: (609)931-0514 http://www.elshamrestaurant.com/ http://jerseyfoodies.blogspot.com/2009/10/el-sham-medditeranian-hamilton-nj.html Wed Oct 28 11:52:20 -0700 2009 5108452 192452 njfoodies 2 5166812 Do they make their own pita? Is it anything like Aladdin's pita back when it was under the old management? I could've made a meal just out of the pita and hummous or fuul. I miss it! But, anyway, to my point, is it like that at all or more like regular sized pita from the store? thanks, brownie (who should be called hotbreadfanatic, I think!) Mon Nov 09 07:45:17 -0800 2009 5137781 16421 brownie 3 5168682 They serve the same pita you could buy in a store. They could at least warm it up, but no such luck. Mon Nov 09 17:34:16 -0800 2009 5166812 13350 glutton 1 5167429 Finally got to this place... my take: The good: - Falafel - very flavorful, delicious - Foul Mudammas - Also delicious, could be a Tuscan bean dish - Baklava - Extremely fresh, not drowned in sugar syrup, nice and crispy - Hummus - Also extremely fresh, with very nice olive oil The not-so-good: - Shwarma - Both lamb and chicken had too much nutmeg for my taste - Kababs - Chicken & lamb were both a bit dry, Kofta was good All in all, very nice. I'll definitely be back for the vegetarian options. Mon Nov 09 10:56:04 -0800 2009 5108452 28208 cranrob 2 5175909 In response to certain reviews, I have been to El Sham Restaurant several times and have found the food to be excellent. The appetizers are yummy and quite an assortment, so everytime you go you get to try something else. The chicken kabobs are awesome, and you get 2 skewers with your platter. And the desserts (especially the Baklava) are to die for. You can tell that everything is made fresh there, and There is nothing on their menu that is overly priced. The service is extremely friendly and family oriented. The portions are just right 'if" you are the type of person who eats and enjoys the time spent on your dinner companion and the food, not one who eats and runs. The ambionse could be a little warmer but the warmth of the people who work there makes up for it. I highly recommend El Sham if you want a Taste of Middle Eastern food without straying far from home. Thu Nov 12 10:04:28 -0800 2009 5167429 1123950 JoJo1880 3 5176590 I understand that I might have gotten a bad meal when I was there -- that happens sometimes, even to the best of restaurants. However, I am very surprised that nobody else thinks that $15 for a skimpy "platter" is too much. Their version of a "platter" is just one of those styrofoam plates that is divded into three sections -- just like what you buy at the grocery store. Put a little scoop of hummus in one section, a scoop of baba ghanouj in another section, and finish it with a big pile of rice and a small handful of chicken shwarma sprinkled on top. That's what they're calling a combo platter and they want $15 for that. Compare that to what you get at Ibby's in Freehold, Marhaba in Lambertville, or any of the places in Paterson and I think you'd agree that it's overpriced. Thu Nov 12 13:24:19 -0800 2009 5175909 13350 glutton 4 5187365 Yeah Glutton. The prices of the combos strike me as a bit on the high side. I went back: lentil soup was a bit thin. Falafel still very good. Mon Nov 16 19:31:30 -0800 2009 5176590 130019 carl555 3 5176926 JoJo1880, I see this is your first post on Chowhound. Welcome! hungry4food and nour, I see that your posts are also your first. Welcome to you too! I am a lover of Middle Eastern food and would be very interested to know how you feel El Sham compares with the restaurants mentioned by glutton. I go to Cedars, a Lebanese restaurant in Somerville, and if you are familiar with it I'd also like to know what you think of the food there. Thu Nov 12 14:58:45 -0800 2009 5175909 57768 ambrose 4 5180278 Ambrose as you can tell i am new at this review stuff. I never tried Cedars but after the reviews i read i am looking to go their soon. i was living in Malboro last year and had jury duty, I stop to have lunch their and the music was very low the food was very good don't get me wrong, but from what Glutton was saying compaired to the El Sham i would have to say they both have the same rank. Guutton thank you for your heads up and review about this place :) Don't know when i went their i had the Chicken Kabob combo with the hummus and the Baba Ganuish it was outstanding and the size of the plates were just right. We got a ovel plate with rice and toped with two skewers of chicken (10 cubes) then on a diffrent plate we got the baba ganuish and another plate the hummus after eating out salad. Don't know if someone told them about your review but they are give you the value for your dollar. You should def. try them out again. Ambrose how is Cedars Falafel and baba ganuish? Thank you all for welcoming me to the chow community. Fri Nov 13 18:35:05 -0800 2009 5176926 1123950 JoJo1880