Café Jaffa

Consistently delicious food! Love the hummus appetizer, Greek salad & the creamy Greek dressing! I’ve been here several times — dining in & taking out — and I’ll continue to go back as there is not an item that hasn’t been good, despite what I or friends I frequent with opt to order at this quaint friendly Mediterranean café in the Back Bay of Boston. I would highly recommend it to all!

Loved this Greek lunch and the Mint Lemonade was refreshing. Cute place, friendly service and great food. Will be back. Café Jaffa is the place to go.

Let’s start by saying, I’m a picky eater. Having tried middle eastern/​greek/​turkish/​armenian food in many places in and around the country, I have to say that Café Jaffa knows what it’s doing! Boston is definitely not a foodie town and, especially, when it comes to diverse world cuisines. However, after having tried Café Jaffa a few times now (I work right next to it) and having samples a number of menu items, it really has proved itself to be consistently good. I have tried their beef and lamb gyro, the hummus, baba ghanoush, dolmas and it’s all very very good. However, their Greek Salad with beef and greek dressing it just out of this world! The beef if the best marinated, most succulent piece of meat I have tasted. The dressing is delicious. just a winner all around.
The only drawback may be the ambience and it can get a bit smoky. However, with a dearth of places to get good food in town (according to me), it’s worth the trouble. So if you’re craving good middle eastern food — go here now!

Kabobs very dry, tough and salty. They make no apologies. If you enjoy mediterranean food, try elsewhere.

WAY too overpriced and sub-​par service and quality.
Came for dinner and was instantly overwhelmed by the entrée prices that did not match the laid-​back vibe of this restaurant with an open short-​order kitchen that serves kebabs in baskets. When I finally tried my meal (lamb) I was not impressed at all — the meat was overcooked — and I wouldn’t consider going back.

Been here a few times always a great experience. Nice people, nice atmosphere, great food at a good price!

Overall a disappointing experience. The service was slow during lunch. The restaurant was only half full. The 3 sandwiches that we ordered arrived cold. The only saving grace was the lentil soup. It was hot and delicious.

I was hoping this place would be somewhat authentic, but it couldn’t possibly be the further from middle eastern food! Even the falafel sandwich was a flop (it was more like a salad in a wrap than a falafel sandwich). Bad quality, overall tasteless, overpriced and very disappointing. Wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone.

This place is really tasty! Service is friendly and overall really good. Their green hot sauce is a real treat and I like dabbing a bit of it on anything I order. I’ve also ordered from here on GrubHub and the food withstood the stand of delivery time!

Great quality food, lamb and chicken platter was excellent, pretty good portions. For those of you that like really spicy sauce, ask for the green chili sauce.

One of the best chicken shawarma I have had. The meat was tender and delicious. I almost licked the plate of baba ghanoush. Definitely my fav! Amazing food Great location very reasonable price.

I’ve been dining here for 8 years and it’s always amazing and flavorful. I absolutely love their baba ganoush, salads, falafel, hummus, and sandwiches. Every time I’ve come, the food has been fantastic.
I thoroughly enjoy the atmosphere and décor too.
Please continue the wonderful food for years and years to come!

Its ok really.
There on a Sunday for lunch, the place was very stuffy, smokey and we asked them to open the door. few people walked out.
The Shawarmah mix combo, was good, not great, service was good and friendly. The potatoes bread item was not great, heated in Microwave. Did not try the hummus, wish we did.
The prices are ok, not too expensive. Plently of food, but I was hoping for a bolder flavors.

My husband and I have been coming here for over twenty years, 2 pregnancies and even after having moved out of the back bay to the suburbs. We will ALWAYS be coming here as long as we are able!

We had our first-night’s dinner here while attending a conference at the nearby Hynes center. We are so grateful for our good fortune at stumbling into this place. Some of the best falafel I have ever eaten. Crunchy/​crispy on the outside and almost creamy inside. We ordered the dinner for 2 meal, which also came with more meat than we could hope to eat. The wine, a Cabernet I had not heard of before, was a perfect match for the food. Kudos to the owners for finding a perfectly paired wine for a mix of vegetarian and meat combo meal. The hummus and babaganoush were also delicious. All in all a really nice experience for our 1^st night in town.
Oh yes, the price: $ 70, including our tip, a great bargain for such delicious food and good service.

I’ve really enjoyed Café Jaffa for almost 20 years. They have the very best chicken and lamb shwarma, I enjoy it tremendously. I have some concerns that I hope the owner will read.
* It’s no longer a «cheap eat». You have very generous portions with your dinner plates. Perhaps consider downsizing the portion size, along with the meal price?
* For years there was good, consistent wait staff help that knew the menu and were really efficient. My past couple visits we’ve seemed to know the menu better than the help. We shouldn’t have to explain what certain items are, or that an Israeli/​Mediterranean salad with a dinner is an option for $ 1 more.
* Fix your ventilation! Last night the restaurant got really smokey and it was hurting our eyes.
Now that I’ve vented let me say that this remains one of my favorite meals. It’s constantly yummy, with large portions, and it’s informal but in a great location. I’d rather dine here than many more fancy places!

I am Lebanese and its my first time exploring Boston. This place has awesome food. I usually judge a middle eastern restaurant by its tabbouleh… And it was great! The hummus was spot on and the shawarma was yummy! Everything was great, and I highly recommend!

We stop here every time we are in Boston. The Schwarma platter is to die for. The meat is unbelievably tender and flavorful. The Tabouleh is the best I’ve ever had.
The restaurant is unassuming but pleasant. The service is always courteous.

Had a great mix shawarma sandwich. Meat was very tender and juicy, vegetables fresh and tasty. Ask for their hot sauce, very tasty and different. I wish I had a pic, but ate it too quickly. Enjoy!

Do yourself a favour and skip this restaurant! It was the worst meal I had in a while and I am not a picky eater. Ordered a Mediterranean platter and it was disgusting! Everything on that plate including falafel, hummus was very bland and without any flavour. Even their hot sauce sucked. Their shawarma is made out of processed meat, so don’t expect any real chicken, lamb, beef skewers. Would never come back to this restaurant. And I can’t believe that a place like this is in business.

Came here with a party of 8 for dinner at 6pm on Saturday. We had made a reservation, and we were seated right away. I ordered a Lamb/​Beef Shawarma Plate (it’s written as «schwarma» on the menu, but I think it’s supposed to be spelled «shawarma» — minor issue), which came with rice and meat, and a salad on the side (I chose Greek salad, forgot the other choice). The salad was good, though I didn’t finish it because it had too many pickles. The shawarma plate was delicious — the rice was savory from the meat, and the meat was tender and tasty. I also got a mango juice, and it was great as well — sweet with a hint of rose water. Apparently, no free refills unless you get like a soda or something.
The service was somewhat lackluster compared to the food — I think they might have been understaffed, but in any case our server had a hard time understanding our orders (I don’t think English was her native language) and misheard one of my friends’ side orders. We also had to wait for a while for things (e.g. our food and our check).
Overall, I’d give the food a 4.5 and service 3.5, so 4 on average.

Very good, reasonably priced standard Middle Eastern fare in a nicely appointed setting just a stone’s throw from the Prudential Center. I had the hummus and grape leave combo platter, which was accompanied by the requisite fresh pita and a surprisingly good Greek salad. Service was prompt and friendly although I visited at a slow time mid week, so don’t know how things get when the place is hopping.

The lamb was simply brilliant. It was soft and tender. The middle eastern salads and sandwiches are really good and you should give it a try. I will come back to try out the other options on the menu.
Ps: The sandwich could do with a little extra veggies and sauce. You can ask them to customise.

Holy hummus! When I can’t afford a pilgrimage to the Holy Land Café Jaffa tides me over. The BEST hummus, baba ganoush and tabouli anywhere in the greater Boston area. Lovely casual setting and family hospitality. Don’t forget to get a hug from ima before you leave. It’s a belly and heart loving experience.

I don’t come to Boston often anymore, but when I do, Café Jaffa is my go-​to Mediterranean food spot — I don’t think twice about it.
Great hummus, great people and a comfortable atmosphere. The staff there is always attentive and unlike other restaurants around the city — you get exactly what you order (and often then some).
Hopefully one day it’ll expand to NYC…

Popped in for a super quick bite to eat and ordered the falafel sandwich. OMG soo tasty! The falafel balls were crispy and crunchy and the tahini dressing was amazing. Definitely come here if you’re looking for a great tasting affordable option in the Back Bay area. The décor inside is also much better than your typical falafel take out joint. You can’t go wrong here.

I’ve been a regular here for a few years, and it’s really hit or miss. Several times I’ve gotten the steak tip rollup sandwich, and it’s either really good, or really bad. Yesterday’s lunch, unfortunately was really bad. When my sandwich arrived the bread was already soaking wet with too much tahini sauce, and the whole thing just tasted bad. The steak was all fatty and chewy, and the lettuce seemed kind of rotten. To top it off I asked for water with lemon, and the little piece of lemon on the cup was also rotten. Gross.
Oh, and the new waitress is very sweet, but she never checks on how your food is, and it’s difficult to get change so you can leave her a tip. I’m gonna take a break from here for a while.

Stopped by for a quick lunch (chicken kabob sandwich special) recently. It’s actually more like 3.5 stars for me. The pros were a nice atmosphere, good lunch specials, and very tasty grilled chicken, Turkish coffee, and Greek salad. The cons: The sauce in the sandwich was bland, the wrap was cold and cooled off some of the heat from the chicken, the lettuce was a bit sad and wilted, and overall the spices that you typically see in Middle Eastern cuisine weren’t there. The result was a fine, decent wrap but with no «wow» factor for me.