My visit to Habibi Foods introduced me to Brazilian Middle Eastern cuisine, and while I approached it with an open mind, certain aspects immediately raised concerns. I was in new territory when it came to what to expect from an unknown culture of food and service. I tried to understand what the brand was and it just left me confused. Decided to wing it and ordered a Parrilla Mixta and here was my experience:
Initial Impressions And Pricing
My first look at the menu, I immediately noticed outrageous pricing. There was also a significant lack of clarity regarding the menu. How big are the portions? What do they come with? What exactly am I ordering? At the end of the day, I rolled the dice and decided to ‘pay and pray’ rather than having an informed decision. Being unfamiliar with Brazilian Middle Eastern food, the menu provided nothing but confusion in understanding what to expect for the considerable cost.
Ambiance And Setup
Despite the pricing, the place was packed, and I was convinced it was because the food was delicious. The restaurant itself was an overhead metal tent with plastic benches, basic lighting, and netting for walls. The entire operation stemmed from a retired school bus repurposed as a kitchen, which to me, was a very smart move. Signage and storage areas revealed a generator and what appeared to be a giant cooler serving as a refrigerator for drinks.
Service And Operational Observations
The restaurant seemed to be family-owned, which provided some entertainment but also highlighted inconsistencies. A teenager, seemingly acting as hostess and cashier, was frequently distracted by her phone, requiring redirection back to work. The mom was observed actively managing the front-of-house, while the kitchen staff remained largely hidden behind a makeshift black duct-taped “doggy door window.” This visual barrier, while practical, created a perception of something to hide. Food delivery was noticeably slow, and observing plates reaching other tables quickly confirmed that the hefty price tag did not match the value for quantity. This immediately made me think that the cost would be justified by the quality of the food itself.
Food Breakdown
After a 20-minute wait, my order arrived on a standard Styrofoam tray, containing fries, various meats, arepas, and a side of coleslaw.
- Chicken Breast: This was a thin, marinated, and grilled chicken breast. It was okay at best.
- Steak: Similarly thin, about the same size as the chicken, seasoned differently, and also grilled. Again, mediocre at best.
- Chorizo: This item was a bit of a disappointment. It leaned more towards a generic sausage. The texture and flavor was closer to a thin bratwurst or a cut-up hotdog, lacking the distinctive spice expected from chorizo.
- Arepas: Arepas are typically a vehicle for food delivery, serving a similar function to pizza crust or pasta for sauce. However, these particular arepas were completely devoid of salt. Not even a trace of seasoning could be tasted, nor was there any butter or other enhancement to enrich their flavor. It was simply corn masa patties fried in oil. Period. Cardboard has more character to it.
- Fries: The fries were clearly frozen and sourced directly from a bag, offering no unique quality. No seasoning, just relying specifically on bottled sauce for any flavor.
- Pork Pieces: These tasted exactly as you think they would. Ever seen deep-fried pork chunks? What you are picturing in your mind is exactly what it tasted like. Deep-fried pieces of unseasoned pork with a bit of fat on the side of them.
Overall Review and Conclusion
Score: My Experience: 3/10 | Value Is Terrible
At the end of the day, the food at Habibi Foods delivered only the absolute basics. The chicken was just chicken, the steak was just steak, and the pork was just pork. This left me with a pervasive feeling of “it was what it said it was,” but with a strong desire for more.
In a city experiencing insane growth and with a ton of establishments striving to make their mark, Habibi Foods needs to offer significantly more to justify its existence, particularly at its current price points. The value is simply not there. I could go to Costco or BJ’s, buy bulk meat, not season it, throw it on a grill for a random amount of time, then take it off, chop it up, and I would get 10x more value out of it than I did at Habibi Food. Their whole concept is to give you meat and make you dip it into one of their 6 bottles of sauces on the table.
This experience was full of regret. I would rather have taken my 33 dollars and went to buy groceries and cooked food myself. Unfortunately, Habibi Foods embodies the worst of both worlds: low-quality flavors with premium pricing, leading to terrible value. Usually, it’s something like low value with high quality, or low quality with high value, but not here. Habibi Foods manages to achieve neither, presenting value-tier food at quality-tier prices.