El Basha Restaurant - Park Ave

The ambience is excellent for a large group or an intimate dinner experience. Spacious, comfortable seating. The dining room staff was excellent. Being Lebanese my standards are high when it comes to Middle Eastern food. The hummus was excellent! The baba ghanoush was good but I'm not certain if they use jarred grilled eggplant or fresh, personally I thought it may have been jarred. I ordered the chicken Shawarma salad. I was a little disappointed when I received it as it was not chicken Shawarma. Even people who aren't Lebanese know what Shawarma is, especially in Worcester, the competition is high! This was chicken kebab on salad. (I wish I read the reviews before ordering as someone else stated the same). I reminded myself that if Shawarma wasn't on the menu I would've ordered the chicken kebab anyways and looked past it, however if that was the only thing I had ordered I would've been highly disappointed. The excellent dining service made up for the rude bar staff and unfortunately I feel it needs to be mentioned. I approached the bar and was asking who I was with if they wanted a drink. The bartender (blonde older woman with glasses) said she was busy, and I could completely understand just wanted to make sure she came back to me - but then she told me I could wait until I was seated at my table and order with my waitress. We sat in the bar for another 15 minutes, and even after she wasn't busy she didn't offer to serve me a drink. She served other people drinks right next to me who were with us but she clearly couldn't swallow her pride and ask if I would like a drink. I was in the restaurant for 30 minutes before I finally got a drink as I followed the instructions and waited to be seated and ordered through the waitress. I'm not the type to speak up and make a scene, but the bartender clearly needs customer service training. I didn't let any of the negative things ruin my evening. Everyone loved their dinner, also pictured is the lamb chops and Shrimp. I wish them much success as their business grows, and hope that my feedback can be useful.

I went to El Basha last night with a friend. It's Restaurant Week here in Worcester, so I wanted to check them out as I've never been before despite living in Worcester most of my life and driving by here frequently. My friend made a reservation for us for 7 pm. When we got to there, the hostess was using a piece of paper to check names of guests coming in which I thought was odd because most restaurants do that digitally. She said she couldn't find our name, but it was fine since we got a seat right away. I thought the service was just ok. Our waitress seemed like she was rushing us or just not attentive. I asked for a water, and she brought it out almost ten minutes after serving my friend her drink. She never mentioned that Restaurant Week was happening until we asked, and she barely checked in with us to see how the food was or if we needed anything else. To me, it seemed like she had bit of an attitude or maybe didn't want to be at work. The food was alright. There was a basket of pita bread to start, yet there was no hummus or oil to accompany it with, so that was a bit of a dry experience. I did the 3 course meal for Restaurant Week and I had lentil soup to start. It was a very hearty dish, almost akin to baked beans. I was expecting it to have more of a soupy consistency. I didn't like it all, so left it untouched after one bite. For the entree, I had the mixed grill which came with a shish, kafta, and chicken kabob with a side of rice and grilled vegetables. It was a platter of food and could have easily fed two people. Out of the three protein options, I enjoyed the chicken and shish (steak) the most. The steak was cooked at medium, and I was not asked what temperature I preferred but that was ok. The kafta was a ground beef mix that looked like a cut of beef. It was pretty good to me. I thought the rice and vegetables were just OK as well. Would have preferred a bit of seasoning. What I surprisingly enjoyed was the dessert. I had rice pudding. I've never eaten rice pudding before, so wasn't sure what to expect. It had a nice creamy texture and hints of sugar and cinnnamon in it. I would definitely order this again if I returned. I think the restaurant is intimate and nice for a date or just a meetup with a few friends. I would prefer Zorbas, though, if looking for Mediterranean type food in the future.

A quiet night with a light drizzle drew us to to El Basha to share a meal and an appetizer. I was told to give it a try by a coworker. The hostess was prompt and friendly inviting us to choose our seating as it was a slow night. We chose the bar. Bartender was impersonal but friendly enough. She was quite busy which was odd due to the low crowd. We went with the tuna tartare ($10) and the vegetarian port saiid ($16) with a beer and Mai Thai. They don't have a cocktail menu. Tuna tartare missed the mark. A much too hefty portion of tuna was cut unevenly thick and mushy atop a romaine leaf. Tuna was nervously not fresh, and it was dressed up with spices and chopped herbs to add some good flavor profiles, which sadly did not reconcile the tuna. Two bites and was over it. I would have liked a smaller portion and more attention to detail and quality. There were no crackers to accompany but we used complimentary pita bread for a starch base. The vegetarian port saiid was even more disappointing. It took far too long to come out, and it reminded me of a dish I would throw together with what's in my fridge forgetting to add seasoning. The dish was hot, but it was bland. Had to salt n pepper it. Finished half the dish and held my tongue while paying. Simply subpar. Overall the food disappointed me and my partner, and having been glad to check El Basha off the local restaurants list, I am not surprised I had never been and don't see much of a reason to return.

They are not open for lunch Monday through Wednesday. We drove all the way there and was disappointed it was closed.

Quite possibly the best Lebanese food I have ever had. The Port Saiid in phenomenal and I could not recommend it more. Michael was an awesome bartender. Everyone was friendly and this is our favorite spot in the Worcester area. Can not recommend it more!

One of our favorites - great variety - hard to choose a single dish. Food is well made, great Mediterranean tastes. Staff os friendly and attentive

The food is consistently excellent through all the years I have eaten at El Basha in Belmont Street, Worcester. The attentive staff complements the good food experience. Best time to go is during the week. Packed on weekends. Excellent bar and coffee.

the restaurant was nice , this was my first time being in this place . service was just ok .... you know it takes a little bit effort to go from good to great !!! and that's what they failed to do today when I went to that place . I ordered my food and didn't realized that lunch chawarama was different to dinner chawarama... I was not told and again this was my first time . I was expecting them to make it right by me , to make sure my first experience was the best one .... it was not gonna cost them anything to make the costumer happy for their first time . I was very disappointed about the service ..... again, that's what's make the difference between good to great , a little effort, i am pretty sure if this was other "ppl" , they would've treating them differently. Treat ppl equally and show it on your service and presentation....The reason I have you graded 2 , the food was at least very good .... Thanks , that's how I feel , and thats my story with el basha today ... BLM

This has always been, and I expect always will be, one of my favorite places in Worcester. Went back last night, and the food was outstanding (I fear that I might have found my favorite menu items, the only downside of which is that it might stop me from trying other things). Michael (the server/waiter/bar guy) was as friendly and wonderful as always. Thank you El Basha for -- once again -- creating a great dinner experience, I love this place if I eat alone at the bar, I love this place when I'm joined for dinner with a friend at one of the tables.

Just phenomenal. Their fattoush is incredible. Their meat grape leaves are sublime. Their baba ganoush is the stuff dreams are made of. Staff at the restaurant is really kind and sweet and friendly. This is my favorite restaurant in Worcester and I don't mind paying more for such fresh and high quality food. The restaurant is cozy and beautiful, and their takeout is also terrific!