Zira Uzbek Kitchen

Was looking to pick something up for lunch and have been seeing this place on social media. I was in the area and able to call in my order for pick up. I wanted to try their vegetarian options and they do have a good amount of choices. The pumpkin dumplings had a nice flavor and were light but filling at the same time. The mung bean soup was comforting and almost like a savory porridge. The inside is beautiful and I need to go dine in there for the full experience. Everyone there was welcoming and made you want to dine there. I'll be heading there for the full experience next time. Parking: metered and neighborhood street parkingPrices: $11-$25Dietary options: they have designated vegetarian options marked accordingly Atmosphere: dates, friends, solo. Nice decor and ambiance

Writing this review as I nibble on left over Navruz cold salad (lightly fried eggplant, squashed tomatoes, julienned carrots, oven roasted peppers, onions, garlic, and spice). It's so good I'm glad we didn't leave those couple bites we were too stuffed to finish at dinner. This is a dish I'd order again. Saturday night around 7:15, we didn't have a reservation; but I called to see if they could seat us, they assured me yes and upon arrival were greeted so warmly. Almost every table was taken, so if you want to eat here on the weekend, reservations are advised. The flavor of Manti Steak, steamed dumplings stuffed with meat served with house yogurt sauce, was typical of the region with well done meat (no rare meat here!). For me it could have used some more spice or sauce to kick it up a notch. I wouldn't order this again.We agreed the Kavurma Lagman (hand pulled noodles with beef) had a delicious spice blend that we'd want to order again. The kebabs in the front window looked so plump and juicy, I want to go back and try them; with only 2 of us having dinner, we couldn't order more dishes even though I wanted to try them. Next time for sure. As they do in Central Asia, we had to have a traditional bread, served lightly seasoned cream cheese which they could sell to-go; to add some flavor to the dull old low carb bread I eat at home. All the staff was gracious. Great for larger groups; then you can have a larger variety of foods. They don't have alcohol, but there was a sign on the window implying they are waiting for permit.

So colorful and warm inside with great service. I give it 4 stars as the food was good but not as memorable as I thought it would be. The meat was great in all the dishes.Like the Uzbek PLOV beef was so good but the supporting dish was bland. I liked the beef so much I ordered an extra beef shashlik.I am glad I branched out to try a cuisine that is not common but it did not blow me away to want to come back.

Zira Uzbek Kitchen on Melrose is a super fun restaurant with top notch food and impeccable service. The seven of us made reservations here for a Monday lunch at 1pm and I don't think we could have picked a better spot. I loved the decor, ambiance, and music. The menu contained a great variety of mouthwatering options, and our waiter was extremely helpful and accommodating.To eat, we ended up ordering quite a bit. Some dishes included the Tashkent ($15.99), Navruz ($12.99), Manti Steak ($20), Pumpkin Manti ($18), Uzbek Plov ($19), Pelmeni with Spinach ($17), Kavurma Lagman with Beef ($19), Beef-Stroganoff ($22), Uzbek Traditional Bread ($6), Lamb Shashlik ($16), Lagman Soup ($15.99), Dolma ($10.99), Samsa Beef ($6), Samsa Pumpkin ($6), and Chack-Chack ($7.50). Each dish was delicious and beautifully presented.If you are looking for a cool, new spot to dine at with top tier food and a fun atmosphere, Zira Uzbek Kitchen should be at the top of your list. I believe this place has only been open for about two months now, but they already seem to be operating perfectly. I'd like to give a special shout-out to the Kavurma Lagman, Pelmeni with Spinach, and Lamb Shashlik, which to me, were the highlights of the meal. Also, very special shout-out to our friendly waiter (young guy - his name might have been Sai based on the receipt?), which made our meal even more memorable!

Very cute and cozy café. Love that we can see straight into the kitchen via the front window. The service was great; I asked about a specific dessert and the server brought it to show me. Can't go wrong with the Lamb Shashlik; meat was tender and flavorful. Beef samsa was good and reminded me of those garlic + beef pastries you can find at some Chinese bakeries. Took a peek of the plump-looking Manti dumplings ordered by the neighboring table, and we will for sure try those next time. They can split the bill easily for you with the card reader.

Newish uzbekian restaurant, lovely decor with homey yet modern feel. Having never had food from this country before, I was intrigued. Would be 4 stars for food (solid menu, decent portions), bump it up a star for the extremely reasonable prices, especially given the area! Easy to make reservations online, they had plenty of tables for large groups, highly recommend! Street parking, metered. For a group of 5, we tried:Bread - pretty simple with a cream cheese like spread (like the ones you get with bagels), the onion one sounded more interesting but they were out. Achik chukchuk - salad comprised of just tomatoes and onions, didn't realize it didn't come with greens my bad for not reading menu closerUzbek plov - like a fried rice but super tasty with their special savory spices, highly recommend!Kavurma lagman - basically stir fried noodles that were hand pulled so nice and chewy,we got it with beef - highly recommend! The flavor was very goodLamb shashlik - lamb kebab very tender, fries on side were also good, you can also get it with their traditional rice which is also tastyChuchvara - soup with beef dumplings, good amount of dumplings and soup was great on a cold daySamsa and plot samsa - pretty good meat pies.This was the perfect amount of food, and came out to like $27 a personService was friendly, we met the owner who told us about how it was her husband's dream to own a restaurant like this, so great on them for bringing uzbekian food to LA!

Great place with wonderful service and welcoming atmosphere. Came in here on a Friday for some dinner. We enjoyed the food and the service was wonderful would highly recommend if you like to enjoy some good authentic food.

Fantastic food and service. Everything is fresh and made upon orders being placed.To top it all, the decoration brings you straight to Uzbekistan.

I've never had Uzbek food before so wasn't sure what to expect but DAYUM... this stuff is tasty. My wife and I I are vegetarian and there were many options for us... definitely worth going with a few folks so you can order a bunch of stuff and share. Cute restaurant, service was on point, felt like you were family. I'd say this would be great for lunch OR dinner.

Food is delicious!!!!! It's now one of my favorite restaurants. The owners were very sweet. I aspire to become a regular here.