Zest Mediterranean Cuisine

Upon walking in I was greeted with a warm welcome, which is always reassuring at any establishment. The menu was straight forward and not overbearing. The restaurant was clean from the front to the back bathroom. The menu offered just the right amount of options for anyone. Including vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free. The ambiance was somewhat lacking, but had a nice huge painting when walking in. The layout was just right to make it feel like I'm not sitting with strangers and overhearing their life story. The place was not busy around 5pm but started to pick up soon after.I first ordered the Chicken Shawarma plate. It came out in a timely manner and warm off the grill! Portion size as you can see from the photo included was not lacking in any department. Upon my first bite my taste buds were filled with joy as if I was attending my first concert of my favorite band. Finishing my meal I could not be any more happier. My gut will be thanking me for the rest of the day for a well digested meal.In conclusion I actually went back the next day to order it again. Furthermore, I went the following week two more times back to back to try other plate items. This can be an expensive habit so be careful!I just want to thank the owner and staff for a great experience and making my day pleasant with amazing food and hospitality. Please keep listening to your customers and doing what you are doing because it is apparently working!I consider myself a regular now and hope to be for the years to come.

We each ordered a Vegan Sampler plate. Tip: If you aren't a huge eater, it's a lot. Really, a lot. We could easily have shared one, and that would have been enough, or at most added a side of falafel or Mosakaa. But that didn't stop us from eating every last bit of each of ours.Each one was served with 8 quarter-pieces of pita, which again shows it's easily divided by two people. Unfortunately, we did each leave some pita behind, because that was just too much.Lebanese Mosakaa (Moussaka) and falafels were my favorites. The baba ghanouj (Ganoush) was also good, but as with most I've had, the smoky flavor felt a bit too much for me (but, I assume, authentic). Dolmas are not my favorite food, so I'm not a good judge of their quality. They were ok, but too oily for me (but again, based on what I've read, that's the way they are supposed to be). My husband liked the hummus and tabbouleh salad better than I did, but that's again because I just never find them all that appealing. One criticism my husband had was he found a couple of the dishes overly salty, but he's more sensitive to that than most people.Service was very prompt (promised ten minutes, came in five), and friendly. They had a lot of takeout orders, but only one other table was ever in use on the day we were there. A very satisfying (and big!) lunch.

This place was so good, I had to document, LOL!I got the Beef Shawarma Wrap and wow--it was absolutely delicious. I esp loved the soft, thin pita bread they used. Their fries were a pleasant surprise too--crispy, flavorful, and honestly some of the best I've had (and I'm super picky about fries!).The seating was comfy, everything was clean, and the service was great. The staff was super friendly, and I'm pretty sure the place is Arab-owned since I heard them speaking Arabic, which added a nice authentic touch.Overall, a fantastic experience. I'll definitely be back!

Absolutely amazing place. This has become a favorite of ours. I love the chicken shawarma plate and the lamb gyro wrap. The food is super flavorful and the portions are generous. The employees are all friendly and have a true passion for what they do.the restaurant is always very clean and has a welcoming atmosphere.

Smallish restaurant in a strip mall. Walked in, greeted by the owner. He explained the offerings. Very nice man. We went with a gyro plate and a chicken shwarma plate. Plates come with salad, rice pilaf, hummus and pita. Gyro was absolutely delicious. Hummus was really good too. Chicken shwarma was a little on the dry side (for my liking). The pitas were also a bit thin and dry. Would I return to this restaurant? Yes, I would. I would go for a wrap next time. Plates are $19, wraps are $12. I guess it depends on how hungry you are. The plate was too much food for lunch. The ambiance is pretty sterile, cafeteria style tables and chairs. I would also like to try their lamb kabobs. The portions were large and I would definately go back and eat gyro again. It was outstanding.

Authentic! The lamb is so tender, the baba ghanoush so flavorful, and hummus just the best! One of my fave places to eat in El Dorado County because all the food has high quality flavor and the folk that work there are super nice! They never let me down. This place is a winner for the whole family.

Food is amazing. Robbie and his team are so sweet. Lebanese rice is our favorite. Have been here several times and food is always amazing. Have brought several others here and they enjoyed the experience also.

Zest is my favorite Mediterranean spot in the Sacramento area. It's a little on the pricier side, but the huge portions more than make up for it. You're paying a little more but you're getting excellent quality and 2x the amount of food than the competition! If you are into bold flavors, you will fall in love with Zest's food.Gotta get: Beef and chicken shawarma plate. The protein is well seasoned, great quality, tender, and juicy. The tangy garlic sauce that comes on the side brings the food to the next level! Interestingly, the rice was shorter-grain rice but also well seasoned. A nice change from the longer-grain rice that you'll usually get.Safe bet: Veggie plate was huge and delicious. Came with hummus, tabbouleh, babaganoush, tahini, tzatziki, pickles, and tomatoes. The tabbouleh and the babaganoush were the stars of the show. Babaganoush was super smoky and a little bit chunky. Yum. You can taste a good quality olive oil in the tabbouleh along with the parsley, tomato, cucumber, and lemon. Even better the next day! I've had better falafel, but it was tasty as well.Forget: If I'm being picky, I'd like the pita to be a little more fluffy. It was more like a lavash as opposed to a pita. The baklava was delicious, but I love my baklava drenched in honey and this was a little bit dry. However, I'm not complaining -- it all ended up in my belly and made me happy.

Went here for lunch today on the way from SF to Tahoe and we were all very much looking forward to trying the #24 spot on Yelps top 100 list in 2024. The people working today was so nice, very warming to our family. We ordered a good amount for 4 adults and 1 baby: - Chicken kebob plate (4/5): chicken was a bit on the drier side- Mix kebob (lamb/beef plate) (5/5): lamb was great, beef was good - Greek salad with chicken shawarma (4/5): chicken was also slightly dry, good portions though - Vegan platter (5/5): delicious array of samples- Falafel sides (5/5): love the donut shaped falafels The side of pitas was awesome - super thin and fresh. Overall we can tell it was a small family owned place where they clearly care about their food and service. Will stop by during each trip up to Tahoe!

Came here for the first time last week for lunch. It's in a non-de script strip mall near the WalMart but inside it is so nice and sparkling clean! They have an extensive menu with lots of veggie, vegan and Gluten free options. I got the fattoush salad with chicken and my friend got the falafel plate. I thought it looked kind of pricey until I saw the portions. So big! We both took home leftovers. The dressing on my salad was so delicious and my friend loved the falafel and hummus. Order at the counter and they bring it to you. The guy who took our order was really nice and answered all my friend's questions about ingredients and preparation, and gave her extra veggies instead of pita.Great place and i would definitely recommend it.