A dark and dimmed place, not enough lighting, an area feeling and looking old, no attention to details... Leila’s first impression is deceiving and doesn’t reflect the real sense of Lebanese hospitality and professionalism. After enjoying one of the most memorable experiences at Enab, I go to Leila and feel sad and deceived.
The same menu as the one in Lebanon, Leila proposes fusion Lebanese. Low-quality photos and printing doesn’t even make you want to order these plates. Four chairs were broken on the same table, five lights not working, old tables, rugged chairs...
I tried to order a half/half cheese roll plate which was refused when Enab accepted it. I ordered potato cubes without garlic and again refused with a sarcastic smile. Unprofessional service where the team is trained to take orders not make the experience memorable.
When Enab is fully booked, Leila has only five tables and now I can tell you why; badly managed and maintained, the restaurant doesn’t have positive vibes like the neighbor up the stairs. Old bread, bad looking olive plate, no olive oil bottle, soft drinks served without ice, dirty Pepsi cans, no colors around the shop and so on of things that clearly show a restaurant left to die; the waiters’ clothes look dirty when the men up at Enab are sharp and clean as if they were at the barber minutes ago... and this before even seeing the food.
The food experience: bad!
- No placemats! Eat on a dirty table.
- Lunch starts with a basket of bread and olives.
- Tabbouleh mashed in a blender! Lol, I laughed out loud! It’s like a tabbouleh mousse.
- Grilled cheese rolls using the cheapest accawi cheese purée bakeries stopped using.
- Hummus, OMG! Acidic, a load of tahini, bitterness! What a shame. A bitter hummus, that’s a premiere.
- Moutabbal is sweet.
- Stuffed grapevine leaves are better-called something else; they taste nothing like grapevine leaves, watery and sweet.
- Fattoush has nothing to talk about.
- Kebbeh sajiyeh: is undercooked! Very spicy but raw.
- Chicken Tawouk has an overdose of garlic!
- Meat is hard textured but acceptable.
Read that funny, yet makes you want to cry story! A plate of French fries landed on the table but was actually not ours. Informing the waiter, he took it immediately away -instead of leaving it- so I took one to taste it laughed saying don’t worry, no one will notice; this plate ended on the table next to us! Imagine!
$2 cover charge? Seriously! For the price of bread? Words can not describe my deception!
You have to know; Leila is more expensive than Enab and not even worth it.
Unacceptable! A shame to the Lebanese heritage, culinary know-how and professionalism. I believe Leila Cairo should better close.
