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Nuba is located in the basement of the Dominion building on West Hastings and Cambie Street. This recently renovated space features authentic Lebanese cuisine.
Went here on a weekday and surprised how busy it was. Nice place but a bit dark as it's in the basement. There are some windows on one side of the restaurant but all you see are mostly legs walking by. Very nicely decorated with a few tables quite close together along the walls. Went and tried the platter for 2 as you get a sample of many of their dishes. A platter of dips including hummus, an egg plant dip, and chopped parsley salad came with pita. Very nice dips and a good way to start, but can be quite filling. Then came the 3 meat platter which had chicken - not very flavourful, lamb - very good, and prawns - very good. A side dish of veggies came as well including fried cauliflower - excellent, roasted pototoes- OK, and a salad - OK. Overall the food was very good. Total price at $45 which is a pretty good value. Service was good but an explanation of dishes would of helped. Would return.
I went here once a few months ago and the food and value were okay. Decided to try it again recently, and went into the restaurant on two occasions: once at about 9:55pm and once at about 9:40pm (both during the week, I believe). First time, I was told the kitchen was already closed. Second time, at 9:40pm, I was told by the host that he was 'concerned' because the kitchen would be closing in 15 minutes and that we would have to 'hurry up' and order if we wanted to eat.
No hours are posted on the restaurant's front door, and Nuba's website for the Hastings location clearly states they close the restaurant 'late' during the week. In what world is 10pm late??? Perhaps if the restaurant were located in Maple Ridge or Delta, but downtown Vancouver?? Even this website lists the restaurant's closing time as 11pm during the week. Please update your information and stop parading as a trendy, lax restaurant with flexible hours!! You close at a firm 10pm, just like the Pantry, Pizza Hut, IHOP, ABC, etc....
Went for a quick meal before the hockey game. Had the Lamp chops, Chicken skewers and Najib's. It all came out quickly and food was excellent. The restaurant was not too busy when we got there but just as we were leaving it was busy. Great find and good food. Lots of choices and if you don't want to eat a big meal then this is good place. I will be back
Food: everything we had was fantastic. The notables were the lamb chops, chicken tawook and the falafel. Lamp chops were tender but flavorful, chicken was juicy and spiced perfectly and the falafel were seasoned perfectly and not greasy at all. Other dishes such as hummus, taboulleh and najib's special were also very good but not as good as the notables. They also had the best sangria I've ever had. Yum!
Service: there was a mix-up with the reservations - we called in, asked for a time and day and they called back to confirm. They called back again to tell us that they had made reservations for us on the wrong day and were actually fully booked and the only way to get a table was to walk in. Although that was irritating, I walked in at about the time we were asking for and the immediate reaction of the hostess was to tell me the restaurant was fully booked and I explained what happened and a table suddenly opened. I was seated within several minutes and the service for the rest of the night was wonderful.
Value: My compadre and I were full with drinks for a grand total of $55 so it was a great value.
Ambiance: Minimalist but chic. Great place for drinks and food with friends or with a date.
Overall, I would return, especially since they have a very large vegan selection as well as meat options for the carnivores. Great food, service and ambiance - why wouldn't I come back? Bon appetite!
There was not one clunker of all the food our party of four ordered, though the pita bread that came with it could have been fresher. The babaganoush was pleasantly smoky, the cheese dish quite good, the fish perfectly cooked, and my friends were happy with their meat and potatoes and veggie kebabs. My only complaint is that the acoustics and the table arrangement aren't great for a relaxing evening. It's a loud place, and we were pretty crowded together. It's a good atmosphere if you're in a festive mood, and I think very good if you're young, which I'm not. I think you'll like it here.
First off our waitress was great. Good recommnendations and attentive. We have eaten a lot of middle eastern food, in North America and the middle east. I believe there are better places in Vancouver. It started off with a disappointing Fattoush. Although the salad was tasty it was not a fattoush, no mint, no sumac. We stuck to the mezze which were average. All dishes came out at the same time which made me feel like they were sitting under a warmer ready to go, puleeze, Falafel should be freshly made, even in the falafel stands of Israel they are made freshly. The fried cauliflower was good but whoopey not special. The lamb kibbeh was good but not special, they tasted like lamb burgers. Anyway I may be sounding harsh but for all the good reviews I have read I was expecting more. I will try lunch and a couple of their desserts but was not wowed.
I went there for lunch after reading all the reviews and was very disappointed. Another "cool" place with nice ambiance and ridiculously bad food. I have Lebanese background and felt so cheated going to this place. You can find the falafel they serve at Costco... A complete ripoff. They will never take my money again.
Been here twice. Prior to that, I always walked by the restaurant and thought it looked weird and sketchy. I was very very wrong.
I love this place. Both my visits were very pleasant. Nuba was my first Lebanese food experience. When I came in, I was greeted right away with a smiling face. I was kind of shocked when I first saw the interior, I really love it. It looked so big, clean, modern, and welcoming- super charming. Love the dim lighting too. The servers were very friendly and helpful and explained some of the menu items to us before we ordered.
My first time I had the chicken tawook, which was a dish with salad, rice, hummus, pita, and a chicken leg. It was really delicious, the salad was not your generic salad. They had a slightly sour/tangy dressing, the hummus was just super yummy, and the chicken was well spiced and very juicy. My friend had the sirloin kebabs, which were not so great. They tasted and smelled a little burnt even though the meat wasn't burnt.. if you get what I'm saying. Oh, and they have cucumber water!
The second time, the server was even more helpful and very chatty. She told us the daily specials and we ordered both of them. We had scallops with the roasted vegetables. And the shared dish with prawns and pita. Everything was amazing, especially the scallops. It wasn't overcooked like a lot of places do, it did not smell fishy, it was slightly spiced and just delicious. The vegetables were blackened and a little salted, made the cauliflower really good (even for my vegetable hating friends). Shrimp were good too!
Everything was yummy, except for the sirloin kebabs. And everything was healthy too, there isn't a huge massive portion of grains or too much meat. Everything we ordered was reasonably priced too. They had a long list of wines (not a fan) and a few house special cocktails that I will be sure to try on my next visit.
One of the best meals I’ve had in a long time. You must must must try Najib’s Special (crispy cauliflower with lemon). So tasty. The duck was also very yummy – it was served with a dried fruit salad (tastes better than it sounds!). My absolute favourite dish at Nuba is the lamb hushwie (sauteed lamb served over hummus). For dessert we had the homemade ice cream. It was light and not too sweet. The only part of the meal I did not enjoy was the Turkish coffee. A little too strong and ‘thick’ for my taste. Other than the coffee, this was an almost perfect meal!
The service was great and the prices are very reasonable. Will be back for sure!
Newbie to Nuba. It was our first time eating here so we didn't know how busy it would be. We got to the restaurant around 9pm and was initially told that it would be a 30min wait. The hostess let me know that we could sit at the bar and order off the full menu. As soon as she saw that I didn't like that idea (from the look on my face) she went away and talked to her manager and managed to split apart a table (from a large party) just so we could sit down right away. We were off to a good start. Our server was attentive and informative...she didn't wow me but that was fine.
Food was tasty. I was surprised by how similar it is to Greek food. I expected something different. Our dessert pastries were a little too sweet for my liking. And for that price, the dessert portion was quite small.
The decor gives off a cozy romantic feel. Overall, my husband and I had a good time and we would definitely go back again.
I've been to Nuba a few times, this location and the one on East 3rd, and the quality is consistantly there. I've had the chicken, falafels, and vegetarian platter, and all were fantastic. The hummus that comes with them I could eat with a spoon, and I always leave here thinking how fresh and healthy the food is. The servers are always nice, not really around too much, but that I dont mind. I like that you can see everybodys feet walking down the street at this location, it makes it a bit different. The prices are good, I would recommend going more for lunch though, the dinner menu doesn't interest me as much, I wish they had the same menu all day. Next time I go back I will be sure to try one of the wraps that my sister swears by.
Nuba is a real gem. Location so so, hidden, close to hastings bad spots, but the place is soooooo good.
Food is close to perfection. I doubt Vancouver ever had a libanese restaurant like Nuba. Ambience totally modern, good taste, music in the perfect volume,lights, everything 10. The weakest point was our server. Could be better. Very intrusive, forcing too much.We wouldl like to have appies and some drinks before dinner but he was so annoying, backing every minute to take our dinner order than we asked the dinner almost at the same time of the appies, they could make more money on us but... probably a little trainning will solve the problem. Overall I would recommend Nuba and I'll back there for sure.
I had heard mixed reviews about Nuba, but was looking forward to trying it out. I went with a group of 4 other people and we decided to start out by getting a few appies (mezze) to share. We chose a few cold plates - the baba ghanooj, hummus, labneh (fresh-pressed yogurt with spices & olive oil) as well as a hot mezze - sautéed eggplant with Lebanese ratatouille (my favourite!). Unfortunately one dish was forgotten by our server so we did not have a chance to try the mjadra (green lentils & rice with onions & jalepenos). We also started with organic apple sangria - I think everyone really enjoyed it. The apple flavour was spiced and very intense - almost like fresh pressed apples. Wonderful!
For the entrée, I chose the lamb chops with taboulleh & hummus and for my side, I chose the roasted potatoes. I thought everything was quite delicious and very well-seasoned. The lamb was cooked exactly as ordered (med rare) and was exceptionally tender. Other entrées at the table were the rainbow trout (last-minute substitution was perch) served with salad and sides of taboulleh and creamy tahini rice (not my favourite). Others in our group shared a few more appies in lieu of an entrée and said that the falafel and the chicken tawook were not only quite filling, but very good.
Even though we were all quite full, we thought the experience would not be complete without at least tasting a few Lebanese desserts. Between us, we tried the baklava, the pistachio cookies (yummy!), the tiramisu and a cardamom custard served brulée style. I don't think anyone liked the custard, as the execution in the brulée caused the custard to become somewhat runny and warmed up the spices in the custard - I found the flavour quite overpowering for a dessert. The star of the evening was the tiramisu made with Turkish coffee. The flavour was incredible. I would go back for this alone, but I thought the entire meal was very good and I would love to back and try a few more dishes.
There are quite a few vegan/vegetarian dishes available and everything is very fresh and well prepared. The ambiance is really nice and we all enjoyed our evening at Nuba.
Started coming here for a month now. I can't believe that I haven't discover this place earlier. I always walk by here and never noticed this place b/c it's small and could easily be missed.
I've tried their soups and my most favorite one is veggie tomato soup w/ coconut. MmMMmm the best soup I've ever had! Their mushroom soup was not bad. Their eggplant soup was ok. I also tried their popular Najib's Special Pita and it was too vinegary for me.
I will be back to try other things.
been to nuba about 3 times (once to the cafe on main) and have nothing but good things to say! the food is amaazzzzing! tried the falafel, baba ganoush and lamb kibbeh and they were all equally delicious. value is decent (about 20-25/person) and service is excellent. the main attraction is definitely the food - it's consistent, light but irresistible and comes with alot of variety. i definitely definitely recommend this place!
It is good. Good food, can work on the ambience, the basement thing is a bit harsh.
However, great service. The clientele is quite a mosaic of people from the tree huggers to
the executives from all walks of life. So it is certainly loved thruout.
The food that night could have been a bit more flavorful and firery, so I think a bit of more spicing up
is in due order, or maybe have the option.
First time visiting this below street-level spot at the far east of West Hastings and overall a good experience. The menu offers a range of meat, vegetarian, and vegan options and based on what we ordered it was obvious that everything was very fresh. Between the two of us we shared "le grand feast", which although may not live up to the name in quantity, was definitely a great way to enjoy a variety of menu items all at once with lots of Middle Eastern spices and flavors. Aside from the chicken and prawns, both cooked perfectly, the highlight was the hummus and pita. There's something so good about a simple dish involving bread and dip, and it makes a world of difference when the bread is fresh. Our server was great, very friendly, attentive, not over-bearing, and really knowledgeable of the menu. She didn't even hesitate when we asked about a substitution for our order, the pita bread was always refilled quickly, and her drink recommendation was spot on. One minor downside could be the perception of value, given the many cheap falafel joints to be found downtown, but there's a huge difference in quality and overall dining experience between that and the fresh, organic, etc. foods to be found at Nuba. If you've never tried Lebanese food before this is a great place to take the plunge.
I like this place - I've tried their chicken dish (I don't know what they call it, its a marinated grilled thigh if I remember correctly) and lamb kofta, as well as their vegetarian lentil dish
The food is nice
You may have guessed that its not "authentic" but its a nice healthier twist on that kind of food
You will enjoy everything on your plate and you will almost definitely clean it - servings are well balanced but don't expect a doggy bag. You will be pleasantly full though.
My 3 star all around rating is mostly due to the fact that theres nothing OUTSTANDING about this place- its just very good. I recommend it.
I have been exposed to Middle Eastern food the last few years so was excited about going to Nuba. We were told the owner is Lebanese and when asked about the chef, the waitress only said he had cooked in a something star (can’t remember if 4 or 5) restaurant in Mexico….. She didn’t elaborate to say his specialty was Middle Eastern or Lebanese….OhhhhKaay… Let the food speak for itself. We ordered lamb kibbeh, beef tenderloin, catch of the day, with sides of roasted potatoes and taboulleh. It was hit and mostly a miss for me. The lamb kibbeh had good flavour. Nothing special about the catch of the day though, which was more reminiscent of a fish prepared as west coast cuisine. The tenderloin was done to my liking (med-rare), had a nice slightly sweet glaze to it and the caramelized onions were tasty. But is this Lebanese ‘cause it sure tasted like a regular steak. The tahini rice was not fully cooked through and was very thick and dense. I think I was expecting more of a pilaf not a failed risotto. The potatoes seasoned with thyme were too dry and boring. I know cinnamon is a widely used spice in the cuisine but neither of us appreciated it in the taboulleh. I didn’t mind the ambiance. I know it’s a popular place to hang out with it’s warm dim lighting but there was something about the layout that felt cold.
This is a middle eastern place with lots of vegetarian options, probably the best low-cost lunch place downtown. I have ordered almost everything on the menu and I haven't had a bad meal there. I especially love the lamb wrap and the green lentil wrap. My only issue is the place is small so seating can be limited, plus when they get busy the line can be quite long and they can get slow with delivering the food, even for take-out.
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| 4. | Kitsilano (5.2 km) |
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| 5. | Afro Canadian Restaurant (38 m) | |
| 6. | Subway (40 m) | |
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