Hala’s Grill, a Middle-eastern restaurant, has been in its current location, 111 S River Rd, since New Year’s Eve 2024, but is not new to the community, having had other locations in WL and Lafayette.
We really missed Whitney at this venue. The food deserves her exuberant writing, but I’ll try to convince you it’s worth a visit. Seven Divas and Dudes ate there in two shifts and everyone loved their meals, with a slight groan about being served in plastic or styrofoam, but the freshly made food and generous portions made up for that.
Chef/owner Amer Ashouri and his wife make 90% of everything on the menu from scratch at the restaurant. You can order at a kiosk or a very friendly staff member will take your order and answer your questions.
Margy and Jerry checked out the place a day early. Margy had the Falafel Platter, which had 3 falafels, hummus, baba ghanouj, tabbouleh salad, and pita bread. She rated it a 10 out of 10 and said it was enough to take home for lunch the next day. The hummus and baba ghanouj are topped with the house mild sauce, which is a mixture of mild peppers and garlic. Jerry had the Sultan Kebob Wrap, which contained a grilled skewer of ground beef, tomato, onion with sumac, and tahini sauce. He added a side of 6 falafel. He’s already planning a return trip.
The other 5 of us started with Hummus and pita bread for the table. The pita was piping hot, and though not made there, tasted as fresh as if it had been. The hummus was adorned with sumac and chopped parsley with a dollop of the house mild sauce in the middle and all agreed it was some of the best hummus we’d ever tasted.
Ken got the Beef Shawarma Wrap, thin-sliced beef, onion with sumac, tomato pickles, and tahini sauce. After his first bite, he said “Wow, this is REALLY good” and then continued to say “Mmm-mmm-mmm” for the rest of the meal. Not much conversation from Ken after he got his food.
Tetia did the “Build Your Own Bowl” thing. First you pick a base from 4 options, then a protein from 5 options, then toppings from 17 options, and finally sauce from 9 options. So Tetia’s bowl had basmati rice, chicken shawarma, hummus, tahini salad, jalapeño, onion with sumac, sliced tomato, sliced cucumber, chickpeas, feta cheese, banana pepper, crunchy onion, tahini an spicy garlic sauces. It weighed a ton! She liked the saffron-flavored rice and said the chicken was yummy and that just the base and protein would have made a flavorful bowl. The vegetables were very fresh and the amount of toppings was very generous.
Tetia also had a can of Jumex Mango Nectar (from Mexico!), their most popular drink offering. The rest of us had bottled water. We would love to see them offer iced tap water for the table.
Linda had the Beef Kebob Platter which was cubed beef tenderloin marinated in saffron, onion, and house blend spices, served with saffron rice, and roasted tomotoes, peppers, and onion. It was a lot of food! Linda thought the beef was perfectly seasoned and cooked, very tender and the rice complemented it nicely. Although it wasn’t shrimp (Hala’s doesn’t have seafood), it was the next best thing.
Jo ordered off the Sides menu: a small hummus with pita, a small order of falafel (6), and lentil soup. She was very happy with her selections and especially praised the lentil soup for its subtle flavors. Several of us had a taste and thought we tasted cumin, coriander, and lemon, but very mild, and a meal in itself.
Kay had Mujadara which was basmati rice and lentils mixed with caramelized onions (which make everything better) and a special blend of seasoning topped with crunchy onions and a side of chopped salad. The salad was fresh and tart, mostly onions, tomatoes, and cucumbers and the rice/lentil/spice mixture was satisfying and tasty, especially with a dash of the house hot sauce.
We must have still looked hungry, because Amer gave us some of his wife’s homemade baklava. Ken’s report: “It’s to die for!”
All of us were impressed with the well-spiced, well-cooked, and well, yummy food, the reasonable prices, and the generous portions. Seek it out—you won’t be disappointed!
