Mona's Cafe image

Mona's Cafe

Restaurant Middle eastern restaurant

Casual Middle Eastern eatery serving traditional dishes & market with groceries & house-baked pita. People often mention pita, delicious, hummus, chicken, shawarma, great, ordered, good, plate, nice,


Address

3901 Banks St, New Orleans, LA 70119

Contact

(504) 482-7743

Price rating

$$ $$

Rating on Google Maps

4.50 (954 reviews)

Open on Google Maps

Working Hours

  • Friday: 11 AM to 9 PM
  • Saturday: 11 AM to 9 PM
  • Sunday: 12 to 9 PM
  • Monday: 11 AM to 9 PM
  • Tuesday: 11 AM to 9 PM
  • Wednesday: 11 AM to 9 PM
  • Thursday: 11 AM to 9 PM

Featured Reviews


Frequently mentioned in reviews: pita (11) delicious (10) hummus (10) chicken (10) shawarma (8) great (8) ordered (8) good (8) plate (8) nice (7)
Reviews are sorted by relevance, prioritizing the most helpful and insightful feedback at the top for easier reference.
  • 5/5 H 2 years ago on Google
    The food here is always incredibly delicious. One of my favorite Mediterranean restaurants in town. I love the shawarma, grape leaves, and falafel. Their portions are very generous. Service is friendly, but can be slow at times. The grocery store next door is a nice visit as well. Try the baklava from the grocery store.
    3 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Omnivia 1 year ago on Google • 473 reviews
    1st time going and it was a great experience. Food was hot and fresh. I ordered the veggies (carrots were hard) with rice and paid the extra $3.50 for 4 shrimp (i was expecting 6 since most appetizers are the same price). The Lebanese tea was good but they are stingy on the pine nuts but i didn't ask for extra either. The spinach pie was good, the sauce took a little getting used to. Friend had the lentil soup, fries and falafel sandwich. The outside dining area was a great experience, covered and well lit. Our server, Abraham, was very polite and knowledgeable of the menu. There is also a market attached but i didn't visit due to closing times. Will definitely return to try something different, however, i highly recommend the veggie and rice plate. *Maybe add a little more veggies since the main dish is vegetables.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Wilson S. 1 year ago on Google • 37 reviews
    Very nice outdoor ambiance and tasty food- hummus had a nice garlic flavor, as did the salad. Quick service- great experience. Will come back!
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 3/5 glamorous k. 2 years ago on Google
    Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy it. The eggplant hummus was a tomato base. My shrimp pita wrap had no taste. I wanted to like it all, but it just didn't do it for me. The server was nice.
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 L. R. 7 months ago on Google • 90 reviews
    Been here countless times cuz I live around the block. Never fails to disappoint. I’ve had most of the appetizers and the spinach pie is my favorite. Hummus is one of the best in town. Always fresh and delicious. I’ll surely be back
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 JoAnne M. 1 year ago on Google • 392 reviews
    We had a Chicken Kabob with Salad/Humus plate.... and a Lula Kebob plate with grilled vegetables/ Hummus. Both were very delicious! Definitely fresh, well seasoned and more than enough. Warm pita bread was served also!!!! Definitely an excellent meal. Within the restaurant building, accessed by a different entry is a wonderful world deli, with Middle East and Italian delicacies available for sale!

  • 1/5 Shanell I. 2 years ago on Google
    We ordered hummus and they were spoiled/sour so we called to see if they would replace them and when we got there they refused to replace them not to mention the 75.00 we had just spent with them ! Don’t ever go to Monas this is our second time having a food safety issue there! The workers don’t wear hair nets, they don’t wear gloves or nothing! Please don’t spend a dime here 9/11/2021 you remember me, the salt and pepper hair man who I was referred to at the grocery store next door to speak with. he was very nasty, condescending and very unprofessional about replacing my order I didn’t want nothing more but have my hummus replaced! They need to go back to they country and open up a Monas and sell sour/ spoiled food! I’m sick of these foreign owners be so hard up for our money but refuses to replace something I brought back to that filthy nasty 🤢 restaurant I highly recommend nobody eat from there; they don’t even wear hair nets
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 3/5 Caitlyn L. 2 years ago on Google
    The food here was absolutely delicious. The hummus and baba ghannouj were excellent and the cheese pie I had was great. The negatives were the slow service, we had to wait a long time for drinks and we ordered the appetizer Mona’s special, which has a variety of items. We only received part of the order even after our entrees came out and we finished everything. Seems they were just short staffed and overwhelmed with lunch rush. In any case, the food was so good, stop in a try it!
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Andrea F. 1 year ago on Google
    What a wonderful place! This is like family. I have ordered delivery several times, finally stopped in. Employees are so friendly. All safety precautions are taken. Everything is so clean. The food is so very good.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Robert B. 1 year ago on Google • 80 reviews
    The service was very pleasant, food came out quickly and hot. Atmosphere is pleasant and not too busy for lunch. I’ve been eating here for over 20 years and always nice to come back. Stop next door in grocery to purchase fresh made pita.

  • 5/5 Jessica P. 4 months ago on Google • 58 reviews
    Mona's definitely know how to cook Mediterranean food! I loved every single thing I ordered (falafels, gyro meat, hummus, tabouli, chicken, pita, and more). Ordered enough to eat over several days and it tasted good each time. I recommend this place and will be back!

  • 3/5 Keerthana S. 1 year ago on Google • 20 reviews
    Nice middle eastern food with vegetarian options. We ordered the falafel plate and vegetarian plate for two people. It was very filling. Also got the cucumber yogurt salad, was very refreshing for the heat.

  • 5/5 Bennett P. 7 months ago on Google • 15 reviews
    I had them cater a lunch for my office and it was delightful. Everyone was thrilled with the food and took home leftovers afterward. Can’t recommend them enough, particularly if you’re trying to get food for a group. Vegetarian or gluten free, no problem. It was all delicious and I’ll be 100% going back in the future.

  • 5/5 Kalil G. 9 months ago on Google • 12 reviews
    This place was amazing! I ordered the Half and Half chicken and beef shawarma plate and I would definitely recommend it. I cleaned my plate- it was that good.

  • 5/5 Rosemarie m. 2 years ago on Google
    Medittarenean food is great and healthy...

  • 5/5 Judy S. 3 years ago on Google
    A great place for Middle Eastern food! I am particularly a fan of their red lentil soup and veggie stuffed grape leaves. I also love their grocery which is always stocked with reasonably priced, high quality items such as breads, grains, a range of cooking oils and mixes.

  • 5/5 Anandi P. 2 years ago on Google
    I was able to pick my seat and found a booth with a beautiful painting of a woman. I asked for recommendations and was quite impressed with the Lebanese Tea (sweet tea with rose water and pine nuts), the chicken shawarma 🥙 (the waiter thoughtfully brought me a side of hot sauce when I mentioned that I like spicy foods, the shawarma was perfectly tender and oozing with sauces), and the baklava (was delightfully crispy and sweet but not overly sweet like most of the ones I've had). Definitely will stop by again for a full meal!

  • 3/5 Ken R. 3 years ago on Google
    Had heard this was the best middle eastern restaurant in New Orleans and dropped in late in the afternoon with a few friends. I rarely ever give negative to medium reviews as one can attest if they read my restaurant reviews, but this experience was just okay. Both the chicken dish that I had and the beef kabobs my friend's had were overcooked and actually tough. The rice dishes and the hummus were delightfully delicious. You could have just been that particular day or whatever but I can't write this experience at this restaurant higher.

  • 5/5 Robert C. 2 years ago on Google
    A very nice neighborhood restaurant. Excellent food, friendly service, and fair prices. The veal was tender and delicious, and the humas was to die for. Highly recommended!

  • 5/5 Bobby D. 1 year ago on Google
    A little on the pricey side but excellent quality food and service! Must try their Lebanese Tea. Amazingly good!!

  • 5/5 abughazi621 1 year ago on Google
    Food is great and consistent, service has never been great here, and the tables and booth are very old and sticky. They should be able to afford some small improvements it's always busy. I'm constantly eating here just wish it was a better experience when I bring my family.

  • 2/5 Scott L. 11 months ago on Google
    The market is ok. The prepared food is not. I ordered a chicken kabob sandwich and fries for a takeout lunch. It was highly disappointing. The pita seemed stale. It was very chewy and difficult to eat. The tiny portion of chicken in the pita consisted of very small cubes. The smaller than 1/2 inch cubes were too small to have been a kabob. The proportion of filling to pita was way off. Even if the amount of filling were doubled, there would still be plenty of room in the pita. I felt like I had 25% of what I expected inside the pita. What I could taste between the jaw straining bites was tasty. It was just too much work for too little reward. And, the fries were undercooked and mealy. If I had served this meal to anyone, I would be extraordinarily embarrassed. Given the excellent options in the city for Mediterranean food, my suggestion is to avoid Mona's. I will patronize their market however.

  • 5/5 Giselle M. 10 months ago on Google
    I had the best falafel sandwich there. I did take out. It was fresh and delicious. In fact, I buy my pita bread from them too. It is the best. Friendly place.

  • 5/5 Genevieve P. 9 months ago on Google • 6 reviews
    I’ve had their chicken, beef, and falafel schwarmas. All three are awesome and so tasty with so much flavor. Their hummus is delicious —they add some topping of a slightly spicy pepper and oil on top. Their basmati rice with saffron is well seasoned, too! Not just that plain yellow rice you get at other similar restaurants. I love this place and hope their quality never changes. I’m writing this review because I want them to stay in business and do well. :)

  • 1/5 Eve M. 2 years ago on Google
    Ordered chicken shawarma and gyro plate. This is NOT shawarma. It's chunks of overcooked rubber chicken. You want shawarma, go to Lebanons. Nice moist slices with perfectly crispy edges. The waitress was nice and the store next door is interesting and that was the only good thing. The bathrooms were filthy and that tells you that you don't want to eat there because that's where you learn how sanitary the people who cook and serve your food are.

  • 5/5 B R. 2 years ago on Google
    Enjoyed chicken shawarma, hummus with fresh baked pita, baklava

  • 4/5 Charles G. 2 years ago on Google
    Got the gyro plate and kibbeh. The gyro meat was tender and juicy with crispy bits here and there - delicious. The hummus was smooth and creamy and was fantastic. The only real negative with my meal was the kibbeh - crispy on the outside, but the meat mixture inside was quite dry.


Call (504) 482-7743 Open on Google Maps

Amenities


  • Parking
    • ✓️ Free parking lot
    • ✓️ Free street parking
    • ✓️ Somewhat difficult to find a space
  • Payments
    • ✓️ Debit cards
    • ✓️ Credit cards
    • ✓️ NFC mobile payments
  • Offerings
    • ✓️ Beer
    • ✓️ Coffee
    • ✓️ Halal food
    • ✓️ Quick bite
    • ✓️ Comfort food
    • ✓️ Small plates
    • ✓️ Vegan options
    • ✓️ Organic dishes
    • ✓️ Healthy options
    • ✓️ Vegetarian options
  • Popular for
    • ✓️ Lunch
    • ✓️ Dinner
    • ✓️ Solo dining
  • Accessibility
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible seating
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible entrance
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible restroom
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible parking lot
  • Dining options
    • ✓️ Lunch
    • ✓️ Dinner
    • ✓️ Dessert
    • ✓️ Seating
    • ✓️ Catering
  • Service options
    • ✓️ Dine-in
    • ✓️ Takeout
    • ✓️ Delivery
    • ✓️ Outdoor seating

Trends



Last updated:

Similar Restaurants nearby

Last updated:
()