Pasha Turkish Restaurant in Houston, Texas: A Review

Pasha Turkish restaurant in Houston, Texas is supposed to be one of the best Mediterranean restaurants in town yet my lunch experience left me scratching my head as to why so many people like this establishment. Having lived abroad for many years I have eaten at a plethora of Mediterranean restaurants (including Turkish) and know what to expect (when it comes to quality, taste, service and presentation) in a Mediterranean eatery, but sadly Pasha only excels in one of those areas: service.

For an appetizer, we had the hummus. I assumed it would be served with pita bread but instead it came with some fluffy focaccia type bread. I disliked the bread and thought the hummus lacked taste. Usually hummus has a lot of garlic which adds a burst of flavor, but not this hummus. Pasha apparently has a knack for making good dishes boring and flavorless. For $4.50 it was good value as they gave us a full basket of bread as well as sesame and olive oil.

For my main entrée at Pasha Turkish restaurant in Houston, TX, I ordered the doner kebab which is marinated lamb and beef stacked on a rotisserie and broiled vertically before being sliced. The doner was served with white rice, pickled cabbage, sliced raw onions, a grilled tomato, and yogurt sauce. The meat was extremely bland and lacked any flavor. It was boring and a huge disappointment. The rice tasted like it was Uncle Bens cooked in the microwave (although I'm sure it was not) and I had no idea why raw onions were even on my plate. Ditto for the tomato. I did like the yogurt sauce but it was ruined by the plethora of onions in the sauce. The doner cost $8.50 and not only did I not enjoy it, but it did not fill me up so for me, it was not good value.

My mother had the beef kebab which cost $9.50. She said the beef tenderloin (which was on a skewer and chargrilled) was spicy (which is subjective) but tasted better when she ate her leftovers at home. Similar to the doner kebab, the beef was served with pickled cabbage, a grilled tomato and white rice; however, no yogurt sauce accompanied the beef kebab.

I would have loved to have had the baklava for dessert but my meal was so insipid that I did not want to take a chance on ruining my love of the nutty pastry.

Pasha Turkish restaurant in Houston, TX has great service but then again we were the only customers in the restaurant for most of the meal which says it all. By the time we were done with half of our lunch, only one other party of two had entered the restaurant for a meal. The restaurant was cold (too cold for me to enjoy) but to be fair Houston was having a cold spell.

The restroom had a dip near the sink which I thought was dangerous because my foot actually got stuck in the notch. I could only imagine someone older or possibly in a wheelchair having a real problem. The décor was nothing special and I especially did not like that Pasha Turkish restaurant in Houston, TX had paper napkins which made the eatery seem cheap. Their website shows a fancier restaurant with cloth napkins but that is not what we experienced.

I was less than impressed with Pasha Turkish restaurant in Houston, TX and would not return.

*Disclaimer: This review is the opinion of the writer based on her experience on January 11, 2011. The writer encourages her readers to dine at Pasha Turkish restaurant in Houston, TX to formulate their own opinion.

Pasha is located at 2325 University Boulevard, Houston, TX, 77005 (in Rice Village). Their website is http://www.epasha.com and their phone number is (713) 592-0020.