Mama Ayesha's

Pros: Everything is made on the premises, attentive, thoughtful service, reasonable prices
Cons: Unpretentious decor may not appeal to everyone, but this will change soon

On the cusp between Woodley Park and Adams Morgan is Mama Ayesha's Calvert Cafe, long a landmark of Middle Eastern cooking in Washington. Mama herself passed on about ten years ago, but her torch is held aflame by her family who still run the rest ...

Pros: Food, parking, prices
Cons: Early closing hours

If you want to eat good and pay less--this is the place for you! Conveniently located at the corner (sort of) of Connecticut and Calvert with it's own parking lot (a huge plus in that area), Mama Ayesha's is pleasant surprise from the ordinary! But the...

Pros: Quality of the food (can't vouch for authenticity - nothing to compare it to).
Cons: I hate their music : )

After a long day at the zoo a planned trip to Mama Ayesha's for my girlfriend and I for the first time was a great experience. We started out with tabouleh and hummus - both were elegantly presented. The tabouleh was different than I'd had before in that ...

Pros: GREAT drinks, good outdoor seating
Cons: Horrible service, bland food

Mama Ayesha's was a different experience for me. I went with a group of friends, so I think that that made it better...

It's very quaint, and has great outdoor seating. However, it took FOREVER to get seated, and there was no one there but us! The same applied to ordering and getting the check--to say that there was nobody there, our waiter took forever.

As for food, I found my menu selections rather bland. I had the spinach and beef meat pies, which had absolutely no taste. The hummus was ok; it had a little seasoned taste to it, but it wasn't great. I might be a little biased because I grew up in Louisiana, where we live for spice!!!

What was wonderful was the drinks. I have never had a better Apple Martini in my life!!! It was wonderful!! The Cosmopolitan I had was excellent as well.

The biggest turnoff was the service, and the lack of taste to my food, but if you like bland food, then you'd like Mama Ayesha's.