Mediterranean Buffets in Dallas, TX
A Mediterranean buffet for Dallas means a short drive north: none of the seven all-you-can-eat lines here is inside the city limits, and five are in Richardson. Ali Baba Mediterranean Grill on North Central Expressway carries the best score, 4.4 from 231 Tripadvisor reviews, and Dimassi's Mediterranean Buffet is the only one whose posted prices we could read, from $18.99 for weekday lunch.
The seven differ most on two things a buffet diner checks first: what they say about halal, and whether the line is out when you arrive. Afrah Mediterranean Restaurant and Pastries in downtown Richardson has the only 100% halal-certified kitchen, but serves its buffet on weekday lunch only. Ehab in Irving sets out its line every day for lunch and dinner, yet its listing makes no halal claim at all.
Our picks
- A certified-halal weekday lunch: Afrah Mediterranean Restaurant and Pastries (Richardson). The kitchen is 100% halal-certified and the restaurant has 217 Tripadvisor reviews, though the buffet runs weekday lunch only.
- Knowing the price before you go: Dimassi's Mediterranean Buffet (Richardson). The chain publishes $18.99 for weekday lunch, $20.99 weekday evenings and $23.99 Thursday to Sunday, with kids 3 to 9 at $9.99 on weekdays.
- Coming from Plano, Frisco or Allen: Dimassi's Mediterranean Buffet (Plano). On State Highway 121, with the same halal line at the same prices as the Richardson branch.
- Irving, near Las Colinas: Ehab Mediterranean Buffet (Irving). Just off Royal Lane in Irving, the only buffet here outside Richardson and Plano, and open every day.
At a glance
| Option | Address | City | Halal | Buffet Schedule | Rating | Reviews |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 180 West Campbell Road, Richardson, TX 75080source | Richardsonsource | Halalsource | Every daysource | 4.1source | 130source | |
| 4940 State Highway 121, Plano, TX 75024source | Planosource | Halalsource | Every daysource | 4.3source | 26source | |
| 1601 N Central Expy, Richardson, TX 75080source | Richardsonsource | Halalsource | Every daysource | 3.8source | 12source | |
| 318 E Main St, Richardson, TX 75081source | Richardsonsource | Certified halalsource | Weekdays onlysource | 4.1source | 217source | |
| 743 Brick Row Drive, Ste 100, Richardson, TX 75081source | Richardsonsource | Halal optionssource | Every daysource | 4source | 33source | |
| 2103 N Central Expy, Richardson, TX 75080source | Richardsonsource | Halalsource | Every daysource | 4.4source | 231source | |
| 825 West Royal Lane, Irving, TX 75039source | Irvingsource | Every daysource | 3.8source | 37source |
Richardson, Plano or Irving
Richardson holds most of the category. Andalous and Ali Baba both front North Central Expressway, Dimassi's is on West Campbell Road, Afrah on East Main Street, and Sababa in the Brick Row development. Plano's Dimassi's is on State Highway 121 in the far north of that city, and Ehab is the lone Irving option, on West Royal Lane. Dimassi's used to have a Dallas branch on Preston Road; it has closed.
Certified halal, halal, or halal options
The Halal column keeps each restaurant's own wording, because the words differ. Afrah says its kitchen is 100% halal-certified. Both Dimassi's, Andalous and Ali Baba describe their food as halal. Sababa says it has halal options, the more careful phrase, even though its Tripadvisor listing says halal outright.
Ehab's cell is blank. Its listing names vegetarian-friendly and vegan options but not halal, unlike every other row, and its own website could not be read, so the table does not say either way. Ask before you go if it matters.
Buffet days, prices and how far to trust the ratings
Six of the seven set the line out every day, but prices and sittings can change with the day of the week. Dimassi's charges $18.99 at weekday lunch and $23.99 from Thursday through Sunday. Sababa runs lunch every weekday, dinner on Friday and Saturday, and its own weekend lunch sittings. Ali Baba now serves the buffet at both lunch and dinner, but it is a recent addition to a sit-down grill.
That matters for its rating: most of Ali Baba's 231 reviews were earned by the a la carte kitchen. At the other end, Andalous shows 3.8 on just 12 Tripadvisor reviews while carrying several hundred ratings on other sites, and the Plano Dimassi's 4.3 rests on 26.
The options in detail
Dimassi's Mediterranean Buffet (Richardson)
A Texas chain, family owned since 1992, built entirely around an all-you-can-eat halal line the company advertises as more than 60 dishes: kebabs and shawarma, stewed vegetables, a long salad and dip section, and desserts. This Campbell Road branch is the closest Dimassi's to north Dallas. Unusually for this category the chain publishes its prices on every location page: $18.99 for weekday lunch, $20.99 on weekday evenings and $23.99 Thursday through Sunday, with kids aged 3 to 9 at $9.99 on weekdays. Reviewers are warm rather than ecstatic, and the room is a large, plain buffet hall rather than somewhere to linger.
Dimassi's Mediterranean Buffet (Plano)
The same halal buffet as the Richardson branch, sitting on State Highway 121 in far north Plano, which makes it the easiest Dimassi's to reach from Plano, Frisco and Allen. The line and the published pricing are identical across the chain, so choosing between branches is really choosing a drive. Its score is the higher of the two Dimassi's here, but it rests on a much smaller pile of reviews, so read it lightly.
Andalous Mediterranean Buffet (Richardson)
Andalous opened in Las Colinas in 2012 with what the local press described as a buffet of more than 65 items, running from dolmas and three kinds of hummus to gyro meat, curry chicken and bean salads, and the Richardson branch is the self-serve all-you-can-eat version of that idea. The kitchen is halal. It is the newest of the established buffets in this corridor and has the thinnest Tripadvisor record here, although it carries several hundred ratings on other listing sites, so the score below understates how busy it is.
Afrah Mediterranean Restaurant and Pastries (Richardson)
Afrah is a Lebanese restaurant and pastry shop in downtown Richardson rather than a buffet house, and its buffet reflects that: a weekday lunch spread only, leaning on the mezze the kitchen is known for, with tabbouleh, hummus, baba ghanoush, falafel, stewed okra and za'atar pies. The kitchen is 100% halal-certified. It has by far the deepest review history of anything on this page, and the bakery counter is a reason to come on its own. The catch is timing: arrive on a weekend or after mid-afternoon and there is no buffet at all, only the menu.
Sababa Mediterranean Cuisine (Richardson)
A smaller neighbourhood operation in the Brick Row development, Sababa runs a rotating buffet of shawarma, falafel, kabobs, rice and salads rather than a fixed hundred-dish line, and describes itself as an all-you-can-eat spot with halal options. It has the most flexible schedule on this page: lunch every weekday, dinner on Friday and Saturday, and its own weekend lunch sittings. Diners are split on consistency, with regulars saying the price undercuts the bigger buffets without the food suffering for it, and detractors finding it ordinary for the money.
Ali Baba Mediterranean Grill (Richardson)
Ali Baba has been a fixture on North Central Expressway for years as a sit-down Mediterranean grill, and now runs a buffet at both lunch and dinner built on saffron chicken, lamb gyro, falafel and a long run of vegetarian dishes. It holds the best rating and one of the largest review counts on this page, although most of those reviews were earned by the a la carte kitchen rather than the buffet line, which is a recent addition. The building previously traded as Terra Mediterranean and some listings still carry that name, so check which one you are looking at before you drive over.
Ehab Mediterranean Buffet (Irving)
Ehab sits just off Royal Lane near Las Colinas and is a buffet in the plainest sense: one long line, open every day for lunch and dinner, with unlimited pita, a wide salad section and baklava at the end. Regulars praise the variety, the cleanliness and the value; the recurring complaint is that the room is institutional and has no atmosphere to speak of. It is the only buffet on this page whose listing does not claim halal, so ask if that matters to you. Its own website would not load while this page was built, so everything here is taken from its listing rather than from the restaurant.
How we researched this
Only true all-you-can-eat Mediterranean buffets are listed. Fadi's Mediterranean Grill, the best-known serve-yourself line inside Dallas, is left out because you pay per item. So are the Andalous branches in Las Colinas and Arlington, which serve plated food; Ephesus on North Central Expressway, whose own site never mentions a buffet; and Ferah in Garland, whose buffets are Sunday and holiday brunches. Terra Mediterranean has left the market, and Ali Baba now occupies its Richardson building. Dimassi's has six Dallas-area branches; Richardson and Plano are the two nearest most of Dallas, and Mesquite was set aside because it has no Tripadvisor page.
Rating and Reviews come from Tripadvisor for every row so the numbers compare. Ehab's whole row comes from its Tripadvisor listing. Where a restaurant is purely a buffet house, its daily opening hours are read as buffet hours; Afrah, Sababa and Ali Baba publish separate buffet times. With Dimassi's the only buffet whose posted prices we could read, price stays out of the table; call the others for the current lunch and dinner rate.