But first, home inspector Franco Interian will guarantee that you will get a great meal at his
choice for handcrafted Middle Eastern fair. He says this no-frills mom and pop market and cafe
will surprise you with their menu filled with tasty Mediterranean specialties served up at an
incredible price. It's in Miami, and it's called Aladdin Market and Grill.
My name is Salim Mabjish. I'm the Owner/Manager here.
My name is Lisa Mabjish. I am the Owner/Manager with my husband.
We decided to open the place here in Kendall because first of all, we live here, and Kendall is
a classy area with people that appreciate fine dining at affordable prices.
We've created a modern menu
that came from traditions from an old world, from thousands of years ago.
For dessert, we have different mix of baklava and our specialty, which is my favorite, the kenafeh.
Aladdin came from One Thousand and One Nights.
What did the genie say? Your wish is my command. So we wanted to create the same
feeling to the customer, that your wish is my command, as far as food goes.
Aladdin Market and Grill is a family friendly environment.
We serve you delicious food with a smile.
When you walk in, it just feels like you're somewhere else, right?
Driving up to the place, you feel like this is eclectic. You're gonna go through an adventure,
because there's a horse feed spot right next to it. You walk in and
it's literally a market. You see all the spices and goods in the middle of the area.
So what did you have this last time you went?
So I brought my father-in-law, which by the way, is a huge fan of yours and the show, so shout out
to Tommy. First thing we started with was grape leaves, which the taste of it is just phenomenal.
I think there's a lot of takeout, right?
A bunch of takeout. Actually, we first experienced them through one of those food delivery services.
I was poolside eating that hummus and meat, and I was like what is this?
I would like to be poolside and eating hummus and meat.
[Franco] You're always welcome. Everyone here is welcome.
Thank you, I love this idea of Middle Eastern by the pool.
It's phenomenal.
Xiaohui, we was this your first taste of Mediterranean food?
I came from China, so I don't know too much about the culture from the Mediterranean
country, but the food was really good. The owner is Lisa.
She was super nice. I'm like a friend there. It's not like guest. I'm like in my home.
You started out with something called labneh, which is my favorite yogurt. It's a thick yogurt.
[Xiaohui] I really love that one. It's a little sweet and sour because they have
the lemon put on the top, so it tastes very good because they have some pita bread.
Oh, I love their pita bread. I don't know if it was homemade. One thing I will say that I enjoyed,
the name Aladdin. You walk in and instead of flowers,
you had the Aladdin lamp. That and the pita bread just won me over. I had the tabouli.
[Michelle] Tabouli salad. It usually has bulgur,
a lot of parsley. It's almost more parsley than anything else.
Yes, I had to check my teeth.
Yeah, as you should. Little tiny bits of maybe
tomato or pepper or onion and a lot of lemon and olive oil.
They know how to dish out that olive oil. It was spectacular.
The ingredients that you're talking about, all these ingredients, it's like literally
right there, and actually my wife picked out a few things from the market while we were in our table.
So what else did you have? You must have had more than tabouli.
I had eggplant.
[Michelle] Baba ghannouj?
[Francis] Yes, wonderful. I had a kebab, chicken kebab.
[Michelle] Oh, nice.
Very moist, tender. I really enjoyed the chicken, delicious. And wait,
the dessert. Did you all go in for the dessert?
Yeah.
[Francis] That is, that was a seller. It's called kenafeh.
Kanafeh, yes. That dessert, I posted on Instagram and I said if God was a dessert, it would be this.
[Francis] With honey, pistachio.
Amazing, cheese, I think it was cheese, and then it has a phyllo dough.
[Francis] That dessert is good for at least four people.
Whoa, not in my household. It's only good for me.
Depending on who you are.
Because that was a big dessert.
You also had a different dessert.
[Xiaohui] It starts with N. Namoura, yeah.
It's funny. She said, you know what, on the house I'm gonna give you this fresh
dessert, and it was exactly that dessert, and again, poolside, phenomenal.
Would you stop with your poolside? That's just not fair.
That's why it tastes so good, because it comes with honey instead of sugar, so that's very good.
Now the two of you had coffee. Is it Turkish coffee that you had?
Yes.
Yes, it was very good. The way they serve it, how regal.
[Xiaohui] The cups and the teapot was so cute. It came with element.
Can I tell you something funny? When you are in the Middle East, especially places like Turkey
and Morocco, when you drink a coffee like this, you actually finish drinking it and
you turn it over, and a few minutes later, someone comes around and reads your future.
I didn't know that.
My daughters ordered a lemonade with some herbs.
[Michelle] Minty lemonade, all pureed together and green.
[Franco] They were blown away.
Well Franco, Aladdin Market was your pick. Sum it up for us, please.
It's a night to sit down with your family and the family that you make
with the staff and the food that you eat.
Xiaohui?
The food's amazing and the price is reasonable,
because everybody can't afford, so I really recommend it.
Francis, tell us your summary.
Very family friendly. They definitely are welcoming you, and there is parking.
Well, you can discover a whole new world at Aladdin Market and Grill, located at 7600
SW 117th Avenue in Miami. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner
Tuesday through Saturday and for breakfast and lunch on Sundays. Reservations are accepted,
and the average price for dinner without drinks is about $30.