Knocked off a star based on service, food was excellent. We recently visited on Monday of this week. Strip Mall is under construction so looks a bit divey on the outside. Service was lacking, we received our drinks after our appetizer. Waitress looked quite unhappy to serve anyone, including us. The Greenland Platter had the Hummus, Baba ghanouj, salad, kibbe, falafel, and grape leaves. Very delicious. Kibbe had the perfect crunch on the exterior and with a moist filling. The platter was served with a huge bag of bread, which was close to a tortilla or naan bread. Ordered the shish kabob, which was chunks of lamb, cucumber tomato salad, and basmati rice. Lamb was on point, cooked perfectly. I wished it did come with a sauce. We also tried several pastries, but were HARD. There were advertisements to watch FIFA World Cup inside, but the tv was quite small. All in all, good food.
(4)
Megan H.
Deeeelicious! Decided to eat lunch here after reading the reviews and I wasn't disappointed. It is in a strip mall that's currently under construction but don't let that stop you from trying it out. The mint tea was perfect and refreshing. I decided to try out the lunch special for the day, which was lamb and smoked rice with a side of plain yogurt. The flavor was rich and smooth. I also ordered a side of hummus and pita. I loved the style of pita here: it had almost like a tortilla quality. I gobbled that up pretty fast! When you check out be sure to scope out the desserts. There is a baklava-like dessert with custard inside that is melty delicious.
(5)
Steve L.
This simple and not very fancy place is the best kept secret in all of Temple Terrace. Trust me when I say the food here is amazing. Any time I find myself in the area I make it a point to visit and eat. It truly is the most authentic Middle Eastern Food in all of Tampa. You cant go wrong with ordering just about anything on the menu. If you are a fan of lamb meat then you must try there's it is so juicy, tasty, and the flavor will blow your mind. Don't let the simple and plain look of this place fool you. Take my advice and try this place out. You find out like the rest of us that it is a middle eastern blessing right in Temple Terrace.
(5)
Hoda B.
Try their daily plat du jour, you won't be disappointed! The best lamb I have ever tasted. Friendly and fast service.
(5)
William P.
The meal from start to finish was great. Everything was perfectly prepared, I have to suggest trying the desert. Everything is home made and very fresh. But the drink prices are bit up there, a can of soda being $2. But the rest of the food is fairly priced and the ambience is very true to the style of food. If you're in the area and like Mediterranean food, this is a must try.
(4)
Ryan W.
I had my doubts, but I and everyone with me loved this place. Most things are about $5 (ex: sandwiches, kebabs, etc), or $10 for a full entree. They gave us free pita bread and hummus, which was delicious. My schwarma was great, too. I'll definitely go back. Helpful hint: they take drink orders after food orders. Threw us off pretty bad :P
(5)
Ellie C.
I really miss the food at Greenland! It is seriously the best Arabic food anywhere. Best lamb, best chicken shawarma, best falafel, best hummus, best desserts.. Everything always tasted so good.. Even their fries are delisssh. Something I miss about Tampa for sure. I hope business is booming!
(5)
Annie J.
Awesome place, you have gotto try the chicken, lamb and fish Biryani and falafel. There's a market next door and a hookah lounge next door which is popular among the locals.
(5)
Eli N.
The middle eastern community is strong around the USF area. Mays alreem is right across the road to this hole in the wall and it's also next to a hookah lounge. There isn't a host and you order at the cashier where they have a menu. The service was different, but friendly. Make sure to request water at the cashier because they won't assume to give it to you. The food was amazing. You could eat here for 5 dollars if you go for a shwarma wrap(fresh and tasty), which my friend ordered. I followed previous yelpers and went with the kafta ?? a ground beef/lamb dish. Came with pita and hummus. The meat was seasoned really well. You can wrap the meat with the pita, rice and/or veggies which were very fresh. The portion was so huge my friend helped me and I still had enough to box. It made a great snack the day after. Incredible food and would recommend this place wanting to experience this cuisine. I will definitely be back for more.
(4)
Bo W.
I came here after an invite from a Yelp friend. This was my first visit to the Green Land restaurant. Today was a buffet due to it being Ramadan. I have spent time in Kuwait, Qatar, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Though my Middle Eastern cuisine experience is not vast, I have dabbled. This food was good, some of the best I've had. On the buffet, there were several meats, bread, soup, vegetables, and even a little fruit. Everything I tried was fresh and flavorful! The hummus was absolutely delicious! The chicken was moist and fell off the bone. There were also several delicious rice dishes. My favorite soup was the yellow lentil. The service was friendly, the dining area was clean, and the price was more than fair. I'll have to come back to order off their regular menu. Usually, regular menu items are better than buffet items, so I'm pretty excited about that.
(4)
Boon C.
The Ramadan month is a fasting month according the observance of Quran. It usually last 30 or 29 days due to the visual sightings of the crescent moon. During this month, the Muslim eats only after sunset. Greenland Restaurant during this month serves the special buffet after 8:30 pm. The restaurant will not start the buffet until sunset per the observance. The buffet certainly is great since many of the believers have been fasting for the daytime. The restaurant will fill up quickly and please come 15 minutes early to get a seat. Tonight the buffet include two different hummus, lentil soup, tomato base soup with Arabian spice, Arabian salad, bidet, fruit salad, yellow rice, grill chicken, roasted whole lamb and more. Yum. Got to try it before is over. The lamb is certainly my favor. The lamb meat is well prepared and you cannot smell the lamb smell. The season is will balance. I also like the tomato base soup of the night.
(4)
Saad S.
great place for good, reasonably priced halal Arab food. Food has been delicious every time we went. Be sure to call ahead and find out what the day's specials are.
(5)
Mahdy S.
My review is based on the fact that I'm Palestinian and come from a family of excellent traditional cooks. Additionally, I've been to every middle-eastern restaurant in the Tampa Bay Area. I hope that those that read the following review are not discouraged or think that I'm being negative. I simply want to state a few facts about the food and the service here. I've given Greenland a few chances now. Both times, service has been, well... bad. During my last visit, I sat myself and then got acknowledged about 10 minutes later. They weren't really busy as there were 5 other patrons there and at least 3 employees. Sadly, this is what I've come to expect at many middle-eastern restaurants in the state. So on to my order. I got the chicken shawarma platter with yellow rice. This came with a side of salad, hummus and pita bread. Bread was oh so stale. Hummus certainly wasn't fresh and lacked flavor. Tasted like something out of a can. Rice was meh, salad was made hours earlier and chicken was chewy. To refer to the chicken as shawarma is inaccurate. It wasn't juicy, did not have any of the usual spices added (I certainly didn't taste anything), was a bit chewy, and.. where was the side of garlic and/or tahini sauce? I was not checked on a single time after my meal was delivered. After I was done, I kept looking up to signal to any of the staff members to bring my check. That never happened. Twenty minutes later, I got up and paid at the register. During my first visit, the server brought over the check. Again, this is what I've come to expect from Greenland and other similar establishments in the area. To reiterate, the point of this review is not to steer you away from the restaurant. I simply want those that are new to this kind of cuisine to understand that it's not the real deal. If you like it, great! But it's not even close to what you'll find in the kitchens of those arab mothers, aunts, grandmothers that are serious cooks. Service here and at other similar joints in the area just never seems to improve. As for the pastries at Greenland, they're not made from scratch. They're shipped from what's probably the most popular middle-eastern pastry place/bakery in the U.S. called "Shatila". Shatila is based in Dearborn, Michigan. I like Shatila's products, but if I'm going to eat out, I'd expect at least a few pastries to be prepared from scratch on-site. You'll find this to be the case at most middle-eastern restaurants in the area. Once again, if you like the pastries, awesome! I just don't want you to think that they're freshly prepared since you're eating out (if you look at the display case, you'll see Shatila boxes). Anyhow, Greenland is open late, until 3 am. It's in a strip mall off of 56th and Whiteway. Next door to its left, there is a hookah lounge (called "Palm"), which explains the late hours as hookah joints close late. Also in the same shopping strip, you'll find a middle-eastern grocer, travel agent and barber shop. The strip mall is almost through with exterior renovations. The inside can use an update too though. There is one middle-eastern place (not a family friendly dine-in restaurant per se) in Tampa that I'll review separately that has been making some noise lately. It's more of a sandwich/pita place so it doesn't fall into the category of restaurants which I attempted to describe above.
(2)
Flint T.
Didn't work for us at breakfast. No service and stares from the diners made us feel unwelcome so we left
(1)
Eileen S.
We visited during Ramadan this past summer, and they offered a buffet with a lovely variety, including several foods traditionally eaten during Ramadan. As one might imagine, it gets very busy at sundown during this time! This is a small, mom & pop establishment, and everyone we encountered was welcoming, friendly and happy to answer any questions we had. It's super casual, and the buffet (which I believe they only do at this time) consisted of aluminum pans set up on tables - reminiscent of what one would get at a group gathering - which only added to the warm, homey vibe. Everything we tried was fresh and absolutely delicious. And the prices are more than reasonable. If you're looking for wonderful Middle Eastern food, you need to go Greenland.
(5)
Blake M.
My boyfriend and I got takeout from here for the first time last night. Falafel platter, falafel sandwich, and an order of French fries. The food was ready to go when we got there, only a 10 minute wait. I was given a large bag of fresh, hot bread to go with my falafel platter. My boyfriend enjoyed his sandwich and fries (steak fries). The platter was pretty good as well. All of this for less than $14. We'll probably be back.
(4)
Lauren C.
A coworker sang the praises of this sketchy-looking strip mall cafe, so we all tried it for lunch. I saw no other Yelpers had really reviewed it, but as you may have noticed in my screen name, I have an "Appetite for Destruction," so I wasn't going to let that stop me. I forged ahead. Green Land Mediterranean Cafe was wayyyy more on the Lebanese cuisine side of the spectrum than Mediterranean, as the name would imply, but overall it was a pretty decent lunch spot. The highlight was the Vegetarian Plate as our app (falafel, hummus, babaganoush, served with about 900 pitas, really an amount that was incomprehensible to serve with a medium-sized plate of dips. But I digress...We each had a shwarma (one lamb/gyro, one chicken, one falafel) and we were all pretty pleased with those, especially with the $4.99 price tag. Ambiance is not a reason to come here, but authentic Lebanese lunch fare is. For a small price, I left full of schwarma, but not of regret. While I'm not sure I'll be rushing back, I am glad I gave it a whirl.
(3)
G S.
Really tasty. I visited for lunch and had shawarma and falafel. All hot and fresh, and the sauce on the tender shawarma was crazy delicious. Friendly service, too, and fast. Recommended.
(4)
Victor P.
Good food, but service too slow,can't be too hungry.
Takes Reservations : Yes Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Lunch Parking : Private Lot Bike Parking : No Good for Kids : Yes Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Ambience : Casual Noise Level : Average Alcohol : No Outdoor Seating : No Wi-Fi : No Has TV : Yes Waiter Service : Yes Caters : Yes
Nellie L.
Knocked off a star based on service, food was excellent. We recently visited on Monday of this week. Strip Mall is under construction so looks a bit divey on the outside. Service was lacking, we received our drinks after our appetizer. Waitress looked quite unhappy to serve anyone, including us. The Greenland Platter had the Hummus, Baba ghanouj, salad, kibbe, falafel, and grape leaves. Very delicious. Kibbe had the perfect crunch on the exterior and with a moist filling. The platter was served with a huge bag of bread, which was close to a tortilla or naan bread. Ordered the shish kabob, which was chunks of lamb, cucumber tomato salad, and basmati rice. Lamb was on point, cooked perfectly. I wished it did come with a sauce. We also tried several pastries, but were HARD. There were advertisements to watch FIFA World Cup inside, but the tv was quite small. All in all, good food.
(4)Megan H.
Deeeelicious! Decided to eat lunch here after reading the reviews and I wasn't disappointed. It is in a strip mall that's currently under construction but don't let that stop you from trying it out. The mint tea was perfect and refreshing. I decided to try out the lunch special for the day, which was lamb and smoked rice with a side of plain yogurt. The flavor was rich and smooth. I also ordered a side of hummus and pita. I loved the style of pita here: it had almost like a tortilla quality. I gobbled that up pretty fast! When you check out be sure to scope out the desserts. There is a baklava-like dessert with custard inside that is melty delicious.
(5)Steve L.
This simple and not very fancy place is the best kept secret in all of Temple Terrace. Trust me when I say the food here is amazing. Any time I find myself in the area I make it a point to visit and eat. It truly is the most authentic Middle Eastern Food in all of Tampa. You cant go wrong with ordering just about anything on the menu. If you are a fan of lamb meat then you must try there's it is so juicy, tasty, and the flavor will blow your mind. Don't let the simple and plain look of this place fool you. Take my advice and try this place out. You find out like the rest of us that it is a middle eastern blessing right in Temple Terrace.
(5)Hoda B.
Try their daily plat du jour, you won't be disappointed! The best lamb I have ever tasted. Friendly and fast service.
(5)William P.
The meal from start to finish was great. Everything was perfectly prepared, I have to suggest trying the desert. Everything is home made and very fresh. But the drink prices are bit up there, a can of soda being $2. But the rest of the food is fairly priced and the ambience is very true to the style of food. If you're in the area and like Mediterranean food, this is a must try.
(4)Ryan W.
I had my doubts, but I and everyone with me loved this place. Most things are about $5 (ex: sandwiches, kebabs, etc), or $10 for a full entree. They gave us free pita bread and hummus, which was delicious. My schwarma was great, too. I'll definitely go back. Helpful hint: they take drink orders after food orders. Threw us off pretty bad :P
(5)Ellie C.
I really miss the food at Greenland! It is seriously the best Arabic food anywhere. Best lamb, best chicken shawarma, best falafel, best hummus, best desserts.. Everything always tasted so good.. Even their fries are delisssh. Something I miss about Tampa for sure. I hope business is booming!
(5)Annie J.
Awesome place, you have gotto try the chicken, lamb and fish Biryani and falafel. There's a market next door and a hookah lounge next door which is popular among the locals.
(5)Eli N.
The middle eastern community is strong around the USF area. Mays alreem is right across the road to this hole in the wall and it's also next to a hookah lounge. There isn't a host and you order at the cashier where they have a menu. The service was different, but friendly. Make sure to request water at the cashier because they won't assume to give it to you. The food was amazing. You could eat here for 5 dollars if you go for a shwarma wrap(fresh and tasty), which my friend ordered. I followed previous yelpers and went with the kafta ?? a ground beef/lamb dish. Came with pita and hummus. The meat was seasoned really well. You can wrap the meat with the pita, rice and/or veggies which were very fresh. The portion was so huge my friend helped me and I still had enough to box. It made a great snack the day after. Incredible food and would recommend this place wanting to experience this cuisine. I will definitely be back for more.
(4)Bo W.
I came here after an invite from a Yelp friend. This was my first visit to the Green Land restaurant. Today was a buffet due to it being Ramadan. I have spent time in Kuwait, Qatar, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Though my Middle Eastern cuisine experience is not vast, I have dabbled. This food was good, some of the best I've had. On the buffet, there were several meats, bread, soup, vegetables, and even a little fruit. Everything I tried was fresh and flavorful! The hummus was absolutely delicious! The chicken was moist and fell off the bone. There were also several delicious rice dishes. My favorite soup was the yellow lentil. The service was friendly, the dining area was clean, and the price was more than fair. I'll have to come back to order off their regular menu. Usually, regular menu items are better than buffet items, so I'm pretty excited about that.
(4)Boon C.
The Ramadan month is a fasting month according the observance of Quran. It usually last 30 or 29 days due to the visual sightings of the crescent moon. During this month, the Muslim eats only after sunset. Greenland Restaurant during this month serves the special buffet after 8:30 pm. The restaurant will not start the buffet until sunset per the observance. The buffet certainly is great since many of the believers have been fasting for the daytime. The restaurant will fill up quickly and please come 15 minutes early to get a seat. Tonight the buffet include two different hummus, lentil soup, tomato base soup with Arabian spice, Arabian salad, bidet, fruit salad, yellow rice, grill chicken, roasted whole lamb and more. Yum. Got to try it before is over. The lamb is certainly my favor. The lamb meat is well prepared and you cannot smell the lamb smell. The season is will balance. I also like the tomato base soup of the night.
(4)Saad S.
great place for good, reasonably priced halal Arab food. Food has been delicious every time we went. Be sure to call ahead and find out what the day's specials are.
(5)Mahdy S.
My review is based on the fact that I'm Palestinian and come from a family of excellent traditional cooks. Additionally, I've been to every middle-eastern restaurant in the Tampa Bay Area. I hope that those that read the following review are not discouraged or think that I'm being negative. I simply want to state a few facts about the food and the service here. I've given Greenland a few chances now. Both times, service has been, well... bad. During my last visit, I sat myself and then got acknowledged about 10 minutes later. They weren't really busy as there were 5 other patrons there and at least 3 employees. Sadly, this is what I've come to expect at many middle-eastern restaurants in the state. So on to my order. I got the chicken shawarma platter with yellow rice. This came with a side of salad, hummus and pita bread. Bread was oh so stale. Hummus certainly wasn't fresh and lacked flavor. Tasted like something out of a can. Rice was meh, salad was made hours earlier and chicken was chewy. To refer to the chicken as shawarma is inaccurate. It wasn't juicy, did not have any of the usual spices added (I certainly didn't taste anything), was a bit chewy, and.. where was the side of garlic and/or tahini sauce? I was not checked on a single time after my meal was delivered. After I was done, I kept looking up to signal to any of the staff members to bring my check. That never happened. Twenty minutes later, I got up and paid at the register. During my first visit, the server brought over the check. Again, this is what I've come to expect from Greenland and other similar establishments in the area. To reiterate, the point of this review is not to steer you away from the restaurant. I simply want those that are new to this kind of cuisine to understand that it's not the real deal. If you like it, great! But it's not even close to what you'll find in the kitchens of those arab mothers, aunts, grandmothers that are serious cooks. Service here and at other similar joints in the area just never seems to improve. As for the pastries at Greenland, they're not made from scratch. They're shipped from what's probably the most popular middle-eastern pastry place/bakery in the U.S. called "Shatila". Shatila is based in Dearborn, Michigan. I like Shatila's products, but if I'm going to eat out, I'd expect at least a few pastries to be prepared from scratch on-site. You'll find this to be the case at most middle-eastern restaurants in the area. Once again, if you like the pastries, awesome! I just don't want you to think that they're freshly prepared since you're eating out (if you look at the display case, you'll see Shatila boxes). Anyhow, Greenland is open late, until 3 am. It's in a strip mall off of 56th and Whiteway. Next door to its left, there is a hookah lounge (called "Palm"), which explains the late hours as hookah joints close late. Also in the same shopping strip, you'll find a middle-eastern grocer, travel agent and barber shop. The strip mall is almost through with exterior renovations. The inside can use an update too though. There is one middle-eastern place (not a family friendly dine-in restaurant per se) in Tampa that I'll review separately that has been making some noise lately. It's more of a sandwich/pita place so it doesn't fall into the category of restaurants which I attempted to describe above.
(2)Flint T.
Didn't work for us at breakfast. No service and stares from the diners made us feel unwelcome so we left
(1)Eileen S.
We visited during Ramadan this past summer, and they offered a buffet with a lovely variety, including several foods traditionally eaten during Ramadan. As one might imagine, it gets very busy at sundown during this time! This is a small, mom & pop establishment, and everyone we encountered was welcoming, friendly and happy to answer any questions we had. It's super casual, and the buffet (which I believe they only do at this time) consisted of aluminum pans set up on tables - reminiscent of what one would get at a group gathering - which only added to the warm, homey vibe. Everything we tried was fresh and absolutely delicious. And the prices are more than reasonable. If you're looking for wonderful Middle Eastern food, you need to go Greenland.
(5)Blake M.
My boyfriend and I got takeout from here for the first time last night. Falafel platter, falafel sandwich, and an order of French fries. The food was ready to go when we got there, only a 10 minute wait. I was given a large bag of fresh, hot bread to go with my falafel platter. My boyfriend enjoyed his sandwich and fries (steak fries). The platter was pretty good as well. All of this for less than $14. We'll probably be back.
(4)Lauren C.
A coworker sang the praises of this sketchy-looking strip mall cafe, so we all tried it for lunch. I saw no other Yelpers had really reviewed it, but as you may have noticed in my screen name, I have an "Appetite for Destruction," so I wasn't going to let that stop me. I forged ahead. Green Land Mediterranean Cafe was wayyyy more on the Lebanese cuisine side of the spectrum than Mediterranean, as the name would imply, but overall it was a pretty decent lunch spot. The highlight was the Vegetarian Plate as our app (falafel, hummus, babaganoush, served with about 900 pitas, really an amount that was incomprehensible to serve with a medium-sized plate of dips. But I digress...We each had a shwarma (one lamb/gyro, one chicken, one falafel) and we were all pretty pleased with those, especially with the $4.99 price tag. Ambiance is not a reason to come here, but authentic Lebanese lunch fare is. For a small price, I left full of schwarma, but not of regret. While I'm not sure I'll be rushing back, I am glad I gave it a whirl.
(3)G S.
Really tasty. I visited for lunch and had shawarma and falafel. All hot and fresh, and the sauce on the tender shawarma was crazy delicious. Friendly service, too, and fast. Recommended.
(4)Victor P.
Good food, but service too slow,can't be too hungry.
(3)