Jerusalem Halal Meats

This place and the people who run it all suck big time. I hate going there, it’s so toxic to see the faces of the cashier or owner or whatever they might be. Unfriendly, never smile or even say hi. Product is gross and not organized and plain disgusting as their owners. Never going back there not even on the street block where it’s located.

I read the reviews before coming here and indeed, this place is overstocked. I walked around the entire store just to glance at what they carry. They need major improvement on the look of the store.
I came here ONLY to purchase goat meat ($ 7.49 per lb). I couldn’t find the goat meat initially and was trying to figure out who works there besides the cashier clerks. Eventually I found someone and he directed me to where it’s located. The store had several customers and some Hispanic workers. The clerk I had spoke English and smiled.
I did pass by the small restaurant/​café area that other reviewers mentioned. There is a prayer room. Also, there is a large kitchen to butcher fresh meat and I saw a crowd of people (maybe 6 people) waiting. So my guess is one can purchase fresh meat per request. Unsure what «fresh» meats are available, but besides goat, I noticed they sell different cuts of chicken, lamb and beef.
First time purchasing goat meat so I hope it comes out good and that the meat is from a young goat. The cuts I saw had lots of bones.
It will help if they had aisle signs. I saw stacks of boxes in one area and other boxes that were just in the way. They are seriously overstocked and in lack of space to store the amount of items they carry. It’s not the neatest place and they are in dire need of effective aisle management. The shelf layout isn’t neat.

They got there act together, it’s much better than before, specially the smell (meat) and other things!
I would Love to come here soon and change my review to 5 stars when I see things are different at the shop!

This place is a grocery store in the front but in the back they have an awesome café! There’s no menu, you just pick the meats you want or you choose whatever’s already cooked behind the glass. I usually get myself two chicken skewers with hummus and pita. The skewers are in the refrigerated glass case near the register and you just tell the guy how much you want. Other dishes to try are their fallafel and biryani, the biryani is always different depending on the day you come in. It can be quite intimidating coming in here because there really isn’t any service, regulars just know the process, but once you understand you’ll be coming back for more!

You know It’s diffcult finding a place that offers goat, butchered to your order. Though this place may be a bit disorganized, ok, really messy, it has goat meat which is all that matters! :) and a cause they speak Spanish.

The chicken is absolutely the BOMB… I was surprised at the tastiness of it. It’s not fresh and easy (organized) but the quality is +++AAAmazing

Oh my oh my! Where to start but service. They have one if the worst service because they don’t smile, greet and thank customers. They are so rude. Nothing is labeled with prices and the aisles are packed. The prices are about 3−5% higher then other places.?now the good things… Their meat especially chicken is the best. We come all the way from clear lake side their nan are also fresh. They need to drastically improve service like at American grocery store.

There’s a reason this place has existed for 30+ years.
Make sure to check out the deli.

You walk in & you are in a small store in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, egypt, Ethiopia, Sudan!
They have a great selection of EVERY FOOD, their cheese selection… Distributed untidily across several shelves in the fridge is exquisite — AND surprisingly fresh!!!
Given the messiness of the place I’m at awe at how I have yet to come across an expired item …
Totally recommend this place — you will have a jaw dropping collection of cheese for your cheese platter accentuated with exotic jams and preserves, promised to impress your guests AND ITS CHEAP!
Oh! Nuts! Yes! The nuts are fresh, delicious and cheap, don’t go anywhere else… BREAD yes!
Injera!!!
Armenian rose jam!
I go here all the time!

They have a good selection of meats and what not, but I question the hygiene. They just dropped a rack of ribs on the floor and picked it up like nothing and starting cutting it up to give to us. Nasty!

Groceries are expired, not good customer service, place is not clean. Meat is fresh, and that is the only thing i go to buy. They need serious cleaning. Just look around the dry food area and you will see roaches. I think they can afford to have exterminator at least once a week. I cannot wait for the world food to open in this area!!!

I hear a lot of people talk about whether something is «authentic» these days. You want authentic?
When we stepped into this place, we were the only non-​Middle-​Eastern people in the whole damn store. That’s authentic.
When we perused through the aisles on our way to the hidden deli in the back, 70% of the products were brands and/​or food that we’ve never heard of. That’s authentic.
When we got to the deli, it was messy, unkempt, and didn’t even have a menu. That’s poor restaurant management. However… the lamb, beef, and chicken skewers were bright, juicy and shiny-​fresh, displayed behind the glass counters and clearly hand-​made that day. That’s authentic.
But at the end of the day… what’s the point of valuing authenticity if it isn’t good? You go to a restaurant to eat, after all. You can have your history, culture, regional rain dances, whatever. I’d rather have chicken that explodes with juice in my mouth. That’s the real reason I enjoyed my meal here, and I wouldn’t hesitate to return.

Off the menu but hard to beat if you are in the mood for chicken… Order Ayman’s chicken by the pound. If your in the mood for a dinner meal order the lamb chops. Simply delicious. If you want sandwiches order the beef shawarma or chicken if you like. I ask for spicy sauce on the side.
If you are there for lunch ask for tea and you might get some if your special.
So far in my 25+ years in Houston I have not found a better shawarma sandwich.

A LOTTTTTT of Expired food! I bought 7 items of which 4 were expired. I asked around and a lot of people mentioned that they have experienced the same problem… Be aware

Unfortunately, this place is way disorganized and not enough room between shelves. Hard to find stuff, and the place stinks from their meat shop.
When I first moved to Houston, I bought meat one time here, and would never buy again. I wasted a lot of money on lamb meat, as the kabob meat tasted rubbery and hard on the BBQ grill. The Mexican workers in the meat shop don’t understand how to select the right cut for the right meal.
The workers seem rude (very uncustomary friendly). That is very bad for the business owner. He needs to consider training for his workers on how to be friendly, smile, answer politely, look customers in the eyes, pay attention to their needs, and overall have a positive attitude.
Customers will will come back, if they get good treatment. Your store is not the only store in town. Make sure you improve and fix the issues pointed out by many reviewers here.

Great selection on middle eastern grocery items though I would recommend to avoid the sweets, as it very expensive and not as tasty. Lamb at 5.99 a pound is the best deal you will find and it’s very good quality. While the place seems dirty and disorganized, it’s what is expected as this is a truly traditional middle eastern market.
The reason I am taking one star off is because the staff aren’t the nicest people. On my recent trip, I asked for Okra and the man looked at me like I am crazy then when I proceeded to ask him in arabic, he just told me, «I don’t know.» While I understand that the staff member maybe truly didn’t know where the okra was, I really have never had a good interaction with anyone working here! Nevertheless, it’s a great place to have and I will always be a customer!

I love going here to get that international/​world feel. It’s not your average supermarket. Aisles are narrow and shelves are full to the brim, but like another reviewer said, it’s like a slice of the Middle East in Houston. It’s fun going through and checking out all of the unique foods from all around the world. I don’t know how to cook with 90% of them, but the cheeses are delicious, the olives, to die for and they have real turkish delight, which is always a hit with my little CS Lewis fans. I haven’t tried their deli yet. I’d like to stop by some time and see if they serve falafels.

Co-​worker recommended this place. I should have walked out immediately…
Place smelled, dirty tables & people elbow to elbow. Impossible to find anything and flatly rude staff. Unless you want a hookah… those folks were getting help.

This is basically a slice of the Middle East in Houston. If you’re looking for something that’s organized and efficient you’re going to be disappointed. On the other hand if you don’t mind the «Inshallah» mentality and not rushing through things, it’s a real treasure.
You can get all kinds of Middle Eastern things such as shisha tobacco, chai, rice, halal meats, bread and pretty much anything else you’d want for groceries.
But there’s also a small restaurant in the back that serves some great Middle Eastern food at good prices (I recommend the hummus and chai).
But if you’ve never been around Middle Easterners, it may be a bit of a culture shock, but that’s what makes it fun.

This review is for the deli in the back of the store.
Got a recommendation from my Indonesian Barbecue Sensei that this spot had a good falafel sandwich. I kept passing the store because I was expecting a standalone restaurant. The deli is actually hidden in the back of a grocery store.
Parking — fine
Ambiance — They’re not going to win any awards for décor and design. In other words, I felt right at home.
The tables weren’t bussed yet.
Behind the counter, where the magic was happening, wasn’t as organized and neat as what you might expect @ Chipotle or Subway. So be warned, this isn’t the place to bring your OCD date.
Clientele — When I got there, there were 4 tables of 7 occupied. At 2 tables, there were just some older men talking about the topics of the day, plates had been finished possibly hours ago. Some taking tea, most just exchanging words. It’s actually a very beautiful thing that we don’t really have in our culture at all, breaking bread and talking to each other for the purpose of talking to each other.
I wasn’t the only non-​middle easterner there, my hermanos from another madre were repping too. Another awesome thing about Houston is that folks from different cultures will venture outside of their own culture and the dominant culture and partake. Everybody loves good food at a fair price.
Service — It was very friendly. I wish I spoke Arabic so that I could communicate better, but the guy behind the counter spoke plenty of «customer english» and hooked me up. I really wish there was a menu, so I could figure out what dishes they had on the steam table and available to be prepared.
Price — I just got the falafel sandwich and a coke — which came to a little more than 5 bucks.
The Food
With that in mind, I came for a falafel sandwich.
The falafel was made fresh. (it wasn’t sitting under a heat lamp unlike some other places i’ve been…*mentions no names*.)
It was rolled up like burrito with some spicy harissa, ice berg lettuce, pickled jalapenos, tomato, and some yogurt sauce. I’m personally a fan of the smushed balls rammed into a slit pita pocket with self serve toppings, but I haven’t seen too many folks rock the Amsterdam/​Maoz style yet.
It’s probably the best falafel i’ve had since Taim in the West Village, which is an Israeli spot that makes a mean falafel.