SemSem in Ottawa

Good atmosphere. Great service. Fantastic food!

A1 first class orignal meal! Taste was on point and service was fresh and fast! Atmosphere was ideal for a brunch. Definitely coming back again Vegetarian options: Very good veg options Dietary restrictions: Halal and vegitarian options Kid-friendliness: High chairs available Wheelchair accessibility: Accessible

Average.

The vegetables contain worms and are not clean

Always amazing

I thoroughly enjoyed the Eggcellent With Sojok and Fatteh Yogurt. The Semsem Drink Karak chai was particularly delightful. I would like to express my gratitude to the waiter for promptly providing me with a hot cup of tea.

I rarely rate a place with 5 stars on all categories. This place is an exception, the ambiance is amazing, the staff are extremely kind and helpful, and the food tastes like it was prepared in heaven! Not exaggerating! I washroom is spacious and super clean, and it has a corner for diapers changing. Kid-friendliness: High chairs available

A very nice and quiet place, the food tastes good and the prices are a little high

Everything is good I always go there and always take my friends/family. The only thing I wish theres ice for the drinking water, water not cold at all. Food : 5/5

Fun, food was good but not fulfilling, I had to order more things to feel like the plates were full meals

The best restaurant in Ottawa

Food and service are both consistent and always on point.

The food is really good .thanks nahida for ur great service and beautiful smile always

AMAZING PLACE

This restaurant is very hygienic and clean, the food is good and the people serving you are so friendly!!

All dishes are awesome. Sunflower bread is a must try.

Delicious food

Semsem is a gem! The food, service, and atmosphere are all top-notch. My wife and I absolutely loved the breakfast, and the Moroccan tea was the perfect finishing touch. I highly recommend this place to anyone looking to enjoy high-quality homemade Middle Eastern cuisine in a warm, family-friendly setting. We will definitely be returning, inshallah. Thank you for your wonderful hospitality!

Nice and clean place, with very delicious food, friendly and hospitality staff.

Food is good however service is absolutely bad, booked an appointment and showed up on time, and they informed us disrespectfully that people took the table and that we had to wait for next table. They didn t apologize or showed respect for the customer. Absolutely worst service.

So much rudeness and disrespect from the owner s son. my last time visiting this place even though I was a regular customer. absolutely worst customer service.

Owners son must learn respect and politeness above all else. No respect towards the customers.

Delicious and the service was excellent!

Lovely place Food was awesome, we tried the yogurt fattah, the laham ajeen, the sunflower cheese, eggcelent. All good. My favorite dish is the sunflower cheese. Food : 5/5

Absolutely fantastic food. Fatteh el maqdoos was stellar, by far the best I have tried. Would come to Ottawa only for this place.

This is my last time visiting this place. Terrible customer service and rudeness from the owners son. The overall atmosphere was bad and uncomfortable. Food quality is bad. Fatteh is saggy with vegetable oil with no fatteh ingredients.. Eggs smell like fish.

Excellent food!!! Very friendly staff, food portions are very good. They sang happy birthday to my mother and gave her a birthday cake which was really sweet of them. Not expensive at all, we had 4 items and cost around $55 with tax. We also took some of the food home. 10/10

Absolutely delicious! I visited with my family from oakville and we got the eggplant fettah, shakshouka, manakish, egg sandwich and cheese loop. Ive never had such good shami breakfast before! This even beats the top notch breakfasts in ridgeway. For those visiting ottowa, this is a must try !! Cant wait for semsem to reach my area :)

The food was very delicious and fresh made with love Vegetarian options: There are many options for vegetarians Food : 5/5 |

I put 4 stars on the food because I didn t feel it fresh, it s like it s prepared 2 days in advance or maybe they don t use fresh products but the taste was fair. Need to be developed in the quality. Their website is great and the pictures as well but you get less quality than it s shown on images.

Delicious food and great service. Our waitress explained all of the food choices in detail. We were a group of 7 with kids and we were served promptly. We got grandmas breakfast, shakshouke and labne with meat. Everything was delicious. Excited to go back and try something else!

We ordered uber eats ! Less then 1 star . The 4 cheese was awful . The labneh pie was not good . The fatteh just did not taste good overly lemony . This is not what were used to .

I order breakfast item the used give complementary vegetables Now they charge 5$ for onions

Best Middle Eastern brunch in Ottawa. In fact its the OG. Delicious Palestinian recipes, reminded me of my grandmothers. Wonderful service. Update: Love their new menu item, the duplex

I regret to say I was expecting a wonderful experience as I saw this place is trending, but I had a bad customer experience that ruined it.

Very friendly, good atmosphere, good vibes ,amazing service they have to add little bit fresh fruits too ,want to again InshaAllah

Did take out on the whim. Will be returning. Great service, great food.

Wow delicious

so tastyyyy

Will not be returning. I used to be a regular customer, but my last expeirence was very bad. Terrible customer service from the owners son, wrong order given to me and the overall atmosphere was bad and uncomfortable.

One of Ottawa s gems

Authentic Middle Eastern, reasonable prices, and a nice atmosphere

Authentic delicious Lebanese food

Cute little place with scrumptious food.

Good breakfast place and good price

This place really needs to train its staff on how to serve customers politely. The staff are very rude and the service is very poor. The food is average, we got shakshouka and hummus with meat, falafel, fatteh chickpeas tahini, turnips and pickles. The shakshouka was just egg with not enough taste and sauce. Their coffee was very small and not even refillable. For that small size of coffee you at least expect the coffee to be Turkish coffee, it was just a normal brewed coffee. The placewas not busy at all, but the staff told us to leave since our table was reserved only for an hour and a half which made no sense given there were other empty tables and no one was even there waiting for a table. Overall the staff were very rude and made you very uncomfortable. Not recommended at all.

Highly recommended! The Fatteh Hummus is to die for, the Falafel is the perfect crunch from the outside and fluffy in the inside. The star, however, is the cheese sunflower. Pro-tip: Order their in-house fig jam and dip that cheese sunflower in it. That tip came from our wonderful waiter and he was absolutely right. Kind and welcoming service; we felt right at home.

This place makes me feel like im back at home in the middle east. Eating fresh homemade breakfast spreads and drinking tea. The one dish I keep coming back for and even order for delivery is the Fatteh w/ Yogurt. Its phenomenal.

Just had brunch at SemSem, and it was amazing! The portions were huge, and the food was delicious. Every bite was packed with flavor. If youre looking for a great brunch spot, SemSem is the place to go. Highly recommend!

Go to breakfast place! Still heartbroken that they took kashkaval kaak off the menu... I will drown my sorrows in their Sem Sem coffee (a must try decadent tahini coffee).

The food is incredibly tasty! Authentic, good sized portions, fast and friendly service. Try it, you won t be disappointed!

One of the best Arabic breakfast food in Ottawa. Everything tasted really good and ladies who works there were very welcoming and nice. Wished the atmosphere of the restaurant was nicer.

They have excellent falafel!

The baked goods are excellent. The fateh was disappointing: bland and desperately needing salt.

(Full disclosure: I gave five stars for service and atmosphere, but I got it delivered. The food was so good, Im going to give them the benefit of the doubt.) My BF and I ordered for the first time fantastic. We had heard good things but because we were getting it delivered, we chose items we d thought travel well (we ll save the breakfasts for when we can dine in.) We got the Sojok Sandwich (spicy beef sausage pita), the Veggie Beans (mashed fava with fresh and pickled toppings), Falafel Plate, Labneh and Service Plate 1 (turnip pickles, chili pickles, fresh veggies and herbs.) I never thought I d be writing the words, I can t believe how flavourful those beans were, but here we are. Beans were amazing, the sandwich was satisfying, the falafel was crispy (yet fresh?!), the labneh was rich, the pickles balanced the richness, and the whole order came with a ton of the freshest pita. The pictures don t do it justice, but we will definitely be ordering again! Vegetarian options: The Falafel Plate with the Service Plate & Pita is a full, delicious meal. And dont sleep on the Veggie Beans!

Authentic and good.

Amazing fresh home made food, delicious and filling Thank you Food

The food here was absolutely amazing!! We used Sem Sem as catering for an event for about 40 people. Food was fresh, delicious and a huge crowd pleaser. I will definitely use Sem Sem again. Thank you!

Adorable little spot we discovered for breakfast this morning. Atmosphere feels cosy and homey, the food is delicious and service was lovely. The fatteh is amazing.

Best falafel wrap I ve ever eaten. I m actually reviewing this place a week after I ate here, because I just had shawarma from a different place and was thinking about the SemSem falafel wrap the entire time.

Went for lunch. The food was delicious and the quantities were very generous. We ended up taking half our order with us. We teamed did our best but the hill was too steep to climb. The staff was awesome! Nice recommendations and very friendly. They told us we over ordered too much but we decided to accept the challenge. It was a mistake Vegetarian options: Many vegetarian options Parking: Parking for the mall Wheelchair accessibility: The place is wheelchair accessible

The breakfast brunch vibe food is perfect, only thing is the menu is a little limited considering their main focus is on bead Dietary restrictions: Halal

Such a good find! Amazing breakfast, best manakish I ve tasted in Canada that taste like home!! Soujouk and eggs so flavourful!! Must try

One of the greatest places to experience Arabic breakfast and brunch as authentic as it is

I could not be happier with my results. Amazing staff and amazing service and great food

Go with a group and order everything, because there is so much to try. Everything we tried was amazing, and the staff is super friendly.

An amazing place to be. Great staff, cozy atmosphere, and wonderful food

I wouldn t mind eating here everyday

The food is DELICIOUS and the dough is fantastic!! Definitely recommend it.

Amazing food, amazing service and amazing atmosphere. I really enjoyed having brunch here. So much so, that every day I literally want to go back again. The food and vegetables are so fresh. Their teas are amazing. I suggest getting the Fatteh and the cheese bread. Also the fried Halloumi, the grandmas breakfast... The zaatar is so delicious. So many vegetarian options. Extremely generous servings at a very affordable price. The only downside is that its so far from my house. I cannot wait to go back.

Delicious Arabic breakfast

Delicious middle eastern brunch spot. Plenty of diverse options to choose from and prompt, friendly service.

Great food, great service and great place to have brunch, Naheda is the best. I really appreciate the service she provided us.

Food

I picked up the Classic Beans and warm olives recently. My first time trying this restaurant. The beans were so flavourful! And came with yummy pickles and pita bread. The food was so refreshing and delicious!! Highly recommend!! Food

Amazing food! So delicious. The cheese bread is a must-try. Will definitely be back to try more dishes off the menu.

First time and will go again for sure! Vegetarian options: There are meals that don t involve meat Dietary restrictions: Vegetarian meals Parking: It s in a plaza, so therefore there is parking, but lucky to get one. Other businesses of course. Kid-friendliness: They gave have booster seats Wheelchair accessibility: All one floor. If I recall correctly, no stair step to enter restaurant.

So amazing and the service exellent wallah

Excellent

So delicious

Its so delicious and perfect

Excellent

Excellent food Excellent service Food

It was amazing

I ordered foul the dish was cold bread also sitting is too complicated

Wonderful first experience at Sem Sem. The service was warm and friendly, and the atmosphere was modern with touches of Palestine throughout. The food was fresh and packed with flavour, with offerings of many vegan dishes, which was a huge bonus! You can tell Sem Sem has regulars, as customers eased into their meal with comfort. The spot was jumping and busy, filling up quickly, so a reservation would be recommended! Can t wait to return!

At least half of the menu is vegan, and the foods quality is unbeatable. Additionally, the service includes pita bread, various pickles, onions, olive oil and mint on the tray. I cannot emphasize enough how delicious the food is. If you havent tried authentic hummus and have only had store-bought versions, youre missing out on a true culinary experience. The furniture is hedious. Vegetarian options: Almost half the menu is vegan.

Delicious food, and great costumer service. The servers and owners where super kind and made me feel welcome. Would definitely recommend.

The best authentic lebanese I don t recommend buying Sahlab drink. Food

Incredible food. Very unpretentious basic little eatery where everything is made from scratch.

Delicious food. Terrific service. Great for vegans and great labeling on the menu for those who follow specific diets

The amount of food is very small and the price is very expensive. We ate a plate of fattah and two manakish and were not satisfied because the amount of fattah is small. I expect the bread in the fattah plate is non-existent. The quality of the food is normal. The price was high, $70. If I had known this price, I would have gone to a restaurant that serves meat. Grilled

Best brunch place in Ottawa, hands down ! Fresh, healthy and absolutely DELICIOUS!!!

It was my very first time going here. Was with 2 food like critics, and it put my body in some form of shock Trying new typed of food, served in non-traditional ways for me, is hard, and going out of my way, was difficult to adjust. It was very delicious, and would I go again? Probably, yes..I just think I need to be more comfortable with trying new things. I am from out of town, near the Trenton, area.

Very recommended food is so good

Delicious

Oh my gosh! The food was fresh and so tasty. The service exceptional. If I lived in Ottawa I would be a regular. Also the prices are crazy good. Vegetarian options: Perfect for vegetarians

A beautiful restaurant, and the reception of the staff is wonderful. Despite the small place, you find comfort and tranquility in the place. As soon as we sat down, we had cold water in our hands, and a constant welcome. We ordered the food and it came without delay, within seven minutes or less. It is a truly wonderful restaurant, with a delicious and bright flavor of food, and everything. The baked goods are crispy and delicious. The bill for two people is close to $90 because we ordered a lot of different things, and this is my first visit there. This is my impression and feeling about the place and its employees. I wish them good luck, prosperity, continued success, and expansion to a larger place.

It is a small place, but the food is great, the staff are very friendly and courteous . Would definitely recommend if you re looking to try levantine food!

One of the best breakfast places in Ottawa. I strongly recommend it. Food

Delectable food coupled with friendly staff. We love the Cheese Sunflower and Chickpeas Tahini. Must visit for anyone who loves middle eastern cuisine.

The food is good, clean, cooked with love, but the quantities are small and the prices are exaggerated. The place is always booked and small. Getting a table on vacation is difficult and requires a reservation two days in advance. The waiting period for food is long, but the service is excellent and the staff are welcoming and warm.

My experience was not 100% satisfied because of the dough wasn t fully cooked or maybe was setting in hot area long time. Hopefully next time my experience will be better. It s very nice place not my first time.

Amazing food, great service.

Adorable family business and delicious food!

Amazing! You need to eat here! Best falafel I have ever had in my life

Food was delicious. The presentation was really nice. They were able to accommodate us with no reservation

Great food. Definitely recommend it

I recommend this restaurant. Their breakfast is delicious and delicious

Very friendly service and amazing food that s adorable. Better than Fairouz in Ottawa

Fantastic service, good food, nice decor. Great spot for a Mediterranean breakfast/brunch. It s busy so better call for reservation (even on weekdays). Fatteh had good flavour and the amount was generous. Eggs with Sojok was good, but dry. Ask for it not well done and they will accommodate. Cheese Flower was tasty and my favourite. Mint tea was good too. The service was super friendly and very attentive. Try them out, it s a different experience!

Delicious food and good service Highly recommend Food

The best middle eastern food. This is where the community takes their families for a treat. We tried the: Fatteh Tahini, Falafel Plate; and Lahme Ajeen (lamb and beef). All were excellent and far more exotic than I have had anywhere else.

The place is small and toooo Loud. Food

Great place to go

I give it three stars because the food is not bad, but oh my, the service. The two men are polite and smiling, but the young girl is cold and haughty. She greeted us coldly and she came to ask us to vacate the table after an hour and a half of being there. You can go there, but you have to eat quickly and not expect the Semsem team to be pleasant with you.

Best middle eastern breakfast place in Ottawa! Can always depend on great service and food

Beautiful restaurant, Delicious Houmos and foul Food

Great food and service

They have some delicious mediterranean cuisines, and the service is good. It s very crowded over the weekend and you may wait a bit to get seated. It s just not a place to get the real food good for having something as breakfast, snacks as they have great appetizers! Overall, the experience was great!

Amazing. Cant recommend enough

Those guys have the biggest ego in Ottawa, they think they sell 5 star falafel when it s really like 2 max, the costumer service is absolutely trash every single time I go there, and it s safe to say I ll never go again. I have a business that has 4.8 stars and when people put 5 star rating on how good costumer service was they mention the employees by name. Although last time we went we joked around with the person doing the selling and he didn t even smile and totally ignored us, and when we gave him a tip he didn t even react. Not even mentioning that every time we say extra tahini because the sandwich is dry af, they don t even do what we say, because the falafels are super thick you are supposed to cut it in half, put some tahini between it, then complete the sandwich. The tahini sauce itself is just full of tahini and no yogurt. I haven t tried a lot of other things to judge them but I m certain I will not try them anyway.

Delicious authentic food with down-to-earth and friendly service.

Tried their Fatteh Makdous, four cheese loaf and zaartar deluxe crust. Delectable food, good service . Everything tasted fresh. Lots of vegetarian and vegan options. Will ve back to try more!

Lovely! The food was beyond delicious and the service was amazing! Highly recommend :)

We ordered from semsem a few times and the food was underwhelming. The fatteh is so so, the overpriced hummus is mediocre at best. The only thing we like from semsem is the majdoul, everything else was below average.

Excellent service. Fantastic food. Recommended if you want to experience Palestinian food.

Very good food, generous portions, a little pricey but good value. Good selection good of food and drinks. A little slow service but very nice people

Literally the best brunch weve ever had! Its a family run business where the food is cooked with pure love very vegetarian and vegan friendly as there are many no meat options such as fava bean dishes, chickpeas, pies, egg, etc. You really get a mediterannean, middle-eastern experience here and the food is authentic, fresh and extremelt delicious :) A must visit and hidden gem in Ottawa!

Great authentic middle eastern spot. I tried the Sojok Sandwich and the halloumi cubes. My meal was really good. The service was also super friendly and quick!

I really liked the sojok sunflower. The bread base was fluffy and had a good texture and the flavours were great. The fatteh with yogurt was average. The flafel were crispy, which I liked, but lacked flavour. The shakshouk was not really a shakshouka it was more like eggs sunny side up with some onions, it was underwhelming. I think their best suit is anything with dough or bread since they do that best; everything else is average at best.

Delicious is an understatement of how amazing this place is.

Amazing as usual, good time good service good food. Always always meets expectations. Went there again and still amazing every single time

Amazing food and super friendly people. Definitely eat here.

The best middle eastern breakfast ever. Lovely service and flavourful food.

Overall a great experience. The food was good and fresh. The service was lacking in getting any attention for coffee or water when there was no food order coming. Maybe a little more attention after the food is served incase we are thirsty..

The food is very good, but the quantities have become very small every now and then compared to the price, especially the crumbs, which are very low. The treatment is good.

Great food, kind personnal. Im definitely going back there.

Best breakfast in Ottawa so far. Everything is delicious and the atmosphere is perfect and warm. Thanks again to this beautiful Palestinian family

Ola Abed recommended this place. The worst in town. I d rather starve than go back.

The food was absolutely delicious!!! Couldnt get enough! We ordered a Zaatar Crust and Zaytoon Dip, Musabaha Tahini (AMAZING!) and Grandma s Breakfast. It all came with sides of pita bread, sesame bread and vegetable plates! They have so many vegetarian and vegan options and it s all clearly marked on the menu. The service was 5/5 - very friendly and so professional. Highly recommended if you re looking for a mediterranean brunch/lunch spot! Vegetarian options: Zaatar Crust, Zaytoon Dip, Musabaha Tahini

Really good!

Went today with local and from away family today. What a treat. Food was flavourful and very good. Favourites were the bread with cheese and the Po Pie, which was a spinach and cheese flat bread (2nd pic). Humus was divine and my niece said the falafels were the best she has had. All six of give SemSem two thumbs up each twelve thumb rating!!

This lively hub often buzzes with eager customers, occasionally leading to a brief wait for a table. Yet, the tantalizing culinary delights make the wait worth every second. The portions are great they are both filling and scrumptious. The staff is a paragon of politeness, fostering a dining atmosphere that enhances your eating out moments, making them even more enjoyable and amicable. Even though each dish is properly priced, its always wise to be mindful of your orders .

Used to be a favourite spot for me and my family but the customer service and the quality of food just got worse over time. They have this weird policy that doesn t allow you to have any external drink with you(eg..coffee) and don t serve water unless you asked and insisted on it. They also used to bake their own bread but not any more. The current served bread is not usually fresh. The place itself is well decorated but the tables are very close to each other which makes privacy of any conversation a big deal.

Come with a group so you can take advantage of all the good stuff on the menu! Delicious family restaurant with a great assortment of mezze and Lebanese breakfast/brunch dishes.

So delicious and yumy

Had another wonderful experience at Semsem! Its my go-to spot for Palestinian and Middle Eastern breakfast and food. Every time I walk in, I feel right at home. The ambiance is warm and cozy, creating the perfect setting for enjoying their authentic dishes. The portions are generous, and everything is deliciously prepared. Its always a top-notch experience dining here. Highly recommend for anyone craving authentic Middle Eastern flavors!