Petra House

Only ended up here because the place we planned on was closed. What a lucky break! Absolutely loved the Shawarma and appetizer. Thanks for making my wife’s birthday dinner truly happy. Highly recommend this restaurant.

Very nice décor, and our wait person was very courteous. Ordered hummus which was good but the «pita» bread that it came with seemed to be a commercial bun and not freshly baked authentic pita which is a semi unleavened middle eastern bread that you find almost everywhere in the middle east– and even in Portland. We ordered lamb shawarma in a «wrap.» Unfortunately the shawarma was not wrapped in pita but a commercial white flour mexican tortilla. I really prefer freshly baked pita. The meat and rest of the ingredients were delicious. I suggest the chef start making authentic pita. The other commercial bread is not what I come to a middle eastern restaurant to enjoy. I will continue to make the extra drive to Ya Hala on Stark St in Portland for the real thing in the meantime.

I wanted to like this restaurant. I drove over 40 minutes to get here. The décor is fantastic. But… I ordered the gyros salad with dressing on the side. I got a pile of slightly brown iceberg lettuce mixed with cucumbers and diced tomatoes that had clearly been sitting for a while in their lemon juice and olive oil dressing; slightly soggy. They served a fantastic tzaziki on the side, and really, that was all I wanted on my salad. Great flavors, but not fresh. They really need to step it up. But maybe not – maybe Vancouver is OK with this. In Portland there is too much competition and this wouldn’t be acceptable. Good Turkish coffee. Nice people – too bad.

This place is amazing! Me and a girlfriend went here for dinner on a week night. There was no wait to get in and we were able to sit on the floor sits which are great!
I ordered the gyro salad and it was so yummy! It had cucumber, tomato, gyro meat, taziki and a bunch of other yummy things on it! I would definitely order it again. My friend ordered the chicken shawarma salad and it looked delicious too!
I can’t wait to go back!

Have i fallen asleep and woken up in a prince’s oasis palace? Where is Rudolph Valentino? I have been to Petra several times now, and I plan to keep going back. Atmosphere is ideal for a date… small curtained cubbies adorned with pillows and carpets, sit on the cushions or in a booth — they have both.
Food is utterly delicious. After a brief and delightful hand washing ceremony, proceed to home baked puffed bread (like pita only fresh and yummy on its own) and hummus or other traditional dips. So far everything I have tried is very good… more refined seasonings and presentations than other comparable places in town.
The wait staff is gracious, informative and wear lovely traditional long dresses, completing the Oasis palace experience. I appreciate the cleanliness, LACK of belly dancers and intimate highbrow experience.

Dear Petra House,
Why? Why would you leave me hungry? My first visit was nothing short of disappointing.
I called in my order, one Shawarma wrap with basmati rice and a side of Tzatziki sauce, to go. When I arrived I immediately noticed a lack of customers but was not worried because they had enough good Unilocal reviews. A pleasant man greeted me upon entrance and promptly offered service. Took him less than 4 min to return with my order and my tab. I left my cash on the tray and headed out.
When I opened my order to eat, I noticed they gave me fries not the rice I had ordered (ugghhh, if I had wanted fries I would have gone to Killer Burger! I wanted rice… by now I wanted to cry because I was so hungry). I checked my receipt, it showed I had ordered my wrap with rice. Damn to-​go orders… Moving on I open one half of the wrap and begin to eat it. What I noticed immediately is that I didn’t taste any chicken in the wrap. I looked at my receipt again, just to make sure they didn’t put my order in as a veggie wrap. No, receipt shows Shawarma, Chicken with rice. I ate anyways because I was HUNGRY. But take note, this first half of my wrap was mostly just lettuce, tomatoes and pickles covered in sauce — I got only one bite that contained chicken (literally only one bite on this half had chicken in it). I did find that the other side of the wrap had more chicken, and less pickles and lettuce, so I devoured that side. The chicken had good seasoning, but it doesn’t make up for the fact that I had to hunt thru foliage to find my protein. Ultimately, I did not eat more than four of the fries because I did not want fries! (damn-​it, I wanted to try your basmati rice).
When all was said and done, as I threw out my to-​go container, I realized this experience left me sad that I had spent $ 12 on an order they got wrong, which ultimately did not satisfy and left me hungry.

Found this place on Unilocal and decided to give it a try. When I walked in, I noticed the traditional Interior décor. It has the Arabic home-​feel-​like, it was beautiful. We got seated immediately, the waitress carried out a unique silverware tower with waters and towels. In Arabic tradition, they always wash their hands before they eat which I’m sure in most cultures do. But it as pretty unique the way they did it.
The food was delicious. We ordered:
1. Hummus with special house roll bread (must order)
2. Beef kabob (it was so good)
3. Beef Sharwma (yummy)
4. Lamb dish
5. Mix Combo
6. Lamb kabob
We ordered quite a bit of food for a party of 4. The portion was great! Not too much or too less. The beef sharwma and kabob was so savory and tender. I have to say this place have become one of my favorite Mediterranean restaurants to go to when I’m in town.
Parking was good. It’s inside a big plaza along with many other shops. By the outside look of it, you would not know if this place was any good until you read the Unilocal reviews and give it a try. I’m so glad we did :)

If I lived close I would be broke from eating here all time… the food is devine and the service is great!

My boyfriend and I decided to try this place on a whim for date night.
Walking in, we were pleasantly surprised by the décor! The staff were in beautiful outfits and we were mesmerized by the atmosphere.
We were asked if we preferred a booth or to sit on the floor, of course we took the floor.
We were seated in a wonderfully private section, intimate for our date, the cushions were very comfortable! After getting comfortable we had our hands washed with jasmine infused water by the waitress. I highly recommend the mint lemonade, so refreshing with just the right sweetness. We had Baba ghanouj for an appetizer and we had a wonderful array of kebabs. Chicken, beef, and lamb cubes, with marinated pita bread, red pepper hummus too. Everything was cooked to perfection and it was DELICIOUS!
Please visit this place! You won’t regret it!

There’s no doubt that the interior of Petra House is (seemingly) authentic and definitely awesome! This is probably my favorite part of the restaurant. As far as the service goes, every time I’ve been there, it’s been very friendly and welcoming. As a Pacific Northwesterner, the service is also unique because before your food arrives, the server comes to your table and shows you how to wash your hands over a silver basin, which seems to be a traditional custom. If I’m being honest, I’m not the biggest fan of the food (because I think it’s a bit bland), but I know that my boyfriend and family members enjoy it. They’re meat eaters, and I’m a pescetarian, though, so this could be the reason for difference of opinions. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Beautifully authentic Jordanian food, Petra is such a lovely gem in the middle of mundane. Step inside to discover a taste of the Mediterranean. This place is so special. Such a treat. So, so happy to have discovered it. Thank you, Petra. I look forward to many more occasions here.

I absolutely adore Petra House. I found this place by chance and I’m happy that I did. The service and hospitality here is superb. When you first walk in, you’ll notice you have the option of booth seating or floor seating. I personally prefer floor seating because it’s more comfortable for me. If it’s your first time here, keep a head’s up for a silver vessel of rose water coming to your table to cleanse your hands before your meal, as is the tradition. And the food? OH MAH GAWD ITS SO AMAZING. So far, everything I’ve ordered here tastes delightful. I highly recommend the mansaf and sambousak. Another pleasant surprise here was the cheese baklava, which I typically can go without, but I will eagerly order here at Petra House. This is, hands down, my favorite restaurant in Vancouver.

The décor is pretty cool but that’s where it stops. I was totally bummed that my lady and I received bad service. Hate to say it, but if you are not a «normie» you won’t be treated well here. They didn’t offer us traditional seating or the same luxury services like washing our hands (I’m not a jerk, they do this here) or even water to drink hahahaha! If you’re tattooed and pierced up they will not make you feel comfortable — straight up. Spent $ 50 on drinks, appetizers, and entrees for two. Got laughed at when I asked for a side of mint leaves. Left no tip.
Anywho, the food was pretty okay. Jerusalem Café nails it way better for Mediterranean food in Vancouver. They should take their politics to the south if they want to discriminate against «weirdos». I live less than a mile away and I like blowing money at restaurants as a hobby. Your loss, Petra House.

Absolutely amazing! This will be my go to when I am craving Middle Eastern food for lunch! I ordered the Mezza for two for lunch and it was way more food than I could handle. I typically stray away from grape leaves because of the texture but these were incredible. The falafel were fried perfectly on the outside and tasted amazing as well, and the hummus had the best flavor! Will definitely be eating her again.
Oh and get the mint lemonade!

This place is amazing. We came in Saturday just by chance of luck cause we wanted some good Middle Eastern food. This place was so so good. The food was so authentic and made with love. The whole expierence was great cause you can choose the traditional seating of on pillows or booths. The decorations, staff, made it seem like I was in Morocco. The staff (I think family) were so sweet and friendly and made the expierence so much better. We had a 8 month old baby and they didn’t make it feel like he was in an inconvenience. It was priced right and food was beyond delicious. Please try this place, it won’t disappoint you!
P.S We are bringing our Egyptian brother here for his bday dinner next weekend, so excited!

My family and I were lucky enough to stumble upon this little gem online.
My first impression once inside, was that we had been transported out of rainy Vancouver. It is so warm and welcoming, the décor is beautiful and the seating style uniquely amazing. (Small curtained booths, low cozy bench style seats, comfy pillows and gorgeous family style table) We were treated to a traditional «hand wash», the host drizzling warm water across finger tips into an ornate silver basin… our 10 year old daughter was intrigued by this and thought it was the coolest experience. Our server was very sweet, energetic and attentive. Our 2 year old son seemed rather smitten. Lol.
The food was absolutely to die for, the pita and hummus alone I will be craving for days to come. We all ordered the traditional gyro, it exceeded expectations is freshness and flavor. The Arabic tea was perfectly sweetened… soooooo yummy!
I will recommend this hidden jewel of a restaurant, and be a regular for a long time to come. The best ever!

3 stars for the outrageously beautiful décor and ambiance!
AND…
Prices are way too high.
We ordered mujaddara that was so burned it tasted like eating white rice out of a pot that had scalded on the bottom… not good enough to eat or finish when we brought it home. It had no flavor, just burnt. That’s an expensive dish.
The sambusek were so small and way over salted $$
Lentil soup, very small cup
Tabbouleh, very small portion
Maklubi was OK but lamb needed seasoning
meatpie, cheesepie, spinach pie, shatta, and zataar combination… the pieces were so small and $$. I asked for some hot milk to put in my tea (my preference) and server said she couldn’t warm it up but said she’d ask the kitchen. She brought ice cold milk :(
Really, no microwave?
ONE piece of baklava, the regular small triangle, was $ 4.50. and it was just «okay.»
Leaving there with a $ 90 bill didn’t feel so great. Of course, half of this food was ordered to go home to my family. Anyway, the service just Blanked!
I wanted to take my friend for a special occasion but that’s the last chance for Petra House.

I loved this place! I took my Dad here for his Birthday. This place has an awesome atmosphere and very friendly service. It really felt like an authentic family owned Mediterranean restaurant. I really want to see this place succeed after visiting it today.
The food was excellent. I had the shawarma plate which was spot on.

Bottom Line: authentic Middle Eastern cuisine from a charming restaurant in the east Couv. Service is good and prices are reasonable. The décor creates a fun international experience worthy of a special occasion or «hot date». Best Middle Eastern food in Clark County.
My wife and I ate here for lunch and ate in one of the traditional seating booths. My wife had the gyro and I had the lamb shawarma plate and turkish coffee. OMG everything was sooooo good. The freshly baked pita bun was to die for. Our waitress «Skye» was very nice and attentive. The food did take awhile to get to the table but not too long. We really liked this place and will be back. In the summer they have outdoor seating which is dog friendly. Check it out.

The varied cuisines of the Mediterranean have always tickled my taste buds.
This extremely traditional little restaurant is a great blend between all the Mediterranean fancies. When you walk in you have a choice of a booth or a more traditional seating arrangement which is pillows on the floor with a pretty gold low table. They come out with rose water to wash your hands when you sit down and then give you a few minutes to look over the menu. Staff is helpful if you have questions!
We ordered the hummus and chicken shawarma salad (I added feta). I wish that I would have asked for the dressing on the side, as it was swimming in it … because of the amazing taste I didn’t mind much. The portion size is just «ok». This is why I decided against the 5 star. Although it was delicious, the actual amount of chicken on the salad couldn’t have been more than ½ cup. Nevertheless it was a delicious experience and we will 100% return with more people to join in the future.