(626) 844-7970

  Full halal menu

  Alcohol-free

  $$ out of $$$$

   accepted

  Reservations not required

  Available to-go

  Designated prayer area

  Adequate restrooms

  Parking available

  Mass transit nearby

  Child-friendly premises

  Wheelchair accessible

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  as selected by the Zabihah editors

★★★★★ The best persian food I evver try in the USA. Posted on January 9, 2017

★★★★☆ A well kept restaurant. Food portions are large and the quality and taste is very good. Worth a visit if you are in the area. Posted on April 3, 2015

★★★★★ It is very good, one of the most authentic Iranian food in the US. The days we went there, they had the be best plain rice that we had tried in the US so far. But other people say it had not been such before. We tried lamb koobideh, lamb filet and burger and they were all good. By the way, the owner was so kind and respectful that would keep us going there again. Posted on January 11, 2015

★★★★☆ I went here once while visiting CA. Nice Afghan food, service & environment. They chatted with me and helped direct me to a nearby masjid. If ever in Pasadena, I would visit again. A bit pricey though. Posted on January 4, 2015

★★★★★ Excellent food which is reasonably priced... Kabobs were moist and flavorful. Great accommodations for large groups. Posted on December 29, 2014

★★★★☆ I'm only giving them 4 due to low standard service. Otherwise food deserves a simple 6 out of 5. Late until the end they couldn't figure out what veggie is available for grill in kitchen. I received 3 different answers from 3 different people. Your meal includes grilled tomato, chilli and onions. 1 told us tomatoes N/A, other told us Onions N/A and all 3 said chilli N/A. In the end when we were 2 bites from finishing our dinner, tomatoes though undercooked, onions finally came. The Spanish girl who is Manager is a kind and service oriented person though by looks she looks stern whereas that one girl who covers her head has quite an attitude. I think she is someway related to owner. But the food is AWESOME. All of us were very happy specially after yesterday's pathetic experience of Bilal. Posted on December 25, 2014

★★★★☆ Very good food though the service was a tad slow. Be careful their portions are quite big. Otherwise was a satisfying experience. Posted on October 11, 2014

★★★★★ Although it was expensive, but the food was perfect Posted on August 6, 2014

★★★★★ It's one of the best halal restaurant I have ever tried. Even it's one of the best Persian restaurant too. Food is amazing and prices are ok as compared to other Persian restaurants. Service is a little slow but you get used to it when you the food is tasty. I would really recommend this restaurant. P.S. if owner is reading this review then for recommendation I would advise you to renovate your interior to make it look more fancy. Posted on April 19, 2013

★★★☆☆ The food is okay. Need to focus more in service Posted on January 20, 2013

★★★★☆ Went here while visiting the LA area. Tried the kubideh plate. Pretty tasty. Huge portion size. We had a party of nine people and service was fast, prompt, and friendly. Workers confirmed that all meat served here is halal. I recommend. Posted on January 12, 2013

★★★★☆ The chicken kebab was bland. The rice was good. Didn't quite like the baklava as it contained rose water-not my kind of thing. The portions were huge though. Worth the money. I will return, perhaps to try something with more spice. The ambiance of the restaurant made up for the food... It was great! Posted on May 1, 2012

★★★★★ A1 Posted on April 29, 2012

★★★★★ Food I had was good, almost similar to Hatem. Service was fast, place was clean. Most impressive part was they have a prayer room available! Was pleasantly surprised. Posted on February 22, 2012

★★★★★ Delicious food! Generous portions! And friendly customer service. A must visit for lunch! Very clean and professional. U can easily take work collegues without any hesitation. Posted on December 7, 2011

★★★★★ Very yummmmmmmmmmmmy food!! Clean and fresh! Prices were good! It's a must! Many thanks to the staff :) they were so nice and welcoming! I think it's the best in the area!!!! Posted on November 26, 2011

★★★★★ The food here is excellent. The prices are quite expensive but the portions are generous which makes it worthwhile. If you don't have a big appetite, you can share one meal with two people. We have never tried their fast food, but always the Persian entrees. Their koobideh is excellent. Lentil soup and ice cream is amazing. We have tried their lamb koobideh which is also delicious! Expect to spend at least $10-15 per entree. Some items are around $18. Again, the food is well worth the cost. Leave some room for the falooda ice cream, it is delightful!!! Posted on September 9, 2011

★★★★★ Great halal place with great food! We love the food specially the sultani.So yummy! Definitely go there again! Posted on August 11, 2011

★★★★☆ Excellent persian food, the quantities were large and had a real authentic persian taste. Restaurant was very clean and staff were professional. Posted on July 23, 2011

★★★★★ Best Middle Eastern place in L.A, they portions are big and great prices are reasonable. Service was great i will def go back!! Posted on June 19, 2011

★★★★★ The food was very tasty and the price was very reasonable :) Posted on March 12, 2011

★★★★★ The food is simply awesome!! Do not miss the Koobideh! Posted on January 18, 2011

★★★★★ Super great food. Wonderful place. Service was average at its best. a little bit over priced but certainly worth it. One of the bests in LA. Posted on January 11, 2011

NR Enjoyable The food here is always great Posted on January 6, 2011

★★★★★ Very good food and good service. Place is very clean and servers were very friendly. We enjoy going here every week. Posted on November 14, 2010

★★★★★ Decided to come here for the legendary koobideh. Gigantic sized portions and the koobideh are spiced just right. The tastiest accompaniment is the saffron rice that has a wonderful smell paired with the roasted peppers are fantastic. Will definitely go back to this place when we go down to LA again. Posted on August 18, 2010

★★★★☆ Went there on Christmas day and found it open. Beside Iranian food, they also serve burgers and perhaps pizza (not exactly remember the full menu). Price is a bit higher but serving size is quite large. You will enjoy it is you don't like too spicy food. Or add lots of Sumaq to make it spicy. Location was big enough to accommodate large number of people. Posted on December 28, 2009

★★★★☆ This place is fairly consistent. They have started to consistently forget to give me a utensil when I order to go. The chicken kabob is really good and their rice is pretty good too. It is only a good value if you share your meal. I usually steer clear from the beef and the koobideh. A friend of mine dropped off their combination koobideh plate and I ate it the next day. It was strange but the flavor of the koobideh improved. It was at least on par with the new and less good koobideh at Hatam. My friend ate his koobideh fresh and he wasn't a fan. They tend to get busy and not be able to serve you fast enough. The staff is nice though, I guess they sometimes just need a little more help. Posted on November 7, 2009

★★★★★ excellent food with friendly service. Posted on November 4, 2009

★★★☆☆ The food was bigger portions but size isn't everything. Definately family restaurant. Setting is in between nice restaurant and fast food style. I was most impressed by the osh rated 4.3. The kebobs were alright 3.8. I guess I might go back to try somethig else but I wouldn't be in a hurry. Price was so-so Posted on September 25, 2009

★★★★★ This place is the Best! the portions are gigantic at a reasonable price. One plate can feed about three adults literally, That's how big the portions are. Besides the food the Ambiance is 5 Star. You can bring Family, Friends, Date, Colleagues, and have a wonderful time. Not only that, Old Pasadena Outdoor Mall is about 2-3 miles West; making the best location, food, and ambiance. I wish all Muslims restaurant were like this. Posted on August 14, 2009

★★★★★ *****During a recent trip to Southern California, my wife and I dined twice at Heidar Baba. The restaurant prides itself on its Muslim identity; several of the servers wear hijab. Heidar Baba is, strictly speaking, a Chelo Kebabi, i.e., a typical Persian restaurant specializing in kebabs of various kinds. Those we sampled compared quite favorably with what one finds in Iran: the kebabs were perfectly cooked, the rice fragrant. It would be a mistake to expect to find some of the long-cooked, subtle dishes that set Persian cuisine apart. We were pleased and impressed with the courtesy of the staff; the dining room is clean and bright, and the atmosphere pleasant (though we could have done without the television screen broadcasting non-stop basketball). Our only criticism concerns portion size: they are far too large for one normal individual—we ended up sharing a plate. It may be time for Muslim jurisprudence to expand the definition of 'halal' to encourage moderation in consumption, in addition to slaughter methods and treatment of animals. But it would be unfair to fault this excellent restaurant for conforming to American practice Posted on April 6, 2009

★★★★★ Excellent food. Excellent service. I have gone to this restaurant many times and I have never been dissappointed with the taste of their food. Their meat is 100% Zabihah (Halal). Their prices are great according to the amount of food they put on the plate. Once I wanted some more rice, usually other restaurants will charge around 4 dollars, but they were very kind to give it for free. May Allah always put Barakah in their business. Posted on January 29, 2009

★★★★★ -Excellent food quality -big portions -very good customer service -lots of choices on the menu -clean washrooms -bright -lots of parking -nice decor and settings -prayer room -good location ( both to get to, and no gangsters around) -the only thing I could ask for is cheaper prices (but then again you pay for what you get) We were in LA over the 2008 Christmas break (escaping the Canadian winter) and we're serious about only eating halal. I came across this restaurant by reading the reviews on Zabihah.com, so I wanted to share my experience and support the website. Thanks Zabihah. Posted on December 31, 2008

★★★★★ The food is really good as is the service. The family are well known and respected Muslims with a great reputation. Posted on October 19, 2008

★★★★★ They don't know zabihha because in persian we don't use this word for halal meat. we just say "HALAL" or "ZEBHE ESLAMI". "ZABIHA" DO NOT have any meaning in PERSIAN> Posted on August 14, 2008

★★★★☆ They get meat from a place that is overseen by some Tableghi (TJs). Say what you about TJs but the meat (if the information is correct), then its Halal the slaughtered kind. I did my research and seems the place gets the meat from a legit source. The place is clean and has good food. Posted on July 7, 2008

★★★★★ What a portion!!!! Alhamdulillah... Excellent food, atmosphere and great service. Highly recommend to all. Posted on June 29, 2008

★★★★★ You will not be disappointed. Their food tastes great all the time. Best kabab in LA Metropolitan area. Posted on March 5, 2008

★★★★☆ Good food good portions good prices. Would visit again. Posted on November 10, 2007

★★★★★ Excellent Persian food with original taste. Nicely remodeled with spacious setting. No doubt about Halal content while most of people working were practicing Moslems. Fair price. Parking maybe a problem in busy times. Posted on October 31, 2007

★★★★★ Heidar Baba has excellent food, excellent service, excellent atmosphere to bring your family for a meal and very reasonable prices. They have recently remodeled the interior and it’s beautiful. One must check out this place. Posted on September 17, 2007

★★★★★ I can not say enough good things about this restaurant. I've been going there for the past 3 years even though I live in Orange County. Their food is excellent, service is awesome and ambiance is great. This place is really second to none. Highly recommended for locals and visitors alike. Posted on September 11, 2007

★★★★★ I have eaten in dozens of Persian restaurants all over the US and this is by far the best and most halal one I have seen. The waitresses wear hijab. The meat is zabihah halal. The atmosphere is clean and friendly. And the food is outstanding. I live in Texas, but every time I come to LA I go here, sometimes even every day for several days in a row. For Muslims in the LA area, this place is a must! Posted on August 11, 2007

★★★★★ good food, looks like they remodeled recently. I recommend you go if your close by. Posted on July 21, 2007

★★★★★ Excellent food, great service, and unquestionably HALAL. The owners are well-known Muslims, and they purchase only HALAL products. (Brothers and sisters, think before you post. When you accuse a place of not having halal food without knowing the truth, you have harmed them. Thus, you have sinned. THINK) Posted on June 5, 2007

★★★★★ Wonderful restaurant. I had the ghormeh sabzi, and it was delicious. Nice, casual atmosphere, and one of the only halal Iranian restaurants in Southern California. Definitely recommended! Posted on February 10, 2007

★★★★★ Clean good food. Fresh and tasty. Owners are Muslim and told us everything was zabihah halal. The burger was good, but it's $8.95! Posted on January 9, 2007

★★★★★ I just called and the resteraunt is now open. It was closed temporarily for remodeling. Posted on November 7, 2006

NR I went to the restaurant and it was closed down. I don't know if it was temporary or permanent. But it is closed at the moment. Definitely call before going. Posted on August 30, 2006

★★★★★ This place has excellent food and service. I tried several things in the menu and every thing was delicious. I would definetly go there again and again. Posted on January 15, 2006

★★★★★ Very nice place to eat. Very clean with efficient staff. Food is good especially Koobideh. Their sandwiches are ok pricewise but their combinations are little expensive. Overall this is a very nice place to eat. Posted on November 17, 2005

★★★★★ i came to knew of this place in the ramadan month of last year ,when i came to pasadena and i used to take food from this place every day. i love this place. i miss them this ramadan.great food. Hope to visit soon when i am around pasadena Posted on October 8, 2005

★★★★★ I have been at this place few times and had some carry out orders. I have always had good experience both with the quality of food and service provided. I liked their chicken kebab and Kopideh kebab as my favorites. Their prices are good as well. Nice people, smile in your face all the times, makes you feel welcome. I will always go there if I think of lunch or dinner - I work in Pasadena and I live in South bay. To me the price is fit the food, means good food and good prices. I really can't wait to go there again. Abdullah Posted on August 8, 2005

★★★★★ I have been at this place few times and I had my family for eat-in and also had some carry out orders. I have always had good experience both with the quality of food and service provided. I liked their chicken kebab and Kopideh kebab as my favorites. Their prices are good as well. They also confirmed to me that their meat is Halal. By the way the word zabihah doesn't mean halal in Arabic nor in Persian. Zahihah is used in Pakistani/ Urdu language and was taken from Arabic to be used for halal meat. Zabiha in Arabic means slaughtered which does not imply necessarily that it is halal any way if we want to go thru technicality because the manner of slaughtering and the person who slaughters is important to consider the meat as halal. Posted on July 22, 2005

★★☆☆☆ I just went to Heidar Baba. My hamburger with cheese cost almost $7. It took 30 minutes to make, the fries were burnt, and the meat was hot while the lettuce was very cold. In the end the taste came out very poor. On top which, the environment looks clean, but there were flies around many tables. Not recommended. Irvine/Orange county has much better Persian food. Posted on May 9, 2005

★★★★★ Food is really good. Prices are like typical persian places. Try the eggplant appetizer! hmmmm. Islamic environment yes. So what is the word for zabihah in persian? Anyone know how to differentiate zabiha vs halal in persian? As far as I know they say they are halal but dont know what is zabihah. Ill continue coming back until i find out otherwise. persian food rocks! Posted on March 21, 2005

★★★★★ In my opinion, as a regular customer to this great restaurant, the cleansiness and the environment couldn't be better, the service is excellent from any of the femail waitress but extremely poor from either of the mail waiters. It is the service that I have recieved from these waiters that keeps me from eating at this restaurant everyday, otherwise the food is great and halal and for the "caring muslim" who left his review on top of the page aswell as anyone else who made these false comments and these reviews which are intended to make this islamic restaurant look bad, you all couldn't be any dumber than you really are and it is you who aren't the real muslims and it is you who we shouldn't be fooled by. Great restaurant. Posted on January 9, 2005

★☆☆☆☆ Salam, I was near the area and stopped buy because I was hungry. I ordered a hamburger with fries and coke. Everything seem fine but a lot of blood was dripping from the meat. I asked the waiter and she didn't even tell me where they buy the meat from. Then asked them for a refund but they refused. I am glad I found this site, I should have read it before I went so I didn't have to eat haram meat. I won't go back again. Posted on December 22, 2004

★★★★☆ I have read the comments posted on this page, and have found it very interesting to see people who questioned the authenticity of the halal food in this restaurant use the word "Zabihah" when they ask the people in charge of the restaurant whether it is halal or not. As an Arabic speaking muslim I have to add that according to Islamic rules/ scripts the word "Zabihah" has no connection what so ever, in meaing, to the concept of Halal. In Arabic, it literally means "slaughtered". It is my understanding the word "Zabihah" is only used by our Urdu speaking Brothers and Sisters to designate the "Halal" concept.Therefore, we should not expect an Iranian (in this case) or an Arab to understand the metaphorical/ figurative meaning of the word "zabihah". As we should not expect an Urdu speaking person to undrstand the figurative meaning of "fatees" that lebanese use to describe non-halal meat. As far as I know the food is halal and it tastes very well. Unfortunately, in our un-Islamic tradition, the good quality last only for short time. I hope that Haidar Baba proofs otherwise, and keeps up the good quality for ever. Posted on December 17, 2004

★★★★★ People who say that this place does not serve halal food must not know what halal is. If the workers wear hajab and are advocating an Islamic environment, then they would not be lieing about whether the meat is halal or not. These are things we need to understand. Overall, the food is really good and the workers are all very friendly. Thank God for Heidar Baba! Posted on November 29, 2004

★★★★★ Quality of food for the price is excellent. Perhaps to attract the students from Pasadena City College from the street across. They are definitely halal/zabihah. Don't get caught up in the wordings, the owners are Iranians and servers wear hijaab. They will even guide you to halaal meat vendors. Posted on November 27, 2004

★★★★★ They are great! I love their food, the quality is wonderful, the prices are competetive and their service is good. They need to change the decoration a little bit and maintain the quality and the price at the same level. Coming up with special lunch/dinner hours would broaden the range of customers they have. In over all IT IS A TRUE BLESSING to have a halaal restaurant in Pasadena. Posted on November 10, 2004

★★★★★ Heidar baba is by far the most unique place that I have ever been to. I understand the service can be slow at times but that is because they are always busy and other customers need to realize this as well. The food is great the prices are even better. I feel like I'm going to a second home when I go there because of the way they make me feel. Posted on October 21, 2004

★★★☆☆ Good points: fresh food, made on the spot, tasty, healthy, and overall excellent. Price is great too - you get a lot for your money especially with the entrees or combo dishes. Bad points: service can be either great, or terrible. They really need to get their act together on service. I have ended up waiting half an hour at the place for a pickup order I placed with a 2 hour lead time. This is unacceptable. I have seen people come in after me (10-15 min), wait, and pick up the same food I ordered 10 minutes before I did, just because the customer and the cook knew each other and were chatting up. At times when you eat in-house they forget simple things, like forks and knives, or even what your order was. Service has to improve or they will lose customers. Posted on October 18, 2004

★★★★★ i saw good reviews about them in newspapaers and i also heard aboout them by other people. so i went there to try it out. i got a sandwich, refilible soda, and fries for under 6$ plus the service made me feel like i was paying alot more. i think heidar baba should be compared to a five star resturant so i rate it a 5 Posted on October 8, 2004

★★★★★ I am one of their regular customers and really happy that such a great resturant with high quality halal Iranian food is in our neighberhood. Their hospitality is even greater than the reasonable price. It is great. Posted on September 28, 2004

★★☆☆☆ I called them and asked them if they are zabihah and they didn't know what in the world i was talking about. They gave the phone to another person and the same answer." what?" Then when i asked them if it was halal they said oh ya its halal. I dont feel comfortable though. The rest is upto you. Posted on August 4, 2004

★★★★★ I like the food here. They have authentic Persian food. Posted on June 23, 2004

★★★★★ Mash'allah, this is real persian food. a full meal under 8$ with the enviorment that makes you feel that your eating in iran. agian Mash'allah Posted on June 14, 2004

★★★★★ WOW!!!! this place is awsome! i go to school at pcc and i was shocked to see such a place opening in pasadena. i go there tue-wed at lunch and the food is great and tasty. the service was provided by a young iranian waitor and it was brilliant! after lunch its always good to try the gelato!! Posted on June 13, 2004

★★★★★ I am now a regular customer of this place. They have variety of different food with excelent quality and reasonable price. It is great. Posted on May 14, 2004

★★★★★ I have been going there for many months now and they're food is great. Its a family owned business and I got a have successfully confirmed with the owner that the meat is indeed Halal. Alhamdulillah! Posted on April 28, 2004

★★★★☆ We live in Burbank and usually have to travel quite far for family dinners out. We were quite pleased to discover Heidar Baba. My boys and husband love the chicken and beef, it's close by, priced reasonably, the ladies wear hijab and the freshly made deserts are awesome. Try the pistashio gelato. WOW Posted on March 10, 2004

★★★★★ Very good food and service. The place is like a second home to me. Posted on February 26, 2004

★★☆☆☆ The food was ok. Service was a little poor. The only thing that bothered me was the meat. I dont believe the meat is halal, too much blood left in the meat. I bought kabob but the meat smelled and it tasted old. It didn't have a good smell to begin with, but as I ate more I notice there was something wrong. Out of a 10 I would give this restuarant a 6. It is also a bit pricey. Posted on February 15, 2004

★☆☆☆☆ I personally asked them if they serve zabiha, and the person didn't know what the hell that is. We need to verify where they get their meet from. Please don't blindly follow. Posted on December 19, 2003

★★★★★ I husband and I have been here many times and each time the food is excellent. The family is very hospitable. Posted on December 14, 2003

★★★★★ Alhumdulillah, this Muslim family is filling a great need for halal in the Pasadena area. The food is excellent and the service is great. The hijab adds a nice touch. Posted on December 3, 2003

★★★★★ My husband loves this place. We've visited it a few times since we discovered it during Ramadhan. Their food is really very good....from their menu, their chicken combo plate is the best deal in my opinion. Posted on November 26, 2003

★★★★★ i am so glad we finally have halal resturant in pasadena.i am trying to tell as many of my friend as possibe so we can support this resturant Posted on November 17, 2003

★★★★☆ We visited this place about two weeks ago. They are quite new. The best thing, besides the superb food, was that all the waitresses wear hijab. It gives you that real warm fuzzy feeling inside. Anyway, we went at iftar time. One table was packed with a bunch of college students. They had a spurt of business right around iftar. After that it cooled down. I'd suggest you get there a little before iftar if you plan on breaking your fast there. Their servings are well sized and the food's very good. We are delighted to see this open in Pasadena. Posted on November 16, 2003