Review Jiah Restaurant - Cape Town Central

I don't often take the time to write these things, but I don't often get blown away by food quality at a restaurant. Long story short, I had the dinner buffet for R150 and was treated to a comprehensive selection of meat, sausages, finger snacks, cocktail burgers, curries, breads and desserts. I hate buying ribs at a restaurant because they are always fatty and cold. Jiah's ribs were the best I have tasted in a restaurant in at least 10 years. I would go back just for the ribs in future. The cocktail burgers were lean and tasty. The curries were average to above average, with the butter chicken being quite rich and sweet which I personally enjoy. The grilled fish was possibly the best piece of fish I have ever eaten, and I do not give that title easily. It must have been caught on that day. Desserts were all rather average, with the malva pudding standing out above the rest. The brownie was excellent, but spoiled by cheap imitation cream. Overall, I was blown away by what I got for R150. Service was slow at times when we wanted more drinks, but overall a great evening. Highly, highly recommended. Especially to people who are sick of paying exorbitant prices for below average Halaal meals. 👌

Great fine dining halaal option in the middle of CT CBD. It's pretty busy so making a booking is advisable. Good range of meals from steaks, fish and gourmet burgers.

Recently celebrated a 40th bday party. Beautiful scenery from top floor. We where quite a few and needed to squeeze in but management and staff did their best to accommodate us instead of spoiling the night with some excuse that we are to Much. Food was served buffet style and everything I ate was awesome. Would go back here. Only complaint I have is the toilets weren't very clean and for me that causes the 5th star to fall. Otherwise a good night out

Halaal fine dining...friendly staff...Good food...reasonable prices

Buffet was amazing. Waiters are helpful however could be abit better. Amazing views from the deck

I absolutely loved the food at Jiah. We went mid-month without having booked a table and was seated upon arrival. We were seated in the ground floor area (by the bar) as we wanted to eat from the A La Carte menu. We were in no hurry so wasn't phased that the food didn't arrive immediately (we waited about half an hour for our food). And it was well worth the wait. I ordered the fillet and my husband had the seafood dish. It wasn't just that the food was divine, even their presentation was absolutely gorgeous. It looked like artwork on my plate. And the meat was done to perfection. And as an added bonus - we had the privilege of having the chef come to our table and just meet with us. I would recommend this place, maybe look at going mid-month or just before pay day (most places are not that busy at that time of the month). Compliments to the chef and his team, and your business thrive.

The food never disappints. Come rain or shine a customer will always be welcomed to the restaurant by the Waiters at the door. Waiters are kind and friendly. All the staff is. Even the manager. The staff is always more than eager to settle a query one has. The aura of the restaurant is pretty mellow , chilled and comfy. And the service is amazing, better than most restaurants I have ever been to. Even better than the fancy ones.

Twice i had the most amazing experience. The buffet special was top class as the variety in choice was vast. The food is delicious, the setting is cosy and the service provided by the staff is great. The price of a meal is reasonable and the surrounding views takes you away from the hussle of the city. Definitely recommended.

Food is always great, but timing is a problem... food takes a while to prepare. Staff are friendly. I highly recommend the buffet because then you don't have to wait

Really excellent if you're needing a fully halaal option. Great food. Although the service was a bit slow, the manager soon came and sorted that out.

Visited Jiah a few days ago for the first time a few days ago. The setting is beautiful and the food was great. The milkshakes are a must and I really enjoyed the calamari starter.

I really was a bit disappointed... last night we celebrated an amazing woman and all her achievements.  It was her first time and I felt a bid bad cause in the beginning when Jiah opened even I was raving about the place, but last night after being there so long ago we had the most miserable waitron under the sun.. she couldn't even look properly after our table and we were a family of twenty.... I think the place needs some freshness blown into it.. I also feel that the buffet dining needs to be upgrade and so too the waitrons (asap) .. the other thing that need immediate attention is that for a fully halaal place and when you spending some time there... please upgrade your solaah facilities.

Food was good. I had the single beef burger and my girlfriend had the king klip. Both dishes were prepared very well.<br/>Friendly staff, clean restaurant, has a smoking area.<br/>Only thing I didn't like was that the card machine was broken so cash only. I read a review of 10 days ago saying the card machine was broken then already. But overall a good place will definitely be visiting again

Went to Jiah for a friends birthday and was impressed when they contacted my friend to inform her that their card machines were not working and requested we bring cash. The food was nice but in contrast to other places it was average. The service is rather slow even though they were empty.  I ordered the rump and when it arrived, my steak was cut in half but not completely and was placed across my plate.

I have been to Jiah many times, but sadly have never taken the time to review the restaurant. All my visits have been an overall good experience, with a few unsatisfactory moments.<br/><br/>My last visit was when I booked a table for 18h30, for 2 people. When I got to the restaurant, they had reserved a table for 6. Rather too many seats than no reservation at all, I guess...<br/><br/>We sat at a table that had nothing on it - no condiments whatsoever. I'm sure if I'd asked the waiter would have brought me, but all we had was the wood of the table.<br/><br/>I ordered my food and we had been waiting for a while before the waiter came to tell me they couldn't prepare my salad because they didn't have all the ingredients. I was highly annoyed. I then ordered the calamari, and the waiter wouldn't allow me to order the combination of sides I wanted, until I told him they have to, otherwise I'd complain. He gave in and brought what I asked.<br/><br/>The food was delicious. I had the calamari and my friend had Alfredo pasta. The calamari was spicy, while the Alfredo would have been better if it had been served with chili and garlic (as restaurants typically serve pasta).<br/><br/>I fought to have onion rings as a side as well, but it wasn't worth the fight. It was tasteless. <br/><br/>Jiah used to have wet wipes (halaal certified ones!) but now they don't seem to have any anymore.<br/><br/>Our waiter, Liyabona, was such a sweetheart. He was friendly and attentive and was so cute when I asked him to bring a dessert for my friend that said "happy 30th birthday". He excitedly agreed, and winked at me while serving our food because it was our secret - adorable! Anyway my friend only caught on when the dessert arrived. <br/><br/>I really like this place and want to see them be successful. A fully halaal restaurant that has the potential to be a 5 star restaurant. Come on Jiah owners and staff, you can do it.

I really wanted to like this place so much. I feel like they have a lot to offer however they let their patrons down in small ways...<br/><br/>We took friends from Jhb out for supper and they chose this place. We were seated on the first floor. The venue is quite nice with the 3 different floors.<br/><br/>We ordered wings and crumbed mushrooms as a starter and the wings were a hit. Everyone loved them. I feel like we were cheated with the mushrooms as the mushrooms were cut in chunks rather than remaining whole as we are used to at other restaurants. At this point we also ordered milkshakes; Lindt, Ferrero and a marshmallow milkshake. The marshmallow was the winner in taste. I feel they could put more effort into the presentation of what is supposed to be gourmet milkshakes.<br/><br/>For mains my partner and I ordered the House chicken burger and the fillet in the oven. Our guests wanted pizza however their pizza ovens were not working. We waited quite long for our food. Both were let downs. We had asked the steak to be medium however it arrived well done. We could not find our waitress and also contemplated how long we were to wait should we send it back for a new one. The fillet on the burger was also overcooked and very dry. For desserts we wanted creme brule and 5 minutes later our waitress informed us they were out of stock... Hmmmm.... For a Saturday evening your pizza oven to not be working and be running out of desserts before 9pm....<br/><br/>Overall our service wasn't the best. Our waitress did not check up on us during our meal to see if we required anything and even the bill we needed to get from another waiter as we could not find her.<br/><br/>Not sure if I'd be in a hurry to return.... Maybe just for that marshmallow milkshake...

After visiting Jiah on two occasions, my first visit was lunch, and we were a group of 6 who ordered off the menu. The food took a while to arrive, after much anticipation, the food looked delicious, but had mix reviews from the group. The ribs were a bit tough. The milkshakes are great and atmosphere cosy and pleasent. The pricing is reasonable. <br/>The second occasion I went for there buffet menu, the variety is limited compared to other halaal buffet restaurants, but most of the dishes served are tasty. You are also required to pay your 10% tip when paying for the buffet before you are sitted, this is a bit off putting because its not guaranteed that you are going receive a good service. <br/>Overall I would recommend their desserts and milkshakes, but food mixed reviews.

Everything was a disaster. Went there to celebrate a birthday we were a group of 21 one thing is certain is they don’t know how to handle big groups. We got there at 8pm ordered at about 8:15pm received drinks at 10:30pm and food at 11:15pm I would understand if we waited an hour for our food but 3!!! That’s ridiculous!!! When we got our food it was terrible ordered a medium steak got a piece of paper thin meat burnt to a crisp sent it back then got something that was still alive and going “Moo” on my plate. Their jiah signature dish which the waiters said was a crayfish tail sandwiched between two pieces of kingklip top with prawns on a bed of rice was missing the crayfish hmm. I will not recommend ever going their it’s a waste of time and money. Staff are playful and friends but immediately go into panic mode and unable to resolve simple issue when they arise.

Chose the buffet. The first serving of fish was very dry. The food was very average. The calamari was very soft and fresh. We had to wait for the buffet to be ready although it was lunch time. No soap or fresh towels in the restroom. Dissapointed.

I was really rooting for this place. Had heard not so good things about it, but wanted to try it out for myself. Making a reservation via email was really easy, with confirmation received within less than 30 mins. When we arrived we were ushered to our table on the ground floor. The decor is disappointing. Not sure what the 3rd floor looks like ( I believe that is where they serve their buffet - we opted to order from the menu). The our dinner table itself looked like it had barely survived a previous life in a pub from the rough part of town. We ordered drinks, for which I opted for pineapple juice, only to be told 10mins later that they did not have stock (the bar was literally 4m's away from our table, so unsure as to why it took them that long to deliver the news to me). My dining partner ordered a coffee which was presented in miss matched crockery. Ok so onto our starter, which we decided would be a garlic chita. It had arrived rather quickly from ordering, but it was disappointing. The dough was very chewy and heavy - we left 3/4 on the plate. Mains were disappointing as well. We both had ordered the fillet (medium) but what we received was over cooked and dry. My mushroom sauce resembled that which comes from a packet. The basmati rice and onion rings were ok. Communicating with the waiter was not the greatest, although I did get the sense that the training he received was very basic. The place has potential, with more attention to detail will make a huge difference, fine dining they are not. Table linen was non existent, but would forgive them if it was removed due to our current water restrictions. <br/><br/>I enjoy food, and with an already limited number of Halaal restaurants around, I really wanted Jiah to wow me. Sadly no and unfortunately I will not be back.

I think 1 is a generous rating. What a horrible experience. Ordered the stuffed chicken which I was told would take around 30minutes to make. The food arrived after 70 minutes. The chicken was very dry and hard on the outside. My husband's burger was cold, we sent it back and it tasted like it had just been microwaved. The crumbed mushroom starter was tasteless. The pecan nuts in the banana split tasted old. The only thing that was nice was the creme brulee. Will never be going back here...<br/>

Went for the buffet on a weekday, food was a bit cold when we got there BUT they bought out hot ribs and that was splendid! <br/>Dessert is also a must, Malva pudding was divine! And their milkshakes are too die for! Definitely getting your money's worth with that.<br/>Buffet price is reasonable for the food you get, recommend you go on the weekends though.

Two drinks available on the Smoothies "selection. Ran out of 200g steak at 7:00 pm . The food arrived cold the "Pepper sauce" was milk and flour not even a hint of pepper. Terrible experience. I guess and stop me if I'm wrong Halal restaurants try to do to much a million things on the Menu. Want to be a Steakhouse be that , want to be a Seafood place be that.I would say do Steakhouse /burger house because there are very few Fully Halal ones around there are a Million Seafood places, this is Cape Town after all. But whatever you decide to do make sure your food is good and service is even better.

Went for the R99 mini buffet, cute but not much variety. Also, if your kids are not having the R99 buffet option, they might not be allowed to sit on the second floor with you, it has to be passed by the manager. There are also no other meals for kids to have, everything is gourmet and too crazy (if your kids like things plain). Nonetheless, the spicy calamari was the only dish I really enjoyed but couldn't have too much of. The other dishes were extremely average and I don't know why people go for the buffet - maybe it was because we went during the week, who knows? (We all kept reminiscing about how lovey Kaprino's in Green Point was back in the day)<br/>The chicken burger and mojito was good, not spectacular, but better than the rest. The juice my mom ordered tasted like the very cheap PnP juice you get in 5 litre bottles. Oh and they charge you 10% of the bill too.<br/>Besides a very few things that were considered okay, they don't have anything to boast about.<br/><br/>

I decided to do my first review about JIAH Restaurant. Ever since they've opened I always wanted to try it for myself despite seeing quite a few bad reviews/ratings. My husband took me there for my birthday. He made a booking for the Saturday evening at 6. First impressions, it was very quiet despite it being a Saturday evening. We were seated upstairs. Decor for me wasn't up to par..there was no uniformity. Some chairs plastic, some seating were couches, some wooden chairs. They need to do something concerning decor. Then our waitress, she looked lazy, never smiled..basically wasn't very welcoming. I ordered the rib eye steak with fries and roast veggies..overall I would say the meal was delicious although my steak was a bit too pink...the veggies needed some more flavoring though. My husband had the ribs with the mashed butternut and fries. The butternut was delicious, it had a lovely cinnamon flavour. The ribs I tried as well. That was very lovely and my husband thoroughly enjoyed it..had a sweet smokey flavour. The fries were pretty good as well. We had a good experience for the most part where food was concerned. They just need to do something concerning the atmosphere, playing old school hits all the time needs to change as well. Doesn't really suit the look they are going for. Hopefully next time we go back we will have a more attentive and friendly waiter as well 😊

I attended Jiah for a friend's birthday. The decor is nice and cosy and it is very formal style. Because we were a group of friends we waited quite long for our food. The birthday girl and I decided to share so I ordered a burger and she ordered a pizza and we shared. Their pizzas are reeeeeeeal good. I would definitely go back for their pizzas that's for sure. 🍕😍. The burger was good too, nothing to complain about. The fries were not crispy, they were more like "slup chips" which I love btw. But if you into crispy fries I do not recommend ordering their fries. Their onion rings I felt that it was bland. And I have tasted better onion rings. The mocktail I ordered was beautiful. I really enjoyed it. It was a Cosmo crush and I would recommend that too 🍸. The other girls at the table had many complaints about their dishes. However I was happy with mine. I feel like they are pricy too. But it depends on what you ordering.

Now i have heard some bad review about this restaurant but I just needed to find out for myself. We tried the buffet as they had a special.<br/>Now to say that this is a fine dining restaurant is very far from true. <br/>This is my problem with this restaurant. All your problems are definitely salvageable.<br/>Your food isnt bad. But you guys need to pay attention to detail.<br/>Decor definitely doesnt say fine dining oh come one the paper serviettes gave it away<br/> <br/>The buffet had soup which wasnt bad<br/>My wife had curry but was cold. She says it was tasty but cold. Now why cold? Unnecessary. Silly mistakes. Attention to detail.<br/>Sausage and ribs delicious<br/>Chicken although overcooked ( well shouldnt expect more better as it is a buffet) wasnt bad.<br/>Calamari cold and over battered just like a chunk of mess<br/>Fish delicious<br/>Your dessert a waste . Rather dont serve it. It takes away 4 points out of 10<br/>Is this place gona follow in kaprinos footsteps. YES<br/>This is why<br/>1. Cold food<br/>2. Playful waiters <br/>3. Management ( who can fix 1. And 2)<br/>What a waste. <br/>Pity<br/>Also get a barrister who can make a proper cappuccino. They make coffee beans taste like ricoffy. Nope even ricoffy better. <br/>I wont come back. And that is why people rather go to halal friendly restaurants and not strictly halal. We want to support you, but you end up disrespecting us .

We arrived at 7:30, our table for 6 was upstairs in a very crowded area. This area was crammed with as many tables as possible. We placed our orders and then began the wait. The table of 4 behind us came after we placed our order and received and finished their food before we received ours. After asking to speak to the manager(s) a few times eventually my wife's meal came 90min to 2 hours after ordering. She had completed her meal before her sides came and before the rest of us received our food. 2 more meals came, and a bit later the rest. Everything was cold. We were quite upset about the whole experience, and the manager did apologise and offer free desserts, buy only 1 person took up the offer. The rest of us just wanted to leave. The bill came and they had the audacity to still add in gratuity, we refused to pay it due to the shocking service and cold food. On a positive note, even though the food was cold, and some of the steak portions were overcooked and tiny most of the other meals were quite tasty and well presented.

Been wanting to try Jiah out for a while, proceeded to make a reservation for our Sunday lunch (about 10 people). Food and service was really good. Did I say the food was really good? Will definitely try the ribs next time..

Worst dining experience of my life! Let's start there.<br/>Having a table booked for 7pm we promptly ordered our meals. Waiting for 2 hours and 30 minutes to wait for a meal is ridiculously long, whether it be a 'fine' dining or not. Having to wait that long is no excuse. The manager had the ordasity to say that good door takes time. A table with more people seated next to us ordered after my table and got there good almost immediately. I do not recommended this pathetic institution to anybody. Considering what you are paying that is what is least expected.

Not impressed. Not fine dining. Staff was not clued up with the menu. <br/>Deletes negative comments from social media. <br/>I asked to get a call from a manager but I'm still waiting. <br/>

We had the burger, kingklip, fillet steak and chicken curry (makhni).<br/><br/>All the mains were good with the steak and the makhni being the standout dishes.<br/><br/>Marvin, our waiter was awesome - friendly, attentive, great smile. <br/><br/>The only let down was the mash potatoes which were lumpy and cold. Again Marvin stepped up and quickly replaced it with yummy fries.

We arrived 5 mins early for our reservation. We were the second people, in an otherwise empty floor of the restaurant, for the buffet. This was Mothers Day so you'd expect a restaurant to be ready for the rush. The buffet wasn't ready - it wouldn't be ready for the next 55 minutes. Upon our arrival, no one came to us with a drinks menu or to take our drinks order. My brother had to go ask for someone to take our drinks order, so we were sent a waiter...without any menu. We had to ask him to go fetch a drinks menu. Our drinks got to our table 45 minutes after we arrived....JUST the drinks. 55 minutes later than the time we were told....the food was finally ready for all the guests. The food was barely average, drinks were average. What wasn't average was the attitude of the wait staff. They didn't see if anyone had dirty plates. Guests had to go to a waiter to hand them their plates. I put my plate on the floor nearby since there was no one to take it. Then after lunch dessert was served. With no dessert bowls. I had Malva pudding and custard in a plate. A normal big plate. This restaurant fully ruined Mothers Day for my mom. Thank you Jiah!

Seen many bad reviews and made me a bit hesitant about the place but I must say i enjoyed every moment. The waiter was absolutely kind, kept asking if we're okay, made sure everything was perfect. The food was amazing, couldn't finish it all. Dessert even better. <br/><br/>I just think the overall seating is a bit cramped. But other than that, I had an excellent first time!

I visited this restaurant a week after it opened and I was quite pleased with the look and feel of it.<br/><br/>The food was pretty good too.<br/><br/>I ordered the Teppanyaki starter. I'm a sucker for stuffed calamari tubes. It was really tasty!<br/><br/>For the main, I ordered the Chicken Makhni, which was SO good. And it was one generous portion.<br/><br/>The negative about the place is when telling the waiter I'd like to take the rest away. I probably ate less than half. He didn't seem to understand English properly as he had the kitchen throw the rest of the food away. <br/><br/>I'd prefer the restaurant to be a place you don't only have to make a reservation at and that you can just pop in as well. <br/><br/>Fully Halaal ✔️

Subpar food in my opinion. Meat was overcooked. Seats are closely packed together. Their catering isn't bad though. I'd say better than other halal caterers but their restaurant leaves a lot to be desired. <br/><br/>

You guys really need to work on your service, I am disgusted that I had to even pay a cent based on the service. Your waiters have the approach that any customer that complains is complaining because they want free food, or is this how they are trained?<br/><br/>We had a terrible experience at Jiah, honestly I am not one to post negative reviews, but what pissed me off, after our bad experience, we asked for the manager and there was NO MANAGER on duty! <br/><br/>How do you run a restaurant on a Friday evening with no manager??? <br/>

Definitely not a place I'd return to... a 45 min wait for food, only to find a long strand of STEELWOOL in a burger( I can't fathom how that's possible), followed by rats strolling across the restaurant floor, twice!

Ate at Jiah yesterday for the first time and must say I was impressed! We made a reservation when we got there our table was ready, despite the restaurant being really busy our waiter named Leeyah (male) was excellent, we ordered the crumb mushrooms for starters which was delicious and my husband had the beef burger I had the house chicken burger. Everything about the dinning experience was fantastic! Our waiter never messed up our order and the food didn't take that long to come either. Our waiter was fast and efficient. The milkshakes are nice as well. Definitely returning to this restaurant. Can't fault it whatsoever.

Good day,<br/><br/>I reserved a table for a very auspicious occasion.<br/>We were greeted nicely upon arrival, however, our waiter got our order wrong SIX TIMES. He kept coming back to ask us over and over again. On top of it, he gave us the wrong meal after countless reassurance. He then charged us for things that we had not even ordered. Very disappointing.

Delicious food and good service - overall very good place to be especially since it's Halaal! I think the only thing to improve on is the lighting and maybe the music

Another excellent lunch at JIAH. <br/><br/>I've been to JIAH a few times with my girlfriend and we've loved it each and every time, today included.<br/><br/>The service was amazing (thanks to Liyabona)! He felt like an old friend, warm and friendly. Drinks and food were on time which was lovely.<br/><br/>I had the lamb korma with extra roti (I always feel the need to double starch - my girlfriend hates it but what ever). My girlfriend had the fillet and it was perfection, it was medium rare (finally a halal restaurant that knows what how to actually cook her steak!). <br/><br/>My girlfriend's sister had the Camembert burger. It was extremely saucy and unpleasant. We asked the waiter to change it and the chef was only happy to make our lunch experience a great one and made a fresh burger with the sauce on the side this time. She said the burger tasted miles better and we carried on with our meal. <br/><br/>When we were done paying we asked about all the bad reviews that were coming out and why we were seemingly the only ones to have anything nice to say about the restaurant. The waiter said that when people book, they usually come in big groups and smaller tables have to wait for the bigger orders to come out first. They're still relatively new and ironing out a few hiccups. If you really want a JIAH experience like ours, go at a quiet time, it's worth it.

I've been to JIAH 3 or 4 times and I am yet to be disappointed by them. The service is a bit slow but they make up for it with the food. It's so delicious and definitely value for money! Their fillet was cooked to perfection and all of our food came at the same time which was lovely. 🌸🌸🌸

It's very unfortunate that one of the very few so-called 'high-end' halaal restaurants are not so high-end. <br/><br/>Everything about this restaurant was off-putting except maybe the little bit of okay decor that they had. <br/><br/>Upon arrival, we asked for a outside table and requested an ashtray but we were then told to just ash on the floor 'because they clean it up anyway' <br/><br/>Our waiter was absent and when she was present, she was absent-minded. Messed up our bill and had a very nonchalant approach. <br/><br/>I had a chicken pasta which looked extremely appetizing but was indeed the contrary. It lacked seasoning and the sauce in my dish seemed to be elsewhere. So much so that I had to request more sauce and drowned my food in salt and pepper simply because it was just inedible. <br/><br/>For such steep prices, bad food quality and terrible service, I doubt I'll be visiting anytime soon.

We've been wanting to try out this restaurant for a while now but the reviews concerned us mainly because they complained about poor service but we thought we'd try it out to make our own judgment and have our own experience.<br/>Sadly to say, the reviews about the service was right. The waiter got my sisters drink wrong and overall there was quite a wait for our food to arrive. When it did arrive we were all pleased with them as they were tasty and that made it value for money not because of portion size but quality.<br/>The ambiance was a bit loud inside since the restaurant started filling up for lunch so next time I would possibly book for the outside only if it's nice weather. <br/>Overall the experience wasn't too bad so would possibly go again.

My first time with a group of friends and I must say, I was not really impressed. The food took really long to come, my burger was cold. The virgin Mojito was really nice though (refreshing). Some of my friends ordered the steak and their portions were quite small. I felt really sorry for our waiter because he kept running back and forth. Nothing blew my mind (for the prices I assumed something would). Perhaps I'll go again just to see if things are better but not anytime soon. The presentation was nice.

We booked for a table of 12, as we were having a farewell for a colleague. <br/><br/>Upon arrival the restaurant was empty for lunch and we could really actually sit anywhere. <br/><br/>We all ordered our drinks, they are strictly halaal so you won't find anything alcoholic on their menu. <br/><br/>They do however have amazing mocktails, only downside is that they make it right there so the blender is quite noisy when you are trying to have a conversation and when they're churning out 12 icy drinks. <br/><br/>The food was lovely, we all ordered our own meals and shared amongst one another. <br/><br/>The rump steak was done to perfection, the creamy spinach and the mash was exactly that - creamy, fluffy, yummy! <br/><br/>The calamari was nice, but would not suggest this for someone that's very hungry. <br/><br/>Service could improve, and the aircon too. Other than this it was the perfect dining experience! <br/><br/>The service could improve

I was very disappointed with our experience overall. We waited forever to be served. I had to get up to ask the waitress to clean the tables. There was no consistency e.g. my cousin had 6 onion rings, I had 5 and my brother only 4 in our respective plates. The lighting was not great and it was quite hot as the restaurant was full. The seating plan was quite cramped. I had the kingklip which was ok. Everyone who ordered meat, had their meat done medium instead of their request (e.g. medium- well.or well done). My brother had the lamb chops, which was horrible, he never ate it. Food had too much salt in general. My sisters passion fruit came with no ice and the glass was dirty. We had too little cutlery and again had to wait for service. Half of us were finish eating while the others watched and waited for their food. At the end of our meal, we decided to just request the bill and go home for coffee. I do think if there were professional waiters and suggestion to maybe move layout around they would be decent. I wouldn't go back but go try it out, they might improve with time....

I decided to take my family for late Saturday lunch. What a lovely experience. The food was excellent. The service was phenomenal. Thank You Jiah.

It took me a long time to write this review because I was so utterly disappointed by our experience at Jiah.<br/><br/>We were looking forward to celebrating 2 of our group of 8's birthday there on Saturday night. It was a horribly windy night and when we arrived with our reservation they told us we would be seated in the covered area outside. Only when we arrived did they start setting up seating area. The tented area is lit by only one little light in the corner and wind was getting in at all the corners. There was no table decor such as a candle to try to provide a little light and nothing to provide heat(heater or blanket). It lacked ambience. We considered leaving as it was quite chilly but we decided we would try it out because halaal dining options are so limited and we really hoped the food would be good.<br/><br/>We placed drink orders and the waiter kept on forgetting some of our orders. Two of the group only received drinks midway through the meal (orders were made on arrival). The waiter placed the drinks in the middle of the table instead of giving it to the person who ordered ( this is supposed to be an upmarket restaurant).<br/><br/>The menu itself is a flimsy piece of paper and some of them were sticky or covered in grease. We placed our orders and waited. After about 40 minutes we enquirer to find out if there was a problem with the food as we were waiting a while and received no communication. We received our food well after an hour, still with no communication. <br/><br/>The fillet sizes were small and one of our group ordered medium fillet with a side of mushroom sauce. They received a very rare steak with pepper sauce. After sending it back, the fillet was still cooked unevenly and parts were still rare. My lamb korma was nothing special. The crumbed mushrooms were generous but completely under seasoned. The steak tagliatelle was too salty. The masala kingklip was decent. <br/><br/>Overall the experience was not a good one, especially not for a new establishment. Good service and communication is essential. I really hope they improve in future.

Okay, the good part: you can book via email and response is fast. It's 100% halal (yay) and the food is really tasty. I had the chicken burger which has grilled Camembert and avo, I found the size of it decent for the price.<br/>The bad: slooooooooowwww service. Drinks took a while to arrive.Everyone got their food at different times and my father in law got his half chicken last, only to send it back because it wasn't cooked properly. He had to eat alone. They really need to up their service game. Prices are a bit high for small portions in certain dishes - the avocado ritz starter had 2 prawns and one slice of avo, barely a ritz. The seafood is also overpriced, you're better off going to ocean basket for that.

We went to Jiah on Christmas for my mom's birthday. When we made a reservation a few days prior, we were told that a Christmas set menu would be served. However, on the day we were just given the a la carte menu to decide from which was a bit disappointing. The waiting period for everything - getting a waitron's attention, ordering, food being served - was way too long, despite the fact that the restaurant wasn't exceptionally busy. <br/>I ordered the "Seafood Solo" - queen prawns, grilled calamari, hake, with savoury rice and mash (my two choices of sides). It was absolutely delicious and cooked to perfection. <br/>My mom ordered the rack of beef ribs (500g) with chips and onion rings. The portion of onion rings served was tiny compared to the size of the other side options. The rib meat was tender and the basting sauce was tasty.<br/>My brother ordered the house chicken burger which was tasty and filling. <br/>My dad ordered the chicken makhni... Big mistake. The chicken curry itself was sickly sweet and there was no warning of this in the description. It was unenjoyable and we'd definitely never order that again. <br/>The desserts we ordered (chocolate brownie and banana split) were presented beautifully but tasted quite average. <br/>Overall, I'd go back for the generally tasty food but not make the same mistake of ordering curry here again. Tables are a little cramped and parking is limited.

While the food was good, the service was dissappointingly poor. We were a large group and the waiters had no system of really identifying which of us ordered what dish: as such, some of us received dishes that we did not order i.e. I ordered a bbq T-bone steak but had to settle for a garlic T-bone steak as I wasn't prepared to wait another hour for my steak.<br/><br/>The meals took long to arrive and some of us only received our meals when others were finished with theirs.<br/><br/>The noise level was very distracting. Every time the blender was used, I would cringe. Perhaps they should take the preparation of the milkshakes and such to the kitchen.<br/><br/>I'd recommend opting for a seat outside if you're visiting in summer as it gets quite stuffy inside.<br/><br/>Overall, a restaurant with good potential. Waiters should draw the table on their notepad and allocate each patron with a number and then reference each order to the number so as to avoid confusion.<br/><br/>There should be less tables inside so as to create a more spacious environment.<br/><br/>Another air conditioner should be installed to alleviate the stuffiness.<br/>

I'll start with the positives: good location, main meals were fairly decent and their prices aren't too bad... but there were so many negatives: bad service, long waiting time for simple things like a glass or a can of coke, mocktails were too sweet, staff and management aren't very accommodating to their diners preferences or requests. This was definitely one of those "been there, done that and I'll never go back" situations.

Finding new halaal places in Cape Town is always good. I always have my fingers crossed that they will break the stereotype of 'they are all the same'.<br/><br/>What I find so ironic about the location of this fully halaal resturant is that it shares a building with a lingerie and sex toy shop, The Bedroom. You are literally greeted with two scantily dressed mannequins above the door as you walk into the resturant. <br/><br/>Anyway, to be honest I wasn't blow away by the food or service. I found the service quite slow and we literally had to call our waiter every time.<br/><br/>The resturant was out of lime cordial which meant I couldn't order my drink, and then when I did order something else it landed up coming when our table was empty and my meal was finished.<br/><br/>For mains, I ordered the fillet steak which came with two sides. I opted for peppercorn sauce and the mac n cheese. The steak and sauce was good, but I did feel that the steak was really small. My mac n cheese was however a real disappointment. Mac n cheese, one of the simplest things on this earth to make, and they got it wrong. The chef didn't cook out the flour enough when making the white sauce so it tasted very chalky and floury. <br/><br/>We also ordered the beef burger and chips. While the burger and the presentation was good, the chips had a horrible stench to it which is normally the case when they are frozen chips. <br/><br/>Overall it was just an okay experience.

This is not the place to go if you are a biggish group. Service slow and in spite of booking and confirming where we wanted to be seated, this was not met. No one comes around to check whether things are to your satisfaction. Food was served within half hour for some and one hour for our other guests. The pasta was off. Dessert was ordered and arrived in stages with some of our guests leaving whilst others waited more than an hour for their Dessert to arrive. The waiter was very pleasant but did not make up for sluggish service. Noise level high so difficult to have conversation. Lighting poor making it difficult to read the menu and every now and then they would <br/>plug in a bright lite for someone to read their menu. Overall a stressful eveing.

Wow. What a great dining experience. The food was amazing. We didn't wait long and waiters were friendly and helpful. An absolute must try and gem in a place where there are few fine dining restaurants that are fully halaal.

Where do I start...<br/><br/>The Good - I had very good customer service it's also good to note that I am very critical of this.<br/><br/>Atmosphere was good I found inside to be quite compact and there the outside setting is ideal for warm summer nights. The city gives it that extra chic feeling. <br/><br/>The Bad - inside gets quite busy and it's small but could be seen as cost.<br/><br/>The ugly - nothing really I love the Main reception Door.<br/><br/>The Food - portions are well balanced and tasty the sides have good variety and I especially would recommend a side of cheese and Mac. <br/><br/>Overall as an Halaal eatery it's definitely worth a visit with reasonable prices and really good mocktails and gourmet shakes. <br/><br/>Recommendation - Ribs with a side of cheese and Mac and fries. <br/><br/>Faseeg

my wife and i went there for supper. we sat outside and it was really nice for summer evenings it is enclosed so winter evenings wont be a problem .The waiter was very friendly and helpful.the waiting time was a little longer then usual but the food was excellent the chef really knows what he is doing.if you looking for a fullly halaal venue that is close to fine dining this a venue we have been waiting for in cape town.

Tried out Jiah for the first time and firstly we needed a place like this that is chic, halal and trendy to anyone. The concept is beautiful and the food is absolutely amazing. From starter to desert we couldn't say anything. <br/><br/>Our waitress Fortuna (I think) was brilliant, friendly and professional just the way I like it. <br/><br/>Things to work on... it does get quite noisy inside and tables are close to one another so often don't feel the intimacy you want. <br/><br/>To those going I do ask you to just be weary of the people around you, we had a group that was making ALOT of noise this evening and it can be disruptive so if you looking for a place to be loud and crazy please don't do it at Jiah, this place setting is peaceful and people come here to have a relaxed dinner. <br/><br/>Wishing the Jiah team a prospers journey in your business. Well done on the opening!!

Pretty chic Halal spot but it doesn't make up for the lack of  good service and professionalism. We were quite disappointed with a tasteless frappe. I had the rump steak with tempura onions and fries which was definitely not value for money while my friend ordered a chicken house burger which was good but not wow at all.<br/><br/>Way too noisy at the Coffee bar as i could hardly have a decent conversation with my friend<br/><br/>Definitely expected way more.

I have 3 things to say about this new establishment.<br/><br/>Service is not so great. Could definitely be better, although I think it's because it's brand new. The staff are not well trained (could barely operate the card machine ). Food was quite slow and the restaurant wasn't even close to being full. We waited like 45mins for food. <br/><br/>The decor is okay. The space itself is small and gets a bit claustrophobic but it somewhat has a nice atmosphere. The desert bar staff are very noisy, all the clunks of the spoons, the coffee machine; all of this made speaking my friends at the table very difficult. <br/><br/>In spite of all of this, the food was simply amazing. We thoroughly enjoyed the food. <br/>We ordered the chicken which was succulent and was served with the best Mac and cheese ever. <br/>We also ordered the 500g ribs. It was so tender it fell of the bone. Probably in my top 3. The prices seem reasonable especially for the quality of food you get.<br/>The presentation of the food was rustic and well presented. The meal did lack a "complete" feeling. I think this is due to the side dishes being served seperate ( side dish portions Are small).<br/><br/>My overall visit was a good visit. I would definitely go back.