Yuan Zheng

Ordered lentil soup, flatbread, dumplings and lamb. The food is well-seasoned and unique. I like the leek dumplings the most. The apricot chicken flatbread is a little bit too sweet for my taste but the bread crust is perfect.

T L

Delicious food but portions on the small side. Makes up for it by tasting amazing! Service was exceptional.

Jake Byman

We had a lovely meal at Laili – the food was quite good, but the service was excellent, and very friendly. The lamb was good, as were the dumplings. While it may not be mindblowingly amazing, it was a very pleasant meal experience and I see why this place is so well-renowned!

Keith Dilliplane

Love this place. It's my go-to romantic place to go for dinner. They have a phenomenal wine selection, good food, AND (if you're also from Maryland and excited about this) Flying Dog...! The traditional menu is great and dependable, but also impressed with their Valentine's Day Special Menu. Also, Tallulah is a babe

Rachael Sylvester

We had an awesome dinner at Laili. Ordered the Mediterranean plate, butternut squash bolani, anar chicken, lamb shank, and pomegranate sorbet. All of it was outstanding, and they make everything in-house. You could tell - things like the hummus and naan were standouts. They handled allergies (milk, tree nuts) incredibly well and even brought out a menu with all allergens. We will be back.

+2

Cindy LAM

The five stars of the service goes to the Manager Xander. He asked about our experiences when we're paying the bill. I told him the pasta was too salty to finish. Actually we didn't expect anything but only want him to know about it, though our server never asks. Glad that Xander followed up with the issue and we really appreciate it.

Monica Ifland

We had a reservation but they were very busy and very apologetic to seat us late. We brought out of town guests because we know this place is special. I was really embarrassed that it took a full 15 min after being seated to get water or ask for our order. Again, staff was apologetic. Then the naan came out undercooked. A blob of flat dough with really great dipping sauce. Our meals were really tasty and generous portions. We sat outside on the patio which is lovely. You could be in Italy. And it’s off the street, very quaint and protected from wind and fog. Heated with heat lamps. I think we were there on a tough night for staff. We for sure will return again.

ashish aleti

Laila Restaurant in Santa Cruz is a hidden gem that offers a delightful dining experience. We recently visited and were impressed by the quality and flavor of the dishes. We started with the lamb soup, which was delicious and hearty, served in a generous portion that was just right – not too heavy, not too light. The lamb pasta was exceptional, featuring fresh in-house fettuccine and a perfect tomato cream sauce that left us wanting more. The leek dumplings were another highlight – crazy good with a small portion size that was just perfect. The lamb kebabs came with delicious roasted vegetables on the side and flavorful rice. Although the lamb felt a little overdone, the overall dish was still quite enjoyable. We ended our meal with the pistachio cardamom ice cream, which was excellent – packed with tons of pistachios and very delicious. The service at Laila was great; the staff was friendly and attentive, making our experience even better. One downside is the parking, which is hard to find on the street. However, the great service and fantastic dishes more than made up for it. Laila Restaurant is truly a gem in Santa Cruz, and we highly recommend it for anyone looking for a memorable dining experience.

+6

Spencer N

Amazing. The Mediterranean plate is incredible. This appetizer alone can fill two people. The ice tea had the most flavor in tea I’ve ever had. I would recommend the pesto pasta the olives compliment the pasta perfectly. You also can’t go wrong with the lamb wrap. I’m sure I would have enjoyed it more if I could’ve controlled myself from eating two naans with the Mediterranean plate.

Deep Rastogi

Good food, good service, decent vegetarian selection. We arrived at lunch time, around 12:30 pm. There were very few people sitting indoors. I didn't check how many people were sitting outside. Google traffic pattern shows it is far busier at dinner time than lunch. The waiter recommended all the high priced items as being really good, and we just went with the recommendations, and it worked out well. We had a lemon soda non alcoholic drink which was very good. They brought a complimentary naan bread with olive oil and herbs which was also good. Saffron Chicken Sandwich and cauliflower soups were also good. Pear gorgonzola flat bread was good, but the flavors could be balanced better. The cheese was very salty. To balance that, usually the pear is sweetened more, but it was just normal. So the dish overall has a lot more saltiness to it. The microgreens on it were also very less, I'm used to seeing a lot more at other places. We took the cardamon creme brulee to-go. They don't have a good way of packing it. Though it didn't spill out leak, it didn't look very presentable at home. The cardamon flavor could barely be detected, but the creme brulee itself was very good. Overall, we liked the food and service and will visit again.

Sanchita Sheth

The food was delicious. I enjoyed the lamb burger. They also served us a complimentary pita with a dip. Very good service. I would recommend reserving a table if you visit on a weekend.

+3

kathy

really enjoyed the beef kabob platter. pistachio ice cream is good. the salad was dry and could have used some oil, etc.

sholeh ja

The service was the best part of this whole experience. Food was mediocre and too small in portions for what they charge. Kabobs were very small and dry. Salad was dry and old lettuce was included. The bread came with a dish of oil which wasn’t even seasoned enough with herbs or garlic. Atmosphere, we sat inside and it looked old and dark.

came here on valentine’s day. made the reservation 2 months in advance and we were seated at the furthest possible table were we could smell the dishwash the entire time. not sure why they would place a table right there. we ordered appetizers but were so disappointed we ended up leaving and not ordering our entrees. we got the cilantro caesar salad and the egg plant flatbread. it was definitely very okay. tasted homemade in a not good way. it was marketed as mediterranean food but it had an indian taste to it. i love indian food but i go to indian spots for indian food, not Mediterranean restaurants. very confused how this restaurant was full