Rumi Kitchen - Oakland

Excellent food, friendly staff, and reasonable prices at this takeout oriented Persian restaurant inside a gas station. Go for the lamb shank, you will not be disappointed!

I was having a bad day. Car broke down in the middle of the street, and I took it to the repair shop next door. I wandered into Rumi Kitchen just to check out the menu, and the two men running it were so nice to me. They gifted me a complimentary rice pudding, and it was SO GOOD. They called me their guest. They didn't even know my car broke down! They definitely made my day. : I'll be definitely coming back! Btw don't be perturbed by the fact that since it's in a gas station. It's very clean and the food is restaurant quality.

This place is easily overlooked, but you should def give it a try. I tried the beef Chapli kabob, bata banjan eggplant , and the turnip dish. The beef patties are BIG, juicy and well seasoned. Do, do use the chatni. It goes well with a nice bit of spice to it. The patties sit on a bed of rice which gets all the beef juices dripping down and flavoring the rice even more. The turnip dish was tasty and had a few pieces of beef mixed in. The eggplant was also good. The sticky rice is a little different than I am used to, but paired well with the eggplant. All the dishes came with a small salad with yogurt sauce and chatni. Use them both. Also had a couple sweets. The corn cake is a little dry compared to others, but a little syrup or milk works well. Also got to try the milk rice pudding. They use a lot of rose water in this one, but its not overly sweet and is refreshing.

Don't let the shabby appearance of this place fool you; it's actually fantastic. I ordered a round platter that featured circular discs accompanied by a swirl of paprika over spiced rice, along with byhalate, a thick flatbread that I passed on, but there was also a yogurt-based sauce and a spicy green sauce. All of this was just 12, even though the menu indicated 15. Great value and incredibly tasty!

I stopped by this place while looking for gas prices and noticed a sign in the window, so I decided to give it a try. It was a Sunday, and while the kitchen was closed, they still prepared some takeout options. The food was fantastic, with wonderful aromas filling the air. My order was ready in just 20 minutes. I highly recommend not judging it by its exterior and giving it a chance!