Habibi & Hawara developed out of the thought to bring people together. ‘Habibi’ means ‘my love’ in Arabic, while ‘Hawara’ is a deep Viennese expression and means ‘friend’. Just don’t come to Vienna though and call anyone your ‘Hawara’, I’ve never used that word in my life. Deriving from the name you can already imagine the menu of the restaurant. It’s the best of both worlds, a fusion of Middle Eastern and Austrian food. The restaurant has a huge terrace which weaves its way around one side of the building as well.
terrace @Habibi & Hawara
Even though the terrace is surrounded by buildings, the square is large enough for the air to circulate so that it wasn’t too hot on this summer evening. The friendly waiter provided us with sufficient water to not get parched, which was necessary after all. Despite the warmth my friend ordered one of the main dishes an okra eggplant stew with rice, while another friend and I shared the cold starter plate.
The okra eggplant stew was a really big portion and half of it got taken home in a doggy bag. It looked delicious and my friend was happy the texture of the okra. Perfectly cooked, not a trace of slime in sight. Unfortunately tastewise there was room for improvement. It lacked seasoning and was therefore rather bland. Even a big portion can’t help with that.
okra eggplant stew @Habibi & Hawara
The starter plate looked yummy and included hummus, Tabouleh, Muhammara, Baba Ghanoush, Toum, and two kinds of pita bread. Except for Toum I knew all of the spreads as well as the salad, and had eaten them somewhere else already. Toum didn’t really taste of garlic, not that I minded that, I thought it was a boring Labneh without any topping. Everything else, except the hummus, tasted differently from how I knew it and not in a good way.
starter plate @Habibi & Hawara
The Muhammara was too thick and I missed the distinct pomegranate flavor while Baba Ghanoush lacked any smoky aroma and reminded me more of mayonnaise. The hummus was okay, but the Tabouleh wasn’t my favorite. My friend liked it though, to me it just didn’t taste fresh. At least the fried pita had its distinct crunch and a fried flavor.
Which was really too bad, because I liked the location and wanted to support the overall concept of helping migrants to find their place in our society. The food was just boring though, especially when you know how much better Middle Eastern dishes usually taste. One would think that the few dishes of the menu are spot on, unfortunately not so though. Anyway, I will def be back for drinks when I am in the area. Service was very friendly and it’s a quiet spot to meet friends. Yours, Pollybert
Habibi & Hawara
1030 Wien, Platz der sozialen Sicherheit
Tel: +43 1 7108727
Email: office@habibi.at
Tue-Fri: 11:30-22:00, Sat: 10:00-22:00, Sun: 10:00-15:00
https://habibi.at/
