My favorites... (for 2 shared)

Shepherd Salad with cheese- small

single Kebab combo- 2 kebabs OR Family Combo Platter

KAZANDIBI- Do not miss this!!!
"A heavenly caramelized milk custard"

I finally got a chance to try it out last night, Sunday.

I like the place very much. The food was top notch. We had kebabs - lamb beyti for me and beef for my friend. The lamb beyti was full of exotic Turkish flavors that went well together. I thought the beef was a little tough, but still very good.

However, the price point is a little high for what it is. I'm not sure they even figured out what they want to be, upscale or an affordable family place or a delivery place.

While the service was okay, it was nothing more. The server was an order taker. She didn't exude much warmth or friendliness and her description of the lamb kebab left something to be desired. Failure to pour our water when the busser [?] put the water bottle down and the failure to open our wine until I finally had to ask 5 or so minutes after being seated were faux pas. Perhaps I'm more critical than most since I'm in the business and I can't help but evaluate and judge such things. When I pay $40 for dinner for 2 without liquor, I expect more.

Dessert was not offered, though I flagged the server down to get turkish coffee.

On the plus side as far as service, there was only a 5 minute wait after we ordered to get our food.

These negatives will not have much of an effect on giving them my business again since in the scheme of things, they were not a big deal. The food is the attraction. However, the prices might hold me back from going there often.

Agreed. Food and service is excellent. IMO the best hummus in town!

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I 2nd that. Forgot about this place and ordered takeout 2 weeks ago. Really good, fresh and reasonably priced.

I had dinner here last night, everything was excellent. A bit pricey but worth every bite. Good job!!

I frequently eat Turkish food as I grew up in a Turkish household and spent many summers in Turkey. I can tell you that since I found Rumi, I no longer need to trek to Midtown or Brooklyn for good Turkish food. In fact, this place is more consistently good than any of the spots I used to frequent in NYC. The kabobs and signature Turkish dishes are top notch (probably best Iskender I've had outside of Turkey). The falafel, hummus, grape leaves and other apps do the job as well when you need a Mediterranean fix.

I ordered food from this restaurant for the first time and I must say I was impressed. It's a hidden gem in Paulus hook.

After seeing this thread I ordered for the first time. I must say it's pretty good. I ordered a app platter 4 for $12.95, babagonoush, hummus, spicy veg spread, and eggplant in tomato sauce, it arrived sectioned off w/ sliced tomatoes in a rectangular "to go". I was impressed, all were very flavorful. Falafel app was $6, 4 in an order, was not good at all, so I don't recommend. (Ibby's still best falafel in my opinion). I also ordered the lentil soup, I am not quite sure if I got the right thing, cause there were no lentils, (maybe a puree?) It tasted alright. Lastly, I ordered the bean casserole for entree $11, I did enjoy it very much, very flavorful. Overall I think this is a good place, maybe better for entrees than a falafel night though. I'd say I got enough food for $36 for 2 dinners and 1 lunch, so averagely priced.

After all this controversy over ibby's & Gypsy, I feel like ordering all 3 and doing a comparison, invite friends over, and have a vote. Sounds like a fun idea since we have so many options now.

I stopped by yesterday for the first time in months. The lamb kabob was delicious!

I recently ordered a few kebabs for take away from Rumi and was really impressed. I haven't ordered from them in probably 6 months and didn't love it last time. Decided to give them another shot and it was completely different in both quality and flavor. I had the Lamb Adana Kebab and Beef Kofte, both were excellent. Nothing was overdone, both were juicy and flavorful.

Sadly, the Falafel was rather dry so I will skip that next time.

Anyone who hasn't had in recent months, I urge you to try. Menu has changed slightly as well but not much.

Just went back tonight after several months (had been there when they'd first opened).

Service and restaurant in general seems to have settled down. The lamb was excellent, the lentil soup was good, and the baklava was surprisingly good as well with lots of pistachio on it. Coffee was good. So overall a good experience, and I know my Turkish food.

If I had to nit pick, I would say the cauliflower/broccoli garnishes to the mains were a bit cold, not quite right.

I like the warm, friendly feel of the place. I'll continue to frequent.

I've been wanting to try Rumi for a while now and finally had the chance. I ordered the sheperds salad and hummus. Food was ready in about 3 minutes and was delicious and fresh. I understand that I ordered something simple, but bad restaurants screw even simple orders up.

Next time I go in, I am going to ask if they can add additional spices to the hummus by request (jalapeno/red pepper/etc.). The woman at the register was polite, pleasant and welcoming. I'm going to be going back there for dinner now. I hope Rumi can weather this crappy economy.

We have been back three times since trying this place last month. The gyro platter (beef/lamb or chicken) is enough to feed two for $12. Excellent addition to the DTJC foodscape.

I had dinner here last night and it was fantastic. The portions are large and very reasonable. Love the food and service here much more than Ibby's which serves cold kebabs and not very friendly at all.

We ate here tonight thanks to the recent Groupon deal. The food was excellent! We had grape leaves which were absolutely fabulous and the family combo which was a nice mix of freshly grilled meat and fresh veggies. The atmosphere was quiet and quaint. The desert was yummy - a nice Turkish treat. I truly hope this venue does well. Thank you to Sabrina and her husband for giving JC a chance! We will definitely return.

Thank you so much for sharing your story Sabrina. I have enjoyed the food at Rumi a few times and I plan to come for dinner more often. I am no critic, but I do know the food is good, healthy, and enjoyable. Thanks for the addition to the neighborhood, and I am glad to hear you will be getting a sign to attract more customers. Maybe in the future you will add a falafel platter to your dinner menu, but no rush

Brian

Hi - this is Sabrina, the owner's ife. Just want to clarify a few things based on the posts:

The regular menu is available at all times, even at lunch time. The majority of the lunch menu items are in fact Turkish.

The burgers are the only items that aren't specifically Turkish. We kept them on the menu since there seemed to be a demand when the former restaurant was open.

One of the waitresses was out for a family emergency so we apologize if the poster above didn't feel the service was adequate.

In terms of authenticity, our chef is straight from Turkey and he's been cooking since he was a teenager. As anyone who's been there knows, Turkey is an incredibly diverse country with hundreds of regional microcosms, each with their own specific cuisine. Rumi offers popular Anatolian cuisine, which isn't diminished because of the presence of a few non-Turkish items on the menu.

My husband, Sait Esen, managed and then owned Beyti Kebab in Union City for over 17 years. He sold that business last summer. Rumi is not in an way affiliated with Beyti. A mechanical engineer by training, Sait worked at Beyti while pursuing his second masters degree at Stevens in Hoboken. He stayed in the restaurant business after graduating.

It took everything we had to turn that space around into a decent and clean environment. The former restaurant didn't even have working ventilation! We're still working on making more cosmetic enhacements. We'll have a proper sign up soon and outdoor seating when the weather warms up.

And finally, we just want to give a big thanks to all of our customers. We can\'t be all things to all people at all times but hopefully we can be a colorful thread in the Jersey City tapestry.

Cheers,
Sabrina Cagar
for Rumi Turkish Grill

Wow...we went this past week and really wasn't all that impressed. It wasn't like eating gruel, but sure wasn't blown away.

I've had much better "middle eastern" fare at food carts across the river.

Have eaten there probably two dozen times so far, and take out nearly every week. The food is very good, and it tastes authentic, at least to me. It's the basic Turkish menu for the most part, done very well. Spent about a month in Turkey years back, and this food comes the closest that I've tasted to authentic since then. The Shepherd's salad is excellent and the Kabobs and Gyros are very good. The food is very fresh, not high cal and the bread is perfect. This place used to be in Union City and has respawned here. It's a solid B+ and consistent.

Enjoy.

Went with my husband for dinner earlier this evening, taking advantage of the groupon offer. We really loved the food!! As an appetizer, we had the red lentil soup (very tasty) and for main courses we ordered the lamb chops and the Adana kebab (ground lamb seasoned with herbs and spices)... both dishes were excellent and the sizes were just right. For dessert we tried the baklava and the rice pudding, nice finish to a great meal! The restaurant was well attended during the evening, and we also enjoyed the company of a large group sitting in a long table (apparently all Turkish) who were feasting on the whole menu... they were getting one dish after another, and they brought their Ouzo to celebrate! We give two thumbs up to this restaurant and will certainly be back; we'll make sure to bring some friends so that we can order a variety of dishes and appetizers to share.

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You should try it at dinner - they have a very Turkish menu at dinner (sigara borek, manti, iskender, etc.) So if it's actual Turkish food you are looking for, it may not be a lunchtime kind of place

We have ordered delivery quite often and think it is good to have another option, however our last two orders I ordered meat and got violently ill (don't ask). I think we will continue to order their cold appetizers but stay away from the lamb and gyro.

I went there a while ago at lunchtime, and while it seemed a good place to get a sandwich, it was hardly real Turkish food. The food was ok, and the red lentil soup was good, but not a very Turkish menu. They?ve got hamburgers on the menu, and regular sandwiches, and the breakfast menu is entirely pancakes, omelettes, and other non-Turkish things. Appetizers are mostly just American things as well. Fries with a gyro? And the bread I was given was some cheap pita bread? What about real bread for my soup? Where?s the clotted cream & honey for breakfast? The pide? The lahmacun? The sigara borek?


Also when I went the place was super busy with only one waitress. Might have had someone call in sick that day so I won?t hold that against them. Definitely a lunchtime type of place.

Its nice that this place is BYOB. I went once and liked my meal, although there were only 2 options for me since I'm a vegetarian. Others didn't like it as much as I did. But I would def. give it a try and see for yourself!

Here's my Yelp review from just last week:

What a pleasant surprise. We ate here last night and had a delicious Turkish meal. The appetizer combo was awesome. We traveled to Turkey this past summer and I can attest that this is the real deal. Most shocking, however, is that we were the only diners in the restaurant on a Friday evening. I guess few have discovered this BYOB neighborhood gem.

Ordered a few things from Rumi last night and was a little underwhelmed. Falafel wasn't great, calamari wasn't very good but the grape leaves were excellent. The Family Kebab Combo was a nice mix of meats but there was no sauce to be found. I needed some hot sauce, yogurt, etc... it was all rather dry from lack of sauce.

There were some hiccups with placing the order and the actual delivery but I will give them a second chance for sure. BTW, they gave us two free desserts.

Sounds like a great option for middle eastern food. It's great that Ibby's has some real competition now. Never liked the kebabs or gyros there (always tasted cold for some reason). Plus, no fries with gyros? Please, everyone has to have fries with gyro.

Will have to try out Turkish Grill soon.

I ate here last night. The chicken gyro was very good. The service was not top notch. But I'll definitely be back. ` I love this style of food.

The new design is really nice and the setting is comfortable. We had breakfast there Saturday morning. Two big plates of eggs, potatoes, vegetables, toast, a bagel, and coffee came out to about $17. That may not be cheap, but it was very good.

They have a nice lunch menu as well. I had a chicken kabob wrap w/a side of fries. Delicious!