Prooobably my new go-to Mediterranean place by me. Such a cozy restaurant with a good amount of seating and fast service (even during a dinner rush!!). Food? So. Freaking. Good. I loved that the dishes were unique and that I got to try lots of things I've never had before! +zahr ma laban: just a beautiful dish. Creamy and meaty and, as a lover of cauliflower, the perfect entree. Comes with rice! +beitenjan appetizer: good! Wish it was warmer but enjoyed the nuttiness of the tahini +falafel pizza: hm. I think I'd skip. Not very hot and falafel didn't seem fresh. But I've heard amazing things about the other pizzas and I'd love to come back and try them +fattat jaj (small): the small is enough for 2 imo. My impression was it'd be a pie but who cares it was so freaking good. Crispy little potato chips and garlicky sauce and juicy chicken and some almonds and then fluffy rice. Chefs kiss :) read more

See all

Hands down the best Mediterranean I've ever had. The service was on point, the food was amazing, and the price point was just right. The Muhammara was phenomenal, with warm and soft Pita for a perfect combination. I had the Mix Shawarma plate and my partner had a Falafel sandwich, and we were both over the moon with our choices. We absolutely will be back, hopefully as often as possible! read more

See all

NOTE: The hours on Google, Yelp and Ayat's website aren't up to date. Walked in with a large group on a Thursday at 930pm - thinking we had an hour and a half till closing - but it turns out, they close at 10pm! We were starving and they were willing to seat us but knew we had to make it a quick one. The food came out quickly and the pita, which was baked to order, was delicious! We ordered the Mezze Filistini, Fried Eggplant, Msakhan, Maqluba, Lamb kebab, kofta di tahini, hot teas, and limonanas. All were excellent. The tea was served beautifully in copper pots. The limonana was not too sweet and garnished, beautifully with dried grapefruit slices. The chicken in the msakhan and maqluba were super juicy. Those and the mezze were my fave dishes! Place is super cute. Highly recommend- just don't get there right before closing! read more

See all

I came when lunch service was winding down. You'll discover new appreciation for familiar ingredients. The employees gave outstanding customer support and the dishes were excellent. The menu covers various food categories. I'll eat here again and recommend others do the same. read more

I just ordered from this location for Valentine's Day weekend and it was some of the best takeout I've had in NYC; it came in a beautiful insulated and reusable bag, and each container was tightly wrapped and still hot. The knafeh was delicious as was the lentil soup and hummus, truly the best authentic Palestinian food I've had aside from my Mom's!! read more

Amazing food!! Everything in the dips platter was so so delicious.lived the hummus and babagonash the most. And their sifted freshly baked pita. Limonona was so refreshing. Baklava was a little disappointing.Definitely going back for more food!! read more

Ayat - Middle Eastern Near Me - New York, New York

It was a pleasure to dine at Ayat. Our reservation was for a Saturday evening at the LES location. We were seated immediately despite the restaurant being very busy. We enjoyed the lemon and mint mocktail with the Mezze Filistini platter and stuffed grape leaves to start. Each dip on the mezze was flavorful and delicious with the fresh pita. Star of the show being the Muhammara. For entrees we got the lamb ouzi royale which was perfection. Great spice profile in that lamb. Fell right off the bone. The rice underneath was a highlight for me. I recommend this restaurant for all - especially a group of four so you can try a bit of everything. Portions are generous. Given volume as of late, service felt a little rushed like they were trying to turn tables quickly so if you're looking for a long date night with a slow movement through dinner, this wouldn't be my recommendation. Still great for dates, just bring expectations of a less drawn-out dinner. Shukran and compliments to the kitchen! read more

Ayat - Mezze Filistini and Wara Dawali (stuffed grape leaves) - Middle Eastern Near Me - New York, New York

See all

The staff were incredibly rude, making it feel like they were doing us a favor by letting us in. The food was terrible and overly salty, and the pita was burnt. The prices were outrageous. I would never recommend this place--stay away at all costs! read more

Just as good as the one in Brooklyn. Amazing food, amazing staff, best falafel in NYC (no small distinction). I think Ayat should release a radio commercial where it's the song Come and Get Your Love except the lyrics are changed to "Come and Get Your Labneh." read more

Super underwhelmed. Had been wanting to try this place for a while. Came on a Monday for lunch, only one other table dining. Our server couldn't have been more disinterested in his job the entire time. Had to flag him down for any little thing. Never checked on us and just acted like he didn't want to be bothered! No greeting, no thank you, no how's everything..can I get you anything g else. Once we go out to go containers, packed up the food. He still didn't bring the check, again had to flag him down and say can we get the check? Ugh Had mixed shawarma platter and the meats were quite dry. The garlic sauce didn't help that much and I wish there was a spicy sauce added as well. Fries were very greasy as well. Overall the inhospitable service left a bad taste, most likely wouldn't go back. read more

I tried the "salata tahina" ($11.00) and the chicken shawarma platter ($15.00). the salata tahina was not my favorite because the tahini dressing overpowered the cucumber and tomatoes. i could only taste the tahini throughout this entire dish. however the chicken shawarma platter is pretty solid! but for the price idk if i would come back because i've tried better chicken shawarma dishes elsewhere. read more

Ayat - Middle Eastern Near Me - New York, New York

See all

Came to Ayat for dinner with a friend on a Wednesday. We went around 5:30pm so it was relatively quiet. The service was quick and the staff was friendly. We started off with some fresh baked bread (which kept coming throughout our meal), olive oil, and zaatar. We were in the mood for a spread and so we got the Mezze Filistini for the appetizer. It is a mix platter with hummus, baba ghanoush, muhammarah, tabbouleh, salata tahina & labneh. Everything, paired with the fresh bread, was incredibly delicious. We got a little carried away and may have filled up too much on the appetizers. We shared two main dishes: Kefta Bi Tahina as well as Maklouba. Both were amazing but my favorite was the Kefta Bi Tahina. This food tastes amazing as leftovers as well. Would highly recommend! read more

Ayat - Middle Eastern Near Me - New York, New York

See all

Great tasting food in the right prices and amazing serving portions. Would definitely go again

Exceptional service. Lovely ambiance and vibe. Absolutely delicious bread (and I enjoyed watching them make it). Relatively inexpensive. read more

See all

I've been here several times and yet it's never enough. The food and service have consistently been EXCELLENT. Their food is absolutely cravable. I enjoy sitting here as it's a calm and soothing atmosphere. They are always really great with my kids and very accommodating. I can't recommend them enough read more

See all

What a wonderful dining experience! The pita bread is fresh the hummus is flavorful, and the staff is very friendly and welcoming. read more

Ayat - Wonderful appetizers- hummus and falafel. - Middle Eastern Near Me - New York, New York

See all

I had a group lunch here, so I was lucky enough to try multiple dishes and starters and I can guarantee you that every bite was like a dance of flavors in my mouth. The waitress (can't remember her name) was patient and helpful with us, as she gave us enough time to order in addition to giving us some recommendations. read more

There's very few places that blow you away and ayat is one of them! We ordered the appetizer platter and fatejaj and the dips were all super fresh and paired perfectly with the warm pita bread. The chicken and rice on the fatejaj were perfectly seasoned and absolutely delightful. The portions are large and for two people we had leftovers on top of being super affordable! I dream about this food sometimes and can't wait to be back!! read more

Ayat - Middle Eastern Near Me - New York, New York

great ambiance and great food. food is surprisingly very affordable for the portion size! read more

Ayat - Middle Eastern Near Me - New York, New York

I had the Fattat Lahma. It was very good.the service was fast. Everyone in my group enjoyed their meals. read more

Ayat - Fattat Lahma - Middle Eastern Near Me - New York, New York

Look at the vibrance of these photos... the food is photogenic AND delicious Everything tasted great - but I did come for the knafeh and they'd run out at this point (8pm?) :( read more

Ayat - Falafel platter - Middle Eastern Near Me - New York, New York

See all

Get the three items in the photos and you won't be disappointed. The outdoor seating is cute and the service was very attentive. The ambience has some pretty woke art especially with everything going on right now in Palestine. Highly recommend. read more

See all

Amazing all the way around. I loved the hummus, and maklooba. The bread was fresh as was everything else.

loved the food be sure to make reservations since the line gets long for waitlist i tried to make a review earlier but yelp prevented me so i lost the pics saved to the drafts. personally feel we should be able to post food reviews regardless anyways i got the yogurt marinated lamb with a bed of rice for 2 people but in reality it was for 4 ppl huge portions and i loved it ambiance is nice can get crowded since the min sometimes waits inside and they need a better system. overall i'll come back here really good eats read more

Terrible experience... will never attempt to dine here again. After arriving for a 7:30 reservation, my friend and I waited at least 10 minutes for the hostess or waiter to help us. The hostess finally checked us in for our reservation but then made us stand outside (in below freezing temperatures) to wait until our table was ready. Several other parties arrived after us and were swiftly checked in and seated before us. After waiting 30 minutes and hearing nothing more from the hostess, we left. read more

Food was absolutely delicious. We had mansaf and fattah. The freshly baked pita was a highlight! The service was great and the ambiance was a delight. read more

Very rude host had a restaurant full of tables and told me "we have no space" even though there was a lot of space. Then I said there is not wait and he said maybe. So he was turning me away based on the way I look I guess. read more

This is an incredible restaurant with amazing food. I had the vegan plate and it was some of the best food I've had all around. Incredible falafel. And I'm not sure how they make these things taste as good as they do but wow you've gotta go. Free Palestine. read more

Food was excellent. Absolutely loved the meal here, amazing quality and execution. Price was shockingly low for how good the food was. Definitely want to come back and try all the dishes we didn't get to order. Hummus was good, labneh was AMAZING, literally scraped the plate. Zahir (fried cauliflower) was delicious, maybe a tiny bit too sweet but was fixed by adding hummus / tahini on top. The falafel was super fluffy and crispy. Fried halloumi was good but pretty standard and maybe a little too salty, kind of wish we ordered the Salata Tahina to go with it. Super satisfying meal overall, great budget option when you're not in the mood to spend the money on ilili lol read more

absolutely avoid this place!!! especially delivery and takeout. worst ever. $130 for tiny bit of junk food. feeling been robbed...it has obviously gone downhill since we last visited months earlier. read more

Simply incredible food. Nothing I've had at any of the locations has fallen short of "great", but my favorites are the mezze filistini (great for sharing with a group), the beef shawarma sandwich, and the limonana. The art scattered around the building is very powerful and the staff are always so kind and helpful. Could not recommend more. read more

Ayat - mezze filistini - Middle Eastern Near Me - New York, New York

Everything delicious!! Palestinian food is a must try. Highly recommend. Hoping they open another store in the upper east side

our party of 3 shared some amazing dishes. the Grilled Halloumi & Watermelon salad, the falafel, Fattat Lahma and Wara Dawali They were all fabulous and complimentary of each other. The service and hospitality were top notch. i'm so grateful for our experience! read more

My son chose Ayat to have his birthday dinner of 12 people. As I am in Florida I wanted to order him and his friends dessert and pay in advance as a surprise. I had the pleasure of speaking with Eli who not only kept in constant communication with me but sent me videos and pictures! They even put birthday candles on the kenafah! The best customer service I have ever experienced! My son and his friends enjoyed every dish they ordered, especially the mansaf, makkoubah, and kenafah. He said everything was so fresh and delicious. The portions were very generous, that they all were able to take some leftovers home. I am so grateful for Eli and the rest of the staff for being so attentive and making his birthday a one to remember. I am excited for my next trip to NY so I can try out this amazing place for myself! read more

I've had Middle Eastern foods and this place is one of the best. Food is tasty, satisfying, and large. I have no complaints with the service and the ambiance was just right for this kind of joint. Lucky that it's in my neighborhood! read more

Horrible service, the server was so rude and unhelpful I asked for three different meals in which they just didn't have and he wouldn't help to let me know what did have at the moment. He forgot to place an entree in all together mind you it's just my girlfriend and I at the table. They comped the one meal in half and gave us free dessert after I voiced my complaints about this after waiting nearly 40 min to find out he just didn't put it in. I wouldn't recommend at all the meat was mid and rice bland read more

Loved loved loved the falafel and hummus! coming from ab arab, this really felt like home cooking. I had been craving a good palestinian meal, and we got that! The drinks, the mezze, and everything else was just too good. Can't wait to go back. read more

A friend and I went here a couple weeks ago and I just couldn't not write about how amazing the Mezze Filistini and lamb was. I still think about it and tell everyone I know to go! Will be going back so soon. read more

I was visiting my daughter in NYC and we went to try this place out. It was wonderful, the food was outstanding including the free pita bread. The service was great - they fixed a mistake in my order and didn't even charge me! I enjoyed the busy atmosphere and the feel of the place too. We will definitely come back! read more

Service is lacking but I can't deny the food is so good here. The large dip platter is nice for bigger parties but I think entrees are definitely much better than their appetizers. Recommend coming here on a weekday, even during dinner it's much more calm. read more