Çka Ka Qëllu has been on my radar for a while now. I first heard about it several years ago when…read morethey first opened in the Arthur Ave neighborhood - standing out as a traditional Albanian restaurant amongst the sea of Italian eateries. Fast forward to the present day, and they have gained considerable attention. The restaurant has made the NYT's Top 100 Restaurants in NYC list for the past 4 years, they have expanded to two (soon three) other locations, and is a favorite among the social media and celeb crowd (this is allegedly one of Dua Lipa's favorite restaurants in the city). That being said, we thought it would be a great spot to celebrate a family member's birthday - so I booked a table and off we went. Çka Ka Qëllu is located on Hughes adjacent to the back entrance of the Arthur Ave Retail Market. The restaurant is gorgeous - it's pretty spacious with three main dining rooms. The decor is a showstopper in itself - the exposed stone walls coupled with the abundance of artwork and old world accents placed throughout the dining area make this seem more like a museum than a restaurant. The ethnic music that is piped throughout the restaurant completes the feel. I honestly couldn't stop looking around. There menu is pretty expansive - most of the items I had not heard of before, but it's also approachable as they spell it out for you in the description what each dish is. We were a party of seven, so to make things easy we aligned to share everything. My brother and I decided to take lead and order items from each section. We decided to start with the ajvar, sausage dip, and tarator. These were all delicious; essentially dips, they all had great flavor and were paired with hot crusty bread mmmm. We then got a bunch of other dishes: leçenik, burek, fili, fasule with smoked meat, mantia, mazë e zier, and a shop salad. As with the dips, everything here was delicious. It's hard to pick the standouts because everything was so good - honest food, full of flavor and depth. Okay you twisted my arm - if I had to choose, my favorites were the burek and the mazë e zier. I love a good burek, and this one was top drawer. The pull on the mazë e zier was out of this world, yet it was easy to maneuver with great flavor. We ended the meal with one of their grilled dishes - namely the mixed meat combo. We chose five meats and they paired them with some vegetables and potato. At risk of sounding like a broken record - this was delicious as well. Service was awesome - everyone was welcoming and the food came out at a good pace. Overall, Çka Ka Qëllu is an absolute yes - the food, the decor, and the service were all aces. The hype is real and they deserve all the accolades they have received. Goes without saying, but I would definitely return for another meal - take me back now!

Plan bagels it was kinda stale tasting but I would get it again if it was fresh …read more It was kinda mysterious looking when I walked in the shop service was ok

It's mostly become old news at this point that the Bronx's Little Italy is gradually transforming…read moreinto Little Albania. In addition to the famous Cka ka Qellu for a sit-down meal, there are a number of cafés and casual purveyors of börek. Dea falls in the latter category, and serves both slices of börek pies as well as tubular böreks that in Türkiye are known as kol böreği. We opted for a slice of the spinach pie, which tasted a bit more like spring onion. The dough itself is beautifully layered, but the filling was quite bland, and ostensibly undersalted. Service is mind-numbingly slow, so prepare yourself for a wait.

Im a long time customer. Always fresh , consistent Delisous food. I have tried many bureks. The…read moremeat, pumpkin, veggie, and cheese to name a few. The yogurt is devine. Nice juxtaposition with the stuffed burek. Great customer service . Donna and Helena are so nice and hard working. Cute cafe vibes. The best cappuccino in the Bronx. Affordable too.

They have an indoors section and an outdoor patio area (which is a good option if you're only…read moregetting drinks as they get busy and thus food service lags). However when we moved indoors, we got serviced quickly! Got a medium well burger (with bacon added). It was pretty standard in terms of taste - only surprise came with the fries which were disappointing as they lacked salt and seemed kinda burnt. Overall a decent experience and I'd return to explore more of their menu.

Well go through the good and the bad... I was excited to try…read moreMabel's after seeing their tiktok videos and menu. Who wouldn't like the vibes, the setting, the environment and the food. Set into such a cute background it's hard to pick apart the scenery. I met my friends and we sat in the lounge area. It was comfortable, cute, we loved it. I settled for the yoshi drink (it was matcha based and quite amazing!) my friend had the rotary which he said was great as well. We ordered a hodgepodge of appetizers and food to share amongst ourselves.. the oysters were good, they were small and didn't really justify its cost. Smashburger was exactly that, nothing mind blowing or memorable about it and we had no complaints. We got the focaccia with whipped ricotta and honey. But out came a focaccia with tomato sauce on top and Mozerella. We had to ask the waitress about it who replied the kitchen may have updated the menu and substituted that in its place... I don't know what your thoughts are but whipped ricotta with honey is not even in the same category as a glorified pizza cheese bread and our bellies really didn't want this imposter of a plate. But our waitress had it corrected. When it came back out we were met with the whipped ricotta and honey with bread which was great! But it wasnt focaccia... disappointing but if the menu was going to state focaccia than focaccia is what should be served not the sourdough bread we got.... So sad! their charcuterie nachos board was to die for, the meats sliced perfect and olives that were so fresh, it came on a board with beautiful presentation. We ordered cheese fries too but that was mediocre at best. We were there for a while so more drinks ordered. We had to send a rotary back because it was definitely not made with woodford reserve and had some other drink mixed into it. My friend had an internal meltdown because it was soo bad, accidents happen at the bar so our waitress personally watched the bartender remake it and it came back perfect and all was right with the world again for my friend... Now off to desserts. We had the 17 layer chocolate cake, the upside down pineapple cake sundae and the butterscotch pudding. The best one out of all of them was the butterscotch pudding. The upside down pineapple cake sundae was meh.. and Mabel's should just take the 17 layer chocolate cake off the menu. I was offended for the ambience to allow a cake of that caliber to be served there. It was dry. It left our mouths feeling like we bit into sand after each bite. The chocolate frosting also felt like it was a rolled sugar after thought. Had the texture off marzipan and lacked taste. It was disappointing I think we wanted to cry.... The chocolate shavings they had on the cake for presentation was dry and showed visible signs of age. Like they had rolled the shavings days before and put it into a tub to use throughout the week. We made it through some of the cake by spooning the upside down pineapple cake sundae into each chocolate cake bite.. All in all the vibes is cute but the food did not hit like we wanted it too. My recommendation to the restaurant is to revisit the menu and personally taste it and be very honest with the plate and ask themselves if the bite matches the mood of the restaurant and if it doesn't take it off the menu and replace it.... The goal is to keep and retain customers so they continue to recommend and recruit more people and for this place it should start with being proud for the food being served and the accuracy of the quality of the food.

Fantastic place! The service was terrific. Meat assortment was absolutely amazing! My husband and I…read moreLOVE this place. Great environment and super clean! A+++

Very nice place, delicious coffee and food. A bit pricey but you won't leave the place disappointed.read more

So yummy. Food is delicious ! I love it Space is so cute…read moreand elegant. Elegant ambiance and vibes Service. Well it's Russian ! So you can imagine

I went here for a birthday dinner and it was amazing!! The food was great and it was super nice…read moreand clean. We loved it so much. And we're willing to come back soon!!

The food here is so fresh and pretty good. The ideal starter is the ustipci which is bread with…read morefeta cubes and honey. It's an interesting combo but it is delicious. For the mains, there are several items to choose from and our table had the snicla which is a chicken cutlet sandwich, carne asada sandwich, onaj nas sandwich and a flatbread. The overall table favorite was the snicla, flatbread and onaj nas. We also had two mini burek one with cheese and one with meat and their cevapi. The service is alright, the staff didn't seem to care or come back to check in with the table. The worst part of this is they automatically add a tip regardless of your party size. The ambiance is okay, it has the full European vibe and guest will be sitting outside in the front smoking or in the back smoking. Overall, Cafe Bubamara is a great place for lunch or dinner they have a great selection for dishes from savory to sweet and everything tastes extremely fresh.

Such a charming and eclectics place, Cafe Bubamara is an absolute delight. The service was…read morefriendly and welcoming. The decor is very flea market chic. They also have beautiful garden seating. I ordered Turkish coffee, fresh grapefruit juice, Gurmanski dorucak, mini burek with spinach and cheese, and fruit cake. I love Turkish coffee and this was very good. The juice was tart and delicious. The breakfast platter was a showstopper. Two fried eggs, tomato, feta, two meat patties, and homemade bread. The flavors of the meat blew my mind. Who knew that Croatians make the most delicious burgers. This is a hearty and fantastic dish. Also, the burek was flaky and light and not very mini. I took home the cake and enjoyed it later. Light, delicate and not overly sweet, this was a star. Open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, you should stop in for any meal. Not cheap, but you get what you pay for and you get a lot of bang for your buck. I can't wait to r

It was all perfect. Very cute inside, fantastic service, fantastic food. Will definitely be going…read moreback!!

This was my first time trying actual Romanian food, as most restaurants I have been are marketed as…read more"eastern European" with the cabbage rolls, pierogi, etc. Thus, it is hard to give an accurate star rating since I don't really have an adequate baseline of what Romanian food should be, but combining the food and the excellent service, this place deserves a 5 stars. We were a party of 7 and we walked in on a Sunday dinner, and there was no wait. There was a wedding nearby in the restaurant, so it was a bit loud, but it was a good vibe. We ordered a bunch of dishes, such as the Platou Taranesc, Salata Bouef, Pomana Porcului, Pastrama, Mititei, Sarmale, Papanasi, and Coltunasi Platou Taranesc - country plate, basically bread and cold cut, Romanian style. It was a good experience but something I would normally not go out of my way for, since I don't like cold cut. But it is worth trying since Romanian food has a lot of cured meats and such, so the variety here is apparent Salata Bouef - bouef salad. Not beef salad. It is like a potato salad with chicken and veggies. Fairly hearty despite looking like small portions Pomana Porcului - traditional style pork fried meat - does not look fried, but it is a bit cured. A bit tough, maybe that's how they prepare it, but nonetheless flavorful. Pastrama - lamb pastrami - also a bit tough but cured. I liked the flavors but definitely need to eat it like a fork and knife style, not one bite Mititei - Romanian skinless sausages - kind of like a kofta (ground beef) and I loved this meat dish the most Sarmale - stuffed cabbage roll - one of the best cabbage rolls I have tried. Manageable size for each roll, and the cabbage has just the right amount of softness and the filling is super flavorful. Would recommend this 100% Papanasi - Romanian donuts - they say 2 pieces but the pieces are huge and sweet and hearty. A great way to conclude the meal, and enough to feed 4+ people after a nice meal Coltunasi - dumplings - we got beef. These are good but did not stand out. A nice starter Service was amazing and deserving of the auto 20% gratuity. The only miss is the water refills are not as frequent but the server gave us some sides on the house and gave us amazing recommendations of what to try for food for the first time and brought out everything we needed to enjoy the meal.

Cute spot for Albanian eats off of Arthur ave in the Bronx. Meals are reasonably priced. Staff is…read moresuper sweet and speedy. Albanian music bumping. My only problem with the place is they don't take card. Only cash or Zelle.

The food is amazing, and the new location is fantastic! The service is excellent, and the owner is…read moretruly incredible. The ambiance is wonderful, making this place a must-visit. You won't be disappointed!

This was my second visit. And, unfortunately, it was not as good as I remembered. We visited at…read moreabout 2 PM on a Friday. My companion and I both ordered the salad with grilled salmon for $20 each. The salmon was a handful of tiny cubes of salmon filet with skin on and was a bit fishy. The restaurant is clean and nicely decorated. The service was fine. But, I do not know that I would return.

First time I came I was SO impressed. This time I was equally disappointed. My friend and I came…read morefor a late lunch. We both ordered the salmon salad for $18. Perhaps I wrongly assumed we would get a salad with piece of salmon on top. We got a chopped salad - which was fresh and tasty and well-dressed, that included literally 4 at best, 1 inch x 1 inch chunks of salmon - with the skin on. And the salmon tasted fishy. For the price, one expects at least a small filet of salmon on top of the salad. And at the very least one that doesn't taste fishy and aged. Not sure I want to take a chance again.

I can only describe my experience at Oti as warm and delightful. We went for date night and felt as…read morethough we weren't in New York anymore but rather in a friend's home in eastern Europe. Everyone was so friendly, the vibes were warm, and the food was delicious. My boyfriend described the ricotta toast as a "symphony of flavors"-- sweet, savory, salty, sour, it had it all. The dinner was topped off with a surprise dessert of gummy bears that came with the check. I couldn't help but think that this is what hospitality is to me, delightful experiences that we keep wanting to talk about and coming back to. Immediately after dinner my boyfriend added Oti to his list of favorite restaurants in the city, we can't wait to come back!

Side note: As this place is technically Romanian, I requested to change the listing from New…read moreAmerican to Modern European to match the other Romanian places along with potentially switching cocktail bar to small plates though this can go either way. Anyway this is a tiny spot with the inside looking like someone's house so it's a fun atmosphere. They apparently added cocktails since I was here a while ago which is a good idea as the somewhat salty food here definitely goes with drinks. I believe I had a glass of white wine when I was here but I'm not positive. The service was friendly and gave recommendations to the people here who weren't sure what they were going to order. In terms of Romanian food, I heavily prefer Danubius in Queens among other spots near there but this is a decent option and especially if you don't want to travel to Queens/Brooklyn. For prices as no one has taken a photo of the menu yet, the larger/shared plates are from around $16 bucks (outside of the not so good mamaliga) to $21 while the small plates are around $10. I went with two dishes and one was good and one was just alright and I tried some other dishes from some other people which ranged from bad to OK/decent. In general, the food was fine though lacking some of the more unique flavors listed. The more expensive of the option and easily the best food I had here was the Pickled Mushroom Toast for $21 listed as market mushrooms pickled in a housemade brine on top of bone marrow ricotta spread on top of toast soaked in beef juice. While I could not really detect the beef juice, this had wonderful textures and flavor with the mixed pickled mushrooms being a highlight which had some softness and crunch. The ricotta added some creaminess and the little brown parts on it (presumably the bone marrow) had a bit of richness. The good sourdough from whatever bakery they get it from was nice and thick which is a good idea as it probably would have fallen apart otherwise. If you don't love pickles, you'll probably hate this but I liked it a lot. The other dish which was just okay was "The Mici (meech)" for $16 consisting of lamb and beef housemade sausages spiced with Romanian herb blend and served with miso mustard. The sausages were a bit soft with the texture not being my favorite compared to other restaurants serving this dish. The mustard and herb blend on top was a bit overpowering with a light fermented flavor presumably from the miso which also added a unique though slightly unappetizing off yellow color. The portion size was decent as it definitely could have been split between two people and it was just fine overall. From others, I tried a few different things which were mostly the small plates which are worse. The Mamaliga ($10) had a worse texture than at Danubius or at Moldovan Cafe and I wish I had the eggs and a stronger cheese which is usually what makes this a lot better and I wouldn't recommend it. The Spiced Pickled Red Grapes ($9) was a novel idea with lightly spicy grapes and would go well with a cocktail or beer. The Zakuska dip ($9) was the best of the smaller plates with the same good bread and a nicely roasted red pepper/eggplant dip with a bit of sweetness from the caramelized onions though I prefer similar dips from other places. They also gave us some Gummy Bears as dessert at the end which was unique (no, I'm not writing more about them.) If every dish here was as good as the mushroom toast, I would much more heavily recommend this place but that's not the case as if I didn't have said mushroom toast, I'd very likely be giving this place a 2 for the overall quality. As the best word to describe this place is unique and OK, 3 stars is accurate.