I'm gluten free and have been anticipating eating at this cafe for years. Today I tried the Torino Panini + 2 soups. While the chicken was juicy the flavors and the sandwich textures were not very good. Huge juicy pieces of chicken competing against hard on outside gummy on inside panini bread. I thought the pesto would be tasty and save it (as pesto can!) but the pesto was pale and lacked freshness and flavor. Soups were ok. This passes as a decent roadside deli stop but based off the panini and soups that we tried I wouldn't go back unless starving and needed a deli pit stop. If big protein portions are enough to make you happy you will like it. If you lean towards foodie quality, def skip. Service was kind. read more

Extensive gluten-free options to be had, with options in their own right (tapioca, rice, etc). Boars head deli items, decent selection of basics in the beer fridge and wine racks. Lots of soda mixers in low-volume sizes. Artisanal chocolate bars by the register. $8 credit card minimum, friendly service. Only a few gelato flavors seemed particularly exciting: strawberry lavender, pistachio, dulce de leche, hazelnut. Serving choices include cones, cups, and bulk. I opted for a sugar cone of the salted caramel, which was okay... very creamy and reasonably balanced salty/sweet. Hefty double-scoop, but only packed shallowly into the cone. I'd still book it to Dolcezza for the variety of gourmet choices, but it's not a bad sweet treat option for the north-side Bethesdanites who don't feel like trekking all the way down to the Row. Siena panini had no grill marks; some of the lightly battered french fries were crispier than others. Default is plain Utz potato chips. Three and a half stars. I'll be back to try more entrees and sandwiches: kafta kabob, Lilit, Key Bridge, reuben. read more

Lilit Cafe - Salted caramel gelato, sugar cone. - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

I went to this place 2 times and got carry out once. Lilit Cafe was highly recommended from the folks who work around Old Georgetown Rd and Auburn ave. We all like variety in our lives but consistency is a great hallmark of a good restaurant. Here I found the owner or manager always present with an alert eye on making sure everyone was taken care of. The menu has an international flavor. Greek omelettes for breakfast to Genoa Salami sandwiches. Boy, was I surprised to find two dishes on the menu that warmed my heart. Chicken Kabob and Chicken Tikka Masala. The area is many blocks away from "Downtown" Bethesda and so if you crave for Kabobs or CTM ( Chicken Tikka Masala) be happy that Lilit cafe has your favorite. Both times I tried the Chicken Kabob. it comes with a nice portion of salad and dressing. The chicken peieces were well cooked and laid out on the marinara sauce. I cut the pieces of chicken and mixed them in the sauce and rice, like I would eat at home. Delish! I enjoyed both visits immensely and I would go back if I am in this pasrt of town. I do have 2 pieces of advice for the owners. a) The menu is too large. Can you study all the dishes that are not ordered and cut down the menu. b) Is there a possibility in future to have a Chicken Kabob substituting Chicken Tikka Masala sauce instead of marinara sauce? And if possible have brown rice as an option? Just asking. This place deserves 5 stars and you won't be disappointed. I ahve to go back at dinner time to see how that experience is. BTW the restaurant also doubles up as a Beer and Wine store so as you go home get a carry out of food and your favorite drink. read more

Lilit Cafe - Nice lil Italian cafe - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

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Based on the beer selection which includes 3 to 4 types of Gluten Free Beer, and the bacon egg and cheese croissant - this place is the tits. Croissant - perfectly toasted and huge Egg - perfectly cooked Bacon- crispy Can't wait to go back and try their famous crabcakes. They do have a sign in the window which states they are the best. Let's put that too the test. read more

I am SO excited and thankful to have found Lilit Cafe. I am gluten intolerant and don't have many options when eating out. If you're looking for gluten free options especially pizza this is the place. They also have a little market area where they sell even more GF option foods. We bought a brownie, bagels, cookies, and cinnamon rolls. I am also impressed by their crab cakes. They are huge and loaded with nothing but meat. I will definitely be back:) read more

Lilit Cafe - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

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We've walked passed countless times and decided to get pick up to go orders last night. Ordered a roast beef and a pastrami sandwich each with a side of fries. When we arrived home and opened our food I noticed a HAIR sticking out of my sandwich. Not the best first impression. read more

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I can't believe I haven't written this review till now......... I really love this place!!! The owner and staff are always so welcome. I eat gluten free and they always have options to pick from. I truly enjoy their lentil soup and could eat it everyday! Their regular food is tasty too. They also sell beer & wine and you can dine in or take out too. It really is a cute cafe and have taken all my friends to eat here. Check out their gelato Wish there was better parking... there is a garage down the block to park with meters during the week. Help Bethesda stay in business; eat at Lilit cafe. read more

Absolutely wonderful cafe with delicious gluten free and vegan options including gelato, FRESH BAKED PIZZA , and a huge wine selection. They even have easy parking in the back of the store so you don't need to pay for a meter. Owner and workers are lovely and have been working hard to stay open with high quality service through the pandemic. They are very careful to follow safety precautions as well. Over Valentine's day weekend, we enjoyed artisan cupcakes here that happen to also be dairy free and gluten free: german chocolate, cookies and cream, etc. The menu is extensive and delicious. read more

With new management, the food remains the same. My favorite spring chicken wrap is still good! I met the owner's son, he is friendly. Overall, good service though the waiter/staff can be more friendly and greet customers with a smile. Good luck! read more

Friendly service and good food. Fantastic place for those seeking gluten free options. read more

I went here for the first time not too long ago. We were immediately greeted and told that we could sit anywhere. The restaurant is also a beer and wine store. We looked at the menus and went up to the front/cashier to order. He told us I could pay after eating but I opted to just pay before. Our food came out not too long after. I got a breakfast sandwich on a croissant which was so good and filling. The place is very casual. The prices were very reasonable and good for the amount of food you get. read more

Great neighborhood cafe that has just about everything. My go to is usually a sandwich with a side, and it is always satisfactory. They also sell Gelato that is a great after dinner snack. You won't be disappointed. read more

Cute place, right beside the French restaurant we wanted to go to. Anyway, food and international foods selection was good. Friendly staff. I'd go again for a quick breakfast or to get some of their amazing gelato desserts. read more

This place is like a hole in the wall. It is not fancy at all but the food is superb. Try anything. They are all good. Make sure to have their gelato for the desert. Delicious. read more

Low key Cafe that's gluten free Gelato shop Wine store Gluten free convienance store Its all the above Gluten free options were very nice Mahi Mahi, with spinach was delectable read more

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The cleanest place, and food made to order. I had a breakfast sandwich and some tea, and it was great. Wonderful food. I will definitely be back! read more

Lilit has been our favorite neighborhood cafe since 2008. The food is always fresh and delicious (and that's without considering the gelato or the amazing gluten-free cupcakes), and the owner and his staff are unfailingly friendly and helpful. read more

Drive up from NOVA to meet friend for lunch. The cafe was so cute. The food was great and picked up dozen cupcakes to go:). I wish there was a place like this in my neighborhood. read more

What a find! Hubby, son, & I had lunch at this neighborhood restaurant and thoroughly enjoyed it. They have their own parking in the back. Very friendly & efficient server. My chicken & vegetable soup was delish...not a hint of fat anywhere, and it was full of veggies and tender chicken. Also had a caprese salad which was quite tasty. Son had chicken kabobs, and I was lucky enough to grab a taste of the tender, moist, flavorful chicken before he devoured it. Hubby had eggplant lasagne which was nice & cheesy. We will definitely return read more

My wife and I visited here this morning for breakfast. They had both a regular and a gluten free menu making ordering feel normalized and not "special" which is great when you have celiac. My wife ordered the gluten free french toast and loved it (since this isn't easily made at home vs just eggs). I ordered a breakfast sandwich on wheat. Both of our meals were good. The place also has a nice selection of wines, domestic and craft beer (about 5-10 craft choices) along with a mini gluten free shopping area filled with cookies, cupcakes, mixes, breads, and other goodies from top brands like Udi's and others. read more

My family and I have been coming here for many years now. Some of our favorites would be the Torino, the chicken kebabs, the chicken cheesesteak. The crabcakes are also amazing! Honestly the best I've had and this coming from someone who used to have a house on the Chesapeake Bay! The customer service is always excellent and the owner always makes us feel so welcome. Highly recommend. read more

The food was really good. Oi had the grilled chicken panini. It was delicious. And a bowl of Dahl. It also really if not hot enough for me. But I like food at temp. The owner , I presume, waited on us. It is a small little neighborhood place. Was so nice. I will go back. When I want good food and neighborhood feel. read more

I LOVE this place, the owner knows me by my name and he's extremely friendly. The food is excellent and cheap, my family and I drive from Woodbridge VA to Bethesda for the steak and cheese. read more

Me and my wife live in LA, which we'd thought was full of the best gluten free options. We're staying in Bethesda for a week and found this place on yelp. The photos of the layout confused us a bit but the menu looked amazing. When we arrived, the layout made more sense. Lilit is half a seared cafe, and half deli. Homemade gelato, your favorite bottled beverages, wine, frozen gluten free foods and grocery options...and an amazingggg menu of fresh prepared meals. We had the Brie melt, meat lasagna and the classic Italian sandwich on gluten free baguette. They were all delicious. If this place was near us, we'd be here multiple times every week. read more

Lilit Cafe - Gluten free options to infinity and beyond! - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

More in-depth review to follow... but in short, you have to check this place out! Great staff, great prices and... the best crab cake in Montgomery County!! That sign on their window don't lie. Seriously. Delicious and pretty decent portion too. And the price is just perfect. We had some Indian dishes as well and they were excellent too. Will be back for sure. read more

Lilit Cafe - The best crab cake in the area! - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

A+ for gluten free menu and wine selection. D for table service. If you sit to have table service you put your order in and then have to get up and get your own drink or coffee. It came across as "you can get it yourself" ...very dismissive. Food takes awhile, that's fine. But if you ask for a glass of water expect them to forget because that's the one thing they do bring you. Everything minus the service is great tho. It may be less confusing if customers were told to get their drinks and order at the register before sitting. read more

While it is not going to be my number one choice for breakfast again, Lilit Cafe is really a sweet little cafe. I've been wanting to check it out for quite some time now, especially one of their wine tasting events. As for now, I can only give opinion on their limited breakfast menu. Really there are only two choices: omelets or egg sandwiches. We both had the egg and cheese (bacon for her) on a croissant which was $3.50 plus $1.00 more for the croissant. Not bad; definitely cheap. It was just okay though. We both thought the egg part was a bit dry. We were the only diners since they had just opened at 10:00am on Sunday. Other patrons came in while we ate and ordered carryout. I was contented. The water for the tea was scolding hot which made me happy. Paying around $8 with tax and tip made me even happier. I plan to check this place out for lunch. They also sell wine to go. If you order a 750ml bottle with dinner, then they will sell it to you for the retail price. I am not a gluten free diner by any means, but with the New Year here maybe it is time to start eating healthy. I just have to wait until I've finished off all my holiday chocolates and cookies. :) read more

The steak and cheese sub exceeded my expectations, delicious!! I was visiting from San Francisco and it reminded me that DC has its very own style of sub. Service was quick and friendly, the menu was super eclectic but they nailed the items we ordered. I rather liked being able to select a drink from their beverage case, so many choices! read more

CELIACS BEWARE! The staff here (one waiter in particular) is completely incompetent. I have celiac disease and come here because theoretically I can order and eat without getting sick. Not true! Don't order the fries. They are NOT gluten free and the staff might not tell you. Also, if you order a gluten free sandwich, the bread will look like the picture I've posted. I took this so you can actually verify whether your sandwich is gluten free or not since they served me a sandwich on WHEAT BREAD. I had to go to the counter and demand to know if my sandwich was on gluten free bread, they told me no so I had to run to the bathroom and spend the next 10 minutes with my hand down my throat. The manger never even came out to apologize! But they did wave our bill and give us free gelato. I guess that's better than nothing. Please train your staff. read more

Lilit Cafe - This is GLUTEN FREE BREAD. Verify that you're sandwich is actually gluten free! Since they might serve you whatever. - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

Lilit Cafe, were you to find yourself in Atlanta, my gluten-free wife and me could hold hands on sunny days, skip through meadows and then gorge happily on baguettes, cakes and assorted baked goodies. We'd then gaze dreamily into each others eyes, high as we were on rice flour and yeast, as we made plans to finalize our cold fusion device and bring about a new age of Man. As it is, you're up in Bethesda and we had to make a special trip to you before dropping our rental car off at the airport. Sigh. That's all right; we'll forgive you. My wife will definitely forgive you since yours is the first sandwich she's had in almost a year of gluten-free living. (Not counting, of course, the funky-smelling rolls she tried baking last month, rolls that tasted like the bastard lovechild of the Pillsbury Doughboy and an Ikea MDF flatpak.) On the other hand, I ordered the kafta kabob plate. I've had better kafta, but the portions were generous and the meat wasn't dry, which is easy to do when cooking what is essentially a Middle Eastern meatball. My only compliant was that they were kind of bland. Alas, by the time we were done, neither of us had room for the incredible-looking gelato. Seriously, homemade gelato, a full GF menu, a refrigerator case in the back of GF cakes, all amongst rows of refrigerated beverages? It's a cafe! It's a convenience store! It's a gelato shop! It's what will cause my wife to divorce me and move up to Maryland! 4.5 stars rounded up to five. read more

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Me: Green mint gelato is for me Their chocolate chips seem semi-sweet "This treat is top notch," I cry Great gelati, this cafe serves fresh inside He: Green mint gelato tastes okay I'll pick a richer choice today Homemade vanilla, shaved chips too Honey I love you, but this one is better - true He: Rich - more! Me: Mints score! He: Robust Me: Luscious He: You and I tied Me: Fine, more must be tried We: Green or beige, they're great here!! . . . Stracciatella this http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/xxprFfNfPBRNv48XbJMNcg?select=HPnvksop6jYhgVOCitTaWQ read more

Lilit Cafe - His Stracciatella vanilla chocolate chip on sugar cone - $3.75 before tax on 4/2009 - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

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The Tikki Masala was average at best - a little bland for my liking. Comes with rice, a salad (with balsamic vinaigrette dressing). If you're looking for a meal that will fill you, this surely does it. They have sandwiches, pizzas, entrees, paninis etc. Probably a nice place to grab a quick bite but not a memorable meal. The store seems to pride themselves in a diverse range of ice cream flavors so that may be worth checking out. read more

Lilit Cafe - Tikka masala - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

The concept of this adorable, little café is perfect: it's basically an affordably priced deli & café where you can peruse and pick out your own bottle of wine (wholesale price) and have a nice dinner for 2 (with dessert & wine!) for under $50. We were very impressed. The only thing I might slight them for is the lack of communication. When you enter, you seat yourself. There should be a sign saying to do so. And while there is waiter service, there were a couple times it was unclear what we were waiting on/what the process was. But these are minor things I am nitpicking at and something to expect at a casual, sit-down establishment. Service was prompt and ambiance was surprisingly romantic for a small, deli shop. I picked out a bottle of wine (there is a $5 corkage fee, FYI) and they open and bring nice wine glasses to your table. I ordered the eggplant parm sub and my boyfriend ordered the Rueben (with $1 upcharge for fries). The sides they normally come with are a bag of Utz chips or an apple; that was kind of lame. But for a $7 sandwich, do you really care? My eggplant parm sub was outstanding, excellent tasting marinara, which really makes a for a great eggplant parm. My boyfriend's Rueben was decent; the bread was a little hard and the pastrami was on the thicker side, but again, for a $7 sandwich, it was very tasty and hit the spot. I also ordered a small tiramisu gelato that was delicious. They also have espresso shots, wifi, and free parking. I mean seriously, what else could you possibly want? In a town of overpriced, pretentious restaurants, what a cute spot for date night on a budget! read more

Lilit Cafe - Kids menu! - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

We happened upon Lilit Cafe while search for gluten-free entrees on Yelp.com and Lilit did not disappoint. They have a fairly extensive American and Middle Eastern gluten-free menu, and the regular menu offers even more choices. The kofte kebab was excellent - juicy, flavorful meatballs on a tomato-based sauce, with basimati rice and small green salad sharing the plate. The Greek pasta salad was also delicious. The gluten-free pizza will take a little getting used to - the pizza crust was crispy, but without the gluten, I missed the dough that snaps back when you bite into it . The gelato options were awesome - some are dairy-free, and one was sugar-free. Lilit Cafe offers two things that Bethesda isn't known for -- free parking and a lot of entrees under $15! There's a small parking lot in the rear (off Auburn Ave), and a large multi-story garage is just a block away if you can't find nearby on-street parking. We'll be back! read more

Lured in by the high number of great yelp reviews, I trekked through Bethesda to try out the Lilit Cafe, a casual liquor store/eatery/deli that serves up a diverse menu with Indian influences, pizza, sandwiches, a host of gluten-free offerings and gelato. Oh and they also serve breakfast. There's a lot going on here. It's not fine dining (my water was served in a plastic Dixie cup), but they do a nice job. They have an okay wine by the glass selection and I went with a Malbec ($6!) No complaints here. I started with the samosas, two deep-fried triangular puffs filled with potatoes, chickpeas, and peas all soaked in a savory, spicy curry mix. They were served with light dipping sauce. Very flavorful with a nice burn. Lilt's proudly boasts on their storefront window that they have "Bethesda's Best Crabcakes," so of course, I had to try one. I ordered the single crabcake platter, which included a nice clump of crabby goodness, basmati rice, and a salad. Again, not a fine dining experience (see the disposable plastic cups for the cocktail sauce and salad dressing?), but the crab cake itself was very good. For $11.99, it's hard to complain. I ended things with a small cup of peanut butter gelato. I probably shouldn't have, but it was sweet, creamy, and wonderful. All in all, I was very happy with Lilit and look forward to coming back. read more

Lilit Cafe - Single crab cake platter... - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Bethesda, Maryland

We stopped by for brunch over the weekend with some friends. The place is tiny wroth limited seating. They do have a bigger shopping section with a good selection of wines, Gelato, cup cakes, etc. They have an extensive menu with a separate menu with gluten-free choices. We had cappuccinos to start the meal which were made well, though it took forever to get to us. For brunch we had crab cake sandwich and Ruben sandwich. Both were really good! The cup cakes for dessert probided a good finish to the meal! A local gem in Bethesda! read more

Come for the gluten-free crabcakes. Stay for the gelato. This is my go to weekend spot for a treat.

Lilit Cafe is our go-to place when we can't decide on a single cuisine -- it's got everything and it's always good. From the burgers to salads to sandwiches and even the butter chicken, it's always high quality. The last time we were there (pre-covid) the owner gave us a free gelato sampler for lunch, which was also fantastic. read more

We found this place for a quick dinner before movie date night and as someone who has to eat gluten free, I was very excited. They had a lot of options for me which I am very thankful for. It was a tad expensive and the pizza I ordered was really greasy. That being said, I would like to return and try more of their GF options. I hope this place stays open for a long time and just continues to perfect their GF offerings. read more

I am dairy free and gluten free with allergies and they are able to accommodate me every time I come!! Amazing steak and cheese sandwich (vegan cheese) tons of veg options and so many different delicious options! Tons of gluten free cupcakes and deserts as well! Was able to order ahead on their website ans pick it up to be Covid safe! read more