This place is absolutely amazing. The second you walk in, the employees make you feel welcome…read more We started with the hummus and mixed dips with warm pita bread--absolutely delicious. You can tell immediately that everything is fresh. For the main course, we had a platter that came with steak, chicken, and lamb chops, and everything was cooked to perfection. The flavors and seasoning were top-tier. For dessert, we had the warm baklava, which was absolutely delicious with every bite. If you have kids, don't worry--they also have an appetizer that's similar to a mozzarella stick that was absolutely delicious. I just can't remember the name of it! They play all types of music, and even though the space is big, the personal and intimate connection with the employees is what really made the experience special. The manager, Joselyn, was incredibly warm and welcoming. Our waitress, Vivian, was on top of every single request. Bravo! I only wish I had been able to meet the chef because I would personally shake their hand. The food was truly amazing. This is definitely a place where you could throw a birthday party, have a professional dinner, or simply enjoy a beautiful night out with your wife. It has all the qualities of a great restaurant, and I feel like NYC is starting to lose sight of that kind of hospitality. Eating here honestly reminded me of my travels to Egypt. The hospitality was A1. BRAVO! And I can't forget the bartender--he definitely knows what he's doing!

The best eat I had on my trip! One of the people in the group reserved this restaurant as they have…read morebeen here before and raved about the portions and how good the food is. Definitely did not disappoint. All the food here is sharable and for 4 people it was enough. Sadly could not bring it all with us, but would have if we lived here. From what I remembered, we ordered the Lamb Shank, Sumac Fries, and Kouda Bi Zeit. All delicious, all notably the favorite. Probably the reason why I remember these out of the rest of our order. Drinks were also delicious. We ended up ordering each other's favorite drink. Mine ended up being the Mediterranean C vs the Once Upon a Time. Overall, highly recommend! Best mediterranean food I have ever had.

A group of us were here for brunch on a Saturday and we had such a great experience…read more It's a huge beautiful space with both indoor and outdoor seating and we chose to sit indoors. The staff was extremely warm, kind and welcoming and a special shoutout to Irem who was amazing, gave us some great recommendations and took care of us throughout. I went for the $39 prix fixe brunch which is honestly such a great deal and comes with quite a spread. I had the muhammara, hummus, shakshuka and dessert and thoroughly enjoyed my coffee too. We also ordered the tuna Niçoise salad, which is by far the best I have had ever. One of my friends was accidentally served the wrong order and they immediately replaced it with the right one and made her meal completely complimentary, which was such a nice gesture and something we really appreciated. We also loved that nobody was rushing us and we could just sit, chat and enjoy our brunch. Great food, beautiful ambiance, wonderful hospitality and even the restrooms were spotless and very well maintained. Overall such a positive experience and easily a 5/5 for me.

We went for Mother's Day brunch. When we arrived a few minutes early we did have to wait a bit. The…read morerestaurant had two floors, nicely decorated and cozy. We were lead upstairs to a table. There were 7 of us The seating was cozy but not cramped. We started with 7 family style small dishes: Hummus with Falafel Pops (chickpea purée, tahini, falafel, olive oil), Spring Burrata (roasted cherry tomatoes, toast, basil oil), Hamachi Crudo (passionfruit vinaigrette, citrus zest, cucumber, mint, sesame tuile), Scallops (carrot puree, serrano pepper, brown butter sauce), Tenderloin Skewer (zaatar chimichurri, fresh herb salad), and Shiitake Stuffed Grape Leaves (tomato coulis, yogurt foam, herbs). Everything was delicious. The hummus was well seasoned the falafel had a nice crunch. It went well with the warm puffy gyro bread that came to the table. The burrata was wasm and creamy. I love the vinaigrette on the fish. I ended up eating most of it. The scallops were the sweetest, most tender ones I have ever had. The tenderloin skewers were tender and well seasoned. I liked the grape leaves but the rice consistency was very soft almost mushy and you can barely tell there were mushrooms. There was barely any mushrooms flavor. Next we all chose an entree. I got the duck breast, my husband and daughter each had the beef tenderloin. The duck breast was smaller than i expected. The skin was nicely seared and very crispy but boy did it give my jaw a workout. It was done medium rare. It was juicy but tough. The small beef tenderloin was tender and smoky. The waiter poured the sauce over the tenderloin for added flavor. Finally dessert was a fruit plate with ice cream and pudding. The fruit was fresh and the flavors of the ice cream and pudding unique. It was a nice end to a good brunch. The price was a little expensive at $85 a person.

Au Za'atar in the East Village is an absolute standout! This place boasts a warm ambiance…read moreexceptional staff, and incredible food. Every single bite was delicious, and the portion sizes were nothing short of a feast. The tableside shawarma tower and mezze & dips spinner were clear winners! This all paired with an incredible bar and cocktail menu created a fantastic dining experience on every front. Whether you're going with a big group or a close friend, this place needs to be added to your list!

First of all I've been talking up Au Za'atar since my first visit, have sent many friends their way…read moreand have gone a few times since my first meal. My most recent visit this month changed all that. I went with my son because we were in town. As it was the first place we knew we wanted to eat, I made a reservation well in advance and we showed up on time. It was noisier than usual and pretty hectic. We ordered a few appetizers and meals and a drink. No one ever checked in on us or refilled our water. I flagged someone down for to go containers as we wanted to save room for dessert and a second drink. They brought the containers and then we proceeded to sit again with no one checking in. We had been there for approximately 40-45 minutes total and were still waiting on someone to come back with the dessert menu when the host came to our table and said "there's a party with a reservation who needs tho is table so could you please leave soon?" Never has this happened to me. How insulting. When I expressed confusion stating we hadn't even received a check so why would we leave, rather than offer a proper apology and/or a "can we get you anything else?" She just said "oh that's not what I was told." And then a server brought us a check. I asked him if 45 minutes was the usual amount of time they give customers with dinner reservations and he said "I'm not sure. We're just really busy and probably overbooked." Again, no offer to make it right. Initially I wasn't going to leave this review. I reached out directly to the restaurant via email to tell them about the humiliating experience of being asked to leave when we weren't even done. Instead of offering to make it right (anything would have been appreciated - a dessert on the house next time - just some token indicating they valued me as a customer) they just explained that there was confusion and that they've talked to their staff so it doesn't happen to anyone in the future. Both the experience and the response put a horrible taste in my mouth and sadly I will probably not be back.

Our party of 7 tried a number of mezze and platter dishes and there were plenty of vegan options…read morefor our vegan in the group to select from. Among everything we ordered included hummus and spicy hummus - both bowls were scraped clean, it was soooo good -- plus moussakaa, falafel, and cauliflower mezzes. Everything was delicious! I had the lemon sole, which could've done with a lot less salt, but the whole dish was delicious and I left nothing behind (except for some bones). Our dinner was made all the more memorable by our waiter who was funny/super nice! Knowing it was my birthday, once dinner was over, out came a birthday torch and accompanying baklawa w delicious cotton candy topping (on the house, which was a nice surprise). Two others celebrated their birthdays there while we were there, so it's quite popular for birthday celebrations. I look forward to returning some day soon, and I will recommend this restaurant to my friends.

3.5 stars, a beautiful dimly lit dining room and huge no less. There are a few steps walking up to…read morethe dining area. Great for groups of all sizes, reservations suggested but on this weekday visit, it was not too busy. We had a resy any way. Service was fair. Our waiter checked in with us once after we ordered and we had to beckon him twice - once for water refill and second for condiments/questions. What I didn't appreciate but understood, since we were two people dining, we got a corner table for two. It was not busy so we asked for the table next to us since we ordered plenty. They did not accommodate us saying they may need it for later. I did not think that was necessary since the place was not busy. This was 6pm on a Wednesday. And to boot, huge dining room - plenty of seating available. This was off putting as we said we ordered plenty. Our plates barely fit and they brought everything almost at once. Onto the food, I may not have ordered their popular dishes but nevertheless, nothing to rave about. Portions were shareable but it was just okay. There was not one stand out dish. I had higher expectations based on other reviews and photos but it was likely what we ordered. This was a vegetarian meal for me since I was dining with a vegetarian. - Moussakaa, this was a very tomato based sauce dish. Fried eggplant and chick peas combined had a nice texture. Mild flavors. - Arayess cheese - sorely disappointed. Very little flavor and I love my cheeses. It needed something to make it more appealing. It literally looked like cheese in a pita. And yes, by description it was. No condiments or side of anything to offset the plating. Visually flat. It could've used a sun dried tomato paste or some acidic side dipping sauce. - Yara Fries - shockingly simple, zaatar and spices. But they didn't put enough. It still looked like regular fries. And by the name, I expected more punch of flavor. It was not there. - Falafel - tricky dish if it's not cooked well. Simple again by name but the ingredients were just mild in flavor. Crunch was perfect. The chickpea, onions, cilantro and garlic was not pronounced. It was ok. Not memorable. - House wine, by the glass, decent and went well with what we ate. Would I return is the question... Likely not. The menu was so promising but nothing to bring me back.

Wonderful meal at Sawa on Saturday night. We were able to get a table for the (beautiful!) outdoor…read morepatio about a day in advance. The ambiance is cozy, inviting, and upscale. Service was incredibly warm, and our waiter gave helpful recs when navigating the wine menu, which featured mostly wines from Lebanon. For 2, we got: - baba ghannouj - muhammara - dips come with fresh, fluffy, warm pita - batata hara (crispy, spicy fried potatoes with garlic) - heirloom tomato (with garlic toum and sunflower seeds) - octopus - lamb chops Everything was delicious and extremely flavorful! The heirloom tomatoes were a standout dish: fresh, packed tons of flavor, and I loved how everything went together. The waiter mentioned they're seasonal and will be swapped out for something for the fall season soon. Dips and potatoes were excellent. Octopus was the one weaker spot. The skewer was a bit small and the preparation left the meat a little lackluster and chewy (I'm picky with my octopus!) The lamb chops were very tender with tons of flavor - char, mint, meat. A bit heavy but might just be because I don't eat a ton of red meat. I was VERY full by the end of the meal! I think we could have done 1-2 fewer dishes and still been very satisfied, but I'm glad I got to try so many things. The mains took a while to come out, though I enjoyed the longer, non-rushed, 'let's chat over delicious bites for hours' feeling of the meal overall. Great dining experience. The bill came to about ~$100 per person for the above + a drink (one wine, one mocktail) each. Between the fantastic ambiance, service, and high quality flavors, I found it to be worth the price and great for a treat yourself outing, date, or special occasion.

Chef worked at Sofreh - which is one of my faves - and I love Lebanese food, so I was excited to…read moretry this spot. Made a reservation for dinner on a Thurs night and tried: + Seaside snap cocktail + Coco logic cocktail + Hummus with Wagyu beef cheek and pine nuts + Baba ghannouj + Snap peas with labneh + Muhammara + sfeeha - baked lamb pies + lamb ribs Cocktails were fine - would get wine next time. Food was excellent, with my favorite dish being the lamb ribs. Baba ghannouj, snap peas and sfeeha were all delicious as well. I do prefer the muhammara at Miss Ada, but would order the rest of the dips (and hummus) here again. 4.5 stars.

Never been here. Found it through a Google search. Arrived before meeting my party and as soon as I…read morereached the front and saw the dark dirty floor of front door, and how filthy the front door looked I couldn't bring myself to eat here with my party. They have on the front dirty window an "A" rating. Go figure! Took my party to another A rated place that door window and floor wasn't dark dirty.

Everything was genuinely good! My son ordered the Jalab and Lebanese pasta, while I got the passion…read morefruit drink and the El Toum salad. We shared the baba ganoush and the semolina cakes, which were on the house, and everything was delicious. The portions were generous, the flavors were spot on, and it was all very reasonably priced.

I have notoriously referred to the Upper East Side as a "food desert." Well actually I haven't, as…read moreI always paraphrase Anthony Bourdain who called it a "food wasteland." This way, anyone who disagrees with me is really disagreeing with Big Tony. It's a great way to grab the head-turning polarization of a hot take, but without any of the personal responsibility. A way to say something controversial without saying anything at all. A genius chess move to be sure, but complete and utter RAT behavior. I say this, my dear reader, as a reformed rat. All this to say, I recently moved to the UES and have been desperately trying to prove Big Tony wrong. One of my big bros recommended Chamoun's way, saying it's one of his favorite takeout spots in the city. I've been desperate for a decent, non-slop bowl takeout restaurant up here so I went the next day. I walked into a clean hole in the wall, and was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of choices on the menu, but ended up going with the Chamoun's healthy bowl ($14.99) and some grape leaves. After 1 bite my faith in the good lord, and in the Upper East Side, were restored. The chicken and rice were both phenomenal, but the veggies were really what showed out. The turnip pickles and jalapeno peppers were clearly fresh, which leads me to believe everything coming out of here is fresh. It felt like I was eating the home cooked meal of someone's Lebanese granny. The grape leaves were also clearly just wrapped, as the rice inside was warm with the leaf being room temp. You gotta respect this attention to detail. I've already been back a few times since, and it is my new goto takeout spot in all of NYC. I'll probably get it again tonight. BIG SHOUTOUT TO CHAMOUN FOR SHOWING ME THE WAY! IG @johnny.novo Tiktok @jnov__ Substack @johnnynovo

Such an amazing place for a quick bite at lunch time!…read more My wife works at MSK and I work from home nearby, so we always meet here for lunch. She always gets a falafel wrap, "their way", and I always get the beef shawarma rice bowl with extra garlic dip. The food is ok. It doesn't blow you away, but it is authentic Lebanese. That being said, I don't even care what the food tastes like because the servers are SO nice! When I bring my kids, they always leave with some free french fries. If I show up after the lunch rush, the owner is always around and asks me how I'm doing. When I get up after eating and start cleaning my table, the owner always just shows up behind me and amicably tells me to leave, and he will clean the table himself. You will always be greeted with a smile here, treated respectfully, and leave well-nourished. I wish nothing but success for this place!