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!

we liked the leçenik. the menu called it cornbread but it's different from american cornbread, w…read moreless corn flavor & an eggier texture. it reminded me of greek batsaria bc of the spinach & feta. the menu also said it came w a pepper sauce - it was like a cream sauce that had the 'green' flavor of green peppers, no spice. there was also a red olive garnish, which had a milder fruitier taste than green olives fresh complimentary bread came out w the entree, hot from the oven. they had a nice crust on the bottom & were rly soft on top. i tried them w the olive oil that was at the table, you could rly taste the olives our group got a mixed meat combo for the table. my fav was the suxhuk / sausage, it was flavorful w spices. we also liked the roasted potatoes, which tasted like they were seasoned w mustard(?), as well as the bit of cabbage slaw. i will say tho that this plate was a bit too salty for my taste the ambience is nice & rustic, w brick walls, traditional music, & even leather-bound menus. however they were understaffed so service was slow

The food is not only Halal, it's delicious! The best Halal Chinese spot in the Bronx! Cash only!…read moreTake out orders ready quick and easy.

Chicken Eggrolls, Chicken lo Mein,they also have chicken wonton soup. If your looking for Chinese…read morefood without pork this is the place.

Delicious food! Generous portions & wonderfully thoughtful waitstaff. We plan to come back and…read morewould highly recommend. Fun to try a new type of food! Lamb platter was fall off the bone.

I came for the grilled fish with rice. It's absolutely delicious. Always fresh, server with a tangy…read moretomato sauce. It's never been crowded whenever I go, but I notice that most of their patrons are groups of men, probably coming in for a bite after prayers. There are a few families now & then too. But it's always a comfortable atmosphere with good service. The wait staff is young boys, so if you want something, just call them over instead of expecting them to circle around. Happy Yelping!

I've been wanting to make a visit for a long time and they didn't disappoint. I heard about the…read morepepper shrimp and most places I've tried it fell to deliver the spice. Well not only was the pepper shrimp spicy but it was the best I've ever had. The shrimp was so big plumped and juicy. I didn't expect it to be nicely coated with such delicious flavor. My mouth is still watering as I write this review. I paid a little over $17, but it didn't bother me because it was fresh shrimp and veggies and of the amount of food I received was a lot. I mean they could have threw in a free small beverage to go along with it, but I wasn't mad, because this is NYC. I've paid higher prices for food that had less amounts and not even worth the price, but anyway I digress. The restaurant is quite small but big enough for you to stay and dine if you wanted. Along with great customer service, and delicious food a girl couldn't ask for anything more. Not to mention they were playing music to bop your head along with. I don't know if I would return for anything else on the menu right away because I would be hooked to buying the pepper shrimp again. When I get past that I would try something else. Overall, my meal was five stars but since I've only had one amazing item, and I don't know yet If it would be consistent , Im giving them four stars. I think they are worth visiting. Thumbs up and Happy Yelping!

Carifesta Restaurant is a Guyanese-Chinese fusion spot in the Bronx, known for its authentic dishes…read morelike oxtail, jerk chicken, fried rice, and chow mein. It's a family-owned, halal establishment known for generous portions, and it has been a community staple for over 25 years. I heard about Carifesta on social media and wanted to check it out. My daughter and I drove from Connecticut to try the food. When we arrived, the staff told me there would be a 45-minute wait. No problem. We ordered the Guyanese Chicken with Lo Mein, Jerk Chicken Sliders, and the Guyanese Fried Chicken. The Guyanese Fried Chicken was very flavorful but overfried. The chicken had a bone, and as I ate, it fell apart, which told me it was overfried. Next, I tried the Chicken with Lo Mein, and the noodles were overcooked and lacked flavor. The chicken was good and tasted like baked chicken. It had good flavor, but it wasn't out of this world. My daughter had the Jerk Chicken Sliders, and she said they were okay. She said she tasted the Jerk flavor, but the chicken lacked flavor. I'm not sure if they were having an off day, but if I'm in the area, I would give them another tryout.

If you truly want to have a burek, (Balkan dish) this is the place. The bureks are not shy in the…read moreFILLING (meat, spinach and cheese) and the bureks aren't DRY. By far one of the best bureks in NYC and a must. In addition, the staff are so friendly and welcoming.

If I could leave more than 5 stars I would…read more Always friendly, super helpful and fresh delicious burek and yogurt. They sell them either per slice or pies, usually we pick up meat and cheese, and today we ordered spinach as well. These are delicious!! Super flaky and tasteful, big portions. The establishment is really clean, the bathroom is past the pizza over, but also clean. Well worth the drive from Jersey!

The flavors here tell stories better than I ever could. Employees are reliably friendly and address…read moreall needs. The meal was better than expected. The experience satisfies completely. I respect this place and encourage others to try it!

We stopped by this place on our way upstate. It was quite hard to locate first as the name listed…read moredidn't quite match the storefront name, which I think it was Spice It Up. Nonetheless, we walked in and there are tables and chairs and the hot foods are displayed behind glass. We got a goat curry large for $16 with a large plate of white rice which was $1. The goat curry was pretty good and hit the spice profile with it not too spicy. The curry had a good portion of meat and not all bones which was great. We really enjoyed this dish. We also got a small okra for $4 and that too was really tasty and not runny. My son got the chicken briyani for $10 and while it looked so good behind the glass, the taste was just average as the texture is a bit off. The staff asked if we wanted heated up our foods as he said it was just room temperature. Surprised it wouldn't be kept hot in the first place but anyway we said yes and he microwaved for a few which I'm glad we made that choice. Also got a mango lassi drink and we got some Indian sweet treats which he gave to us on the house so that was nice. All in all, it exceeded our initial expectation and would give this place high 3 stars.

Took a chance and ordered on Grubhub, Chicken Tikka Biryani, (as listed on Grubhub). BEST biryani…read moreI've ever had! That's saying something. So much flavor! Chicken was so good, cut perfectly, not dry at all but not sticky either 10/10! Vegetable samosas are so good, the dough was made perfectly. The 2 sauces on the side are just as great with it. Food was so good I ordered again, Goat curry with rice. This wasn't my favorite, it wasn't bad but not my favorite. I happened to walk by this place, I almost missed it! It's a little nook within a building with other businesses inside. The guy working the front also cooked the food, fresh too! I'll always wait for fresh food, very nice man, very nice place. I will be back.

My new go‑to spot. I "discovered" it walking home from the gym, the smell from the street literally…read morepulled me in. Since then, I've been here twice in two days, lol. Hands down the best Lamb Biryani I've ever had. The chicken samosas and Achaari are amazing too. The staff were very friendly.

Feb 13,2025 updated: It has been a few months that I visited for a gyro. The service and the food I…read moreordered taste amazing. The price is also very reasonable and they are very friendly. I order today a lamb gyro and lamb over rice. I normally don't give 5 stars unless the food and service is outstanding.

I only always order the falafel over rice or falafel gyro…read more Always taste good. Service is always great. The fellas are always nice and polite.