As Jonathan Gold once said, “the first responsibility of any great restaurant is to keep you in the bubble”. That’s exactly how I would describe my first experience at ilili restaurant on 5th avenue in New York City. They focus on traditional Lebanese cuisine. From the smartly constructed rooms: one with high ceilings and big family style round tables, second with private self-focused dining and the lounge area for the roaring happy hours, you are welcomed instantly into a world of tasty smells where hunger grows proportionally to the food arriving at your table. Even if you decide to stay at the bar for a few cocktails, you will eventually end up having some food, I can promise you that.
Executive Chef Philippe Massoud of ilili is a culinary magician who managed to keep the place at the same level of demand for over a decade with the best foods you can find at NY markets starting with heirloom tomatoes and finishing up with bahibe chocolate. He definitely has a power to change your mind set. I entered ilili thinking nothing could be more boring than eating hommus but left after finishing the entire plate of this popular spread topped with shrimp. I mean, who else could think of adding jalapeno, lamb, basterma (cured beef), pine nuts, shrimp or lobster to hommus for a burst of flavors?
You will see a lot of middle eastern guests withins ililis walls for this is their holy grail. They serve mouhamara, falafel, kibbeh (raw or fried), tabbouleh salad, lamb makloubeh. The menu envokes the memorable smells and flavors of a childhood in Lebanon. When you get to come here often you will learn how to enjoy Lebanese food the traditional way and will agree that it’s the only way to do it. You finally get into making small “pockets” from the house made pita bread and fill it with mezza combinations according to your preferences. My personal favorite is mixing baba ganoush with tuna tartar, because it fills your mouth withma smoky fish aroma. I also like to ask to add sour cherries to my tabbouleh and bring an extra fig whip with phoenician fries. One can be taken to a gourmet heaven. It doesn’t stop there. You have desserts that look like works of art for a sweet finish.
Any Lebanese person who ever walked in to ilili gets very excited when they find out the restaurant serves knafe. Arguable the most popular dessert in Lebanon. The cheese tart comes with rose water syrup to pour over and really is something out of this world. Rose water as well as orange blossom is widely used across the cocktail menu as well. Definitely try “From Beirut with Passion” which is a vodka infused in house with passion fruit, cilantro and mint and my new summer favorite the “Bikfaya Mule”, that gets its name from Bikfaya peach region in Lebanon.
You must visit this Flatiron district Oasis flourishing a middle eastern food culture filled with whispers of regulars passing the “world of the mouth” about the place with one of the city’s most excellent eats.
ilili إدراج – tell me