Middle Eastern
ROVI
- Monday: 12:00 – 3:00 PM, 5:00 – 10:30 PM
- Tuesday: 12:00 – 3:00 PM, 5:00 – 10:30 PM
- Wednesday: 12:00 – 3:00 PM, 5:00 – 10:30 PM
- Thursday: 12:00 – 3:00 PM, 5:00 – 10:30 PM
- Friday: 12:00 – 3:30 PM, 5:00 – 10:30 PM
- Saturday: 12:00 – 3:30 PM, 5:30 – 10:30 PM
- Sunday: 12:00 – 3:30 PM
Another of Ottolenghi’s restaurants, ROVI holds vegetables in high regard with a focus on fermentation and cooking over fire. We’re talking dishes like grilled octopus with borlotti bean piyaz, preserved lemon & sumac tropea onion; saddleback pork chops with charred peppers, pistachio & lime salsa; and Jerusalem mixed grill with baharat onions, pickles, pita & tahini. The restaurant is centered around a large central bar with cocktails based on seasonal spices and house shrubs, and a dynamic low-intervention wine list from small producers. A great addition to Ottolenghi’s culinary catalogue of restaurants.
NOPI
- Monday: 11:30 AM – 3:00 PM, 5:00 – 10:30 PM
- Tuesday: 11:30 AM – 3:00 PM, 5:00 – 10:30 PM
- Wednesday: 11:30 AM – 3:00 PM, 5:00 – 10:30 PM
- Thursday: 11:30 AM – 3:00 PM, 5:00 – 10:30 PM
- Friday: 11:30 AM – 10:30 PM
- Saturday: 11:30 AM – 10:30 PM
- Sunday: Closed
Nopi is Yotam Ottolenghi’s Soho spot and the all-day restaurants celebrates bold flavours and inspired takes on Middle Eastern cooking with dishes like courgette and manouri fritters, coriander seed-crusted burrata with slices of blood orange and Valdeón cheesecake. Their cocktail menu isn’t lacking in creativity either, with classic serves alongside spice-infused bevvies like the sumac negroni, rose & cardamom gimlet and cherry & pine nut old fashioned.
BALA BAYA
Hidden within the Union Street arches in Southwark, Bala Baya puts its own vibrant twist on Israeli cuisine. Not only does the restaurant takes inspiration from those bright Middle Eastern flavours, but the decor also mimics the Bauhaus architecture of Tel Aviv. Highlights on the menu include Bala Baya’s prawn baklava, kebab dumplings, and Tunisian tartar, which are meant to be shared in true Middle Eastern style. If you find yourself struggling to choose, you can opt for a journey through the menu as curated by head chef Eran Tibi.
BERBER & Q GRILL HOUSE
- Monday: Closed
- Tuesday: 6:00 – 10:30 PM
- Wednesday: 6:00 – 10:30 PM
- Thursday: 6:00 – 10:30 PM
- Friday: 6:00 – 11:00 PM
- Saturday: 12:00 – 3:00 PM, 6:00 – 11:00 PM
- Sunday: Closed
The older brother of the Berber & Q shawarma bar, the OG Berber & Q specialises in smoked and grilled dishes with a range of Middle Eastern influences. The vegetables are shown the same amount of love as the meat with dishes like cauliflower shawarma and grilled broccoli with muhammara & garlic crisps sure to have any self-respecting vegetarian writhing in ecstasy. Carnivores can also get hot-smoked merguez sausage, coffee-rubbed pork belly and low-and-slow lamb mechoui hot off the grill too.
With restaurants in King’s Cross and Borough Market, Arabica uses an amalgamation of ingredients from Lebanon, Beirut, Istanbul, Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem to create a selection of delicacies from all over the Middle East. Menu heavy hitters include lamb adana kofte with pickled cabbage, charred sumac onions & pita croutons; chermoula sea bream with herbed labneh & burnt lemon; spinach & feta boregi; and prawn pide, along with familiar dipping faves like hummus and baba ghanoush. Sweet toothed diners can enjoy the likes baklava and kunefe, and if you’re hungry for more, Arabica sells a range of spices, pantry goods, wine and meze for you to carry on with at home.
HONEY & CO
- Monday: 5:00 – 10:30 PM
- Tuesday: 8:00 AM – 10:30 PM
- Wednesday: 8:00 AM – 10:30 PM
- Thursday: 8:00 AM – 10:30 PM
- Friday: 8:00 AM – 10:30 PM
- Saturday: 9:00 AM – 10:30 PM
- Sunday: Closed
Honey & Co moved out of its long-time home on Warren Street in 2022 and moved into a larger site on Lamb’s Conduit Street shortly after. You’d think this would make it easier to get a table, but no, Honey & Co is still fully booked most days – and for good reason. The restaurant’s Middle Eastern menu is truly top-tier; Itamar Srulovich and Sarit Packer (the husband and wife team behind Honey & Co) have previously worked at Ottolenghi and NOPI, so they know their stuff. Start your day off right with shakshuka or scrambled eggs with merguez sausages, or swing by later to try their seasonal lunch and dinner menus. And if you manage to leave without buying at least one of the cakes on the counter, you’re better people than us.