73 editor-picked levantine restaurants across 37 cities.
Levantine cuisine is the cooking of the eastern Mediterranean coast and its immediate hinterland, a tradition shared across Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, and Jordan with regional inflections in each country. It is one of the oldest continuous food traditions on earth, shaped by Phoenician trade, Roman and Byzantine influence, Arab conquest, Ottoman administration, and the orchards and herds of the Mediterranean climate. The grammar is consistent: olive oil as cooking fat and finishing oil, lemon as the dominant acid, garlic without restraint, sumac and za'atar for tartness, parsley and mint by the handful, tahini, pomegranate molasses, and flatbread at every meal.
Mezze, the small-plate tradition that opens any serious Levantine meal, is where the cuisine shows its range. Hummus, baba ghanoush, muhammara, tabbouleh, fattoush, labneh, kibbeh, sambousek, warak enab, and a dozen vegetable preparations arrive together, and the table eats family-style for an hour before any main course is considered. Grilled meats, slow-cooked stews, and rice pilafs follow, but mezze is often the meal itself.
The Levantine pantry is also one of the most vegetable-forward in the world. Long before the modern Western interest in plant-based eating, Levantine home cooking treated grains, legumes, and produce as the center of the plate, with meat as a seasonal supplement rather than a daily anchor. The grandmothers of the region still cook the foundational dishes (warak enab, kibbeh, mahshi, mujaddara) in batches large enough to feed three generations, and the meal is as much a social ritual as a feeding occasion. Coffee or tea follows every conversation; bread is broken, never cut; the youngest at the table waits to eat until the eldest has begun. This grammar of hospitality is inseparable from the cuisine itself.
The most internationally visible Levantine kitchen, refined by the country's long history of trade and emigration. Beirut sets the standard for mezze culture, raw kibbeh (kibbeh nayyeh), and the grilled-meat tradition (mashawi). Lebanese cooking leans light, citrusy, and herb-forward. Arak is the national spirit.
Aleppo and Damascus are the historic culinary capitals. Aleppine cooking is the most spice-driven Levantine style, with the famous Aleppo pepper, generous use of pomegranate molasses, and dishes like kibbeh in cherry sauce (kebab karaz) and muhammara (the walnut-pepper dip is an Aleppo invention). Damascus leans more toward stuffed vegetables and slow stews.
Maqluba (the upside-down rice dish with meat and vegetables), musakhan (sumac chicken on taboon bread with caramelized onions), and a deep tradition of foraged greens (khubeizeh, akoub) and wild za'atar. Nablus is the heart of knafeh, the cheese-and-semolina dessert soaked in syrup.
Mansaf, the national dish, is lamb cooked in fermented dried yogurt (jameed) over rice and flatbread, eaten communally by hand. Bedouin-influenced cooking with more dairy and more lamb than the coastal traditions.
A Levantine meal is built mezze-first. Order four to six cold mezze (hummus, baba ghanoush, tabbouleh, fattoush, labneh, muhammara), then two or three hot mezze (kibbeh, sambousek, fried cauliflower with tahini, grilled halloumi), then decide whether you still need a main. Often you don't. If you do, the grilled meat platters (mashawi mishakal) and the slow-cooked stews (yakhneh) are where the kitchen's depth shows.
The rookie mistakes: ordering one hummus per person (one large dish feeds three or four), filling up on bread before the mezze arrives, asking for the mezze plates to come in courses (everything comes at once, that is the form), skipping the pickles and olives that arrive uninvited (they are the palate-cleansers between bites), and refusing the strong coffee at the end of the meal (the bitter is the necessary counterweight to the sweet baklava or kunafa). Bread is for scooping; ask for refills without hesitation. Tipping is roughly 10 to 15 percent in the Levant proper and 15 to 20 percent in Western restaurants serving Levantine cuisine.
Arak, the anise-flavored spirit, is the traditional Levantine table drink, cut with cold water and ice (it turns milky white) and sipped throughout the meal. Lebanese wine from the Bekaa Valley, particularly Chateau Musar and Chateau Ksara, is genuinely world-class and pairs cleanly with grilled meats and tomato-based stews. With mezze, a crisp white or rose works well; with mansaf or maqluba, a medium red. Mint tea or Arabic coffee (cardamom-spiced, unfiltered) closes the meal. For the alcohol-free table, jallab and tamarind drinks are traditional summer accompaniments.
Beirut is the global capital of refined Levantine cooking, with a mezze culture and grilled-meat tradition unmatched anywhere. Damascus and Aleppo, when accessible, hold the deepest Syrian kitchens. The Palestinian diaspora has built strong scenes in Amman, Ramallah, and increasingly across North America. London, Paris, Berlin, Sydney, and New York all hold serious Levantine rooms run by Lebanese and Syrian chefs, and the Israeli and Palestinian scenes in Tel Aviv and Haifa share much of the same vocabulary with regional twists.
Levantine cuisine descends from the agricultural civilizations of the eastern Mediterranean, with continuous documentation going back to Babylonian recipe tablets (c. 1750 BCE) and the medieval Arab cookbooks of Baghdad and Aleppo. The Ottoman period (16th to early 20th century) standardized much of the mezze tradition across the region, and the Lebanese and Syrian diasporas of the 20th century carried the cuisine to Latin America, West Africa, and the West.
Levantine is a subset. The Levant refers specifically to Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, and Jordan. Middle Eastern is a broader umbrella that also includes Iraq, the Gulf states, Egypt, and sometimes Persia and Turkey.
Contested. Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, and Israel all claim it. The chickpea-tahini dip is documented in medieval Arab cookbooks from Cairo and Damascus, well before the modern political map. Treat the question as unanswerable and enjoy the dish.
Extremely. Lent and Orthodox fasting periods in the Christian communities and broader cultural patterns mean that most mezze and many mains are naturally vegan or vegetarian. Hummus, baba ghanoush, mujaddara, fattoush, tabbouleh, stuffed vegetables, and falafel are all plant-based.
Faour on Klostergade in the Latin Quarter serves authentic Palestinian take-away with falafel, hummus, fatoush salad, baba ganoush and homemade pita bread.
Signature: Falafel, Hummus, Mezze
Order: The falafel wrap with hummus and fatoush; the pita is made in-house and the whole thing costs under $90.
Tip: Open Monday to Saturday from 11:00. The queue moves fast. Also in the Nicolinehus market hall on Aarhus Ø.
The best falafel wrap in Aarhus at a price that is hard to beat in the city centre. At Klostergade 32. Booking recommended. Reservations advised.
Try: Falafel wrap
Palestinian street kitchen run by the Faour family, whose falafel recipe uses a soaked chickpea and herb blend that sets them apart from every other wrap.
Signature: Falafel wrap, Hummus plate, Msabbaha
Falafellas on Aiolou near Monastiraki in Athens runs the falafel pita counter until 23:30, the takeaway window built fresh with tahini, salad and chilli.
Try: Falafel pita with tahini and salad
Order: The classic falafel pita with extra tahini and a side of pickled chilli.
Tip: Queue runs longest at lunch; late-night orders move fast through the open kitchen.
Falafellas on Aiolou near Monastiraki in Athens is the central falafel pita counter, fresh-built takeaways under €5 with tahini, salad and chilli.
Try: Falafel pita with tahini and salad
Tip: Queue runs longest at lunch; the meatball pita is the regulars' variant.
Gemmayze Street has run Lebanese cooking from Shop 16 of St Kevins Arcade off Karangahape Road, Auckland since 2016. Mezze, charcoal grill, family recipes.
Signature: Lamb shawarma, Mezze board, Manakeesh
Gemmayze Street in St Kevins Arcade off Karangahape Road, Auckland runs Lebanese family recipes with mezze and manakeesh at sub-NZD $30 main prices.
Try: Mezze board and manakeesh
Ammoora in Federal Hill is Baltimore's Syrian fine-dining room at the Ritz-Carlton Residences, plating kibbeh and lamb beneath mother-of-pearl decor.
Order: The kibbeh and the saffron-rice lamb shanks with pomegranate.
Tip: The Damascene furniture and inlay are part of the experience; ask for a banquette.
Maroush on Adalbertstrasse in Kreuzberg has wrapped Berlin's benchmark chicken shawarma in flatbread since the 1990s. At Adalbertstr. 93. Booking recommended.
Try: Chicken shawarma sandwich
Habibi on Zülpicher Strasse in Cologne's Kwartier Latäng serves fully loaded falafel wraps for under €5; the most reliable budget feed on the student strip.
Order: Falafel wrap with hummus, tabouli, pickled turnip and tahini, then accept the cinnamon tea
Tip: Open until 03:00 Friday-Saturday. The wrap costs around €5; bring cash for the counter.
Aladdin's Eatery on North High Street in Columbus's Clintonville is the city's Lebanese Mediterranean counter with mezze and a vegetarian menu.
Signature: Lebanese mezze plate, Pita-rolled wraps
Order: The hummus and baba ghanoush mezze with warm pita, plus a chicken shawarma rollup.
Tip: Walk-ins steady; vegan and gluten-free options are clearly tagged on the menu.
Aladdin's Eatery on North High Street in Clintonville is the city's Lebanese Mediterranean counter, with a long mezze list and a deep vegetarian menu.
Signature: Mezze plate, Pita rollups
Order: Hummus and baba ghanoush mezze with warm pita.
Tip: Vegan and gluten-free options clearly tagged.
Aladdin's mezze lunch on North High Street in Clintonville pairs hummus, baba and warm pita under $12, the Columbus reference Lebanese cheap lunch.
Try: Hummus and pita lunch
Al Ameer on West Warren Avenue in Dearborn serves Lebanese cooking in metro Detroit since 1989. James Beard America's Classic 2016, the first Michigan winner.
Signature: Hummus, Shawarma
Order: Whole-leg lamb shawarma, hummus with pine nuts and warm pita straight from the oven.
Tip: Walk-in friendly; the parking lot is large for the area. Hours 11:00-22:00 most nights.
Al Ameer on West Warren Avenue in Dearborn serves Lebanese cooking in metro Detroit since 1989. James Beard America's Classic 2016, the first Michigan winner.
Signature: Hummus, Shawarma
Order: Whole-leg lamb shawarma, hummus with pine nuts and warm pita straight from the oven.
Tip: Walk-in friendly; the parking lot is large for the area. Hours 11:00-22:00 most nights.
Al Ameer on West Warren Avenue in Dearborn serves Lebanese cooking at lunch under $15 in metro Detroit. At 12710 W Warren Ave. Booking recommended.
Try: Hummus, shawarma, falafel
Tip: Lunch plate is the budget visit; chicken shawarma with rice runs $13.
Umi Falafel inside George's Street Arcade in Dublin 2, the vegetarian Lebanese counter doing the city's most credible falafel on freshly fried chickpeas.
Signature: Falafel wrap, Mezze plate, Baklava
Order: Falafel wrap with toum and pickles; a mezze plate and a glass of mint tea to share.
Tip: Counter and a handful of tables inside the Arcade; takeaway runs fastest at lunch. Other Umi branches sit on Mary Street and Rathmines.
Babs is a modern kebab house on West Nile Street in Glasgow from the Bread Meats Bread team, grilling Levantine, Greek and Turkish street food.
Try: Gourmet kebabs and mezze
Tip: It comes from the Bread Meats Bread crew, so expect the same big flavours; the lamb shawarma is the pick.
Marchica Shawarma on Calle Elvira in Granada is the takeaway durum counter with cheese-egg completo wraps and falafel for 3 to 5 euros each, no seating.
Try: Completo durum with cheese, egg and meat or falafel
Tip: Takeaway only; the completo durum falafel is the cheapest sit-anywhere lunch on the lower Elvira strip.
Kebab Baraka on Calle Calderia Nueva in Granada is the late-night shawarma stop on the Albayzin teteria strip, with spit-grilled lamb to midnight.
Try: Lamb shawarma in flatbread
Tip: Cash only; the queue moves at midnight when the teterias close.
Kebab Baraka on Calle Calderia Nueva in Granada plates a 4-euro lamb shawarma wrap, the cheapest late-night fill on the Albayzin teteria strip.
Try: Lamb shawarma in flatbread
Tip: Cash only; the queue forms at midnight when the teterias close.
Kimo Falafel on Schanzenstrasse in Hamburg's Sternschanze runs crisp deep-fried falafel sandwiches and platters at €3 to 8, with hummus, baba ghanoush.
Try: Falafel sandwich with hummus and salads
Tip: Open until 00:30 weekdays and 05:30 weekends. Cash and card both accepted; vegan options across the menu.
Fafa's on Iso Roobertinkatu fills a generous pita with falafel or halloumi and sweet-potato fries for about 11 euros, the original of a fast veggie chain.
Try: Falafel or halloumi pita
Tip: The halloumi pita is the move if you want a change from falafel. Branches are dotted across the city for a cheap quick lunch.
Tarihi Cumhuriyet Meyhanesi spread across three floors of Sahne Sokak, the rakı table running with fasıl singers and mezze rounds until 02:00.
Try: Rakı table with fasıl music
Yassin's Falafel House at Marble City Food Hall, Yassin Terou's Syrian counter named Reader's Digest Nicest Place in America in 2018, runs falafel.
Signature: Falafel sandwich, Hummus plate
Order: A falafel sandwich with hummus, plus a side of the daily Mediterranean salads.
Tip: The downtown counter operates from Marble City Food Hall while the original Walnut Street space rebuilds; the West Knox and Alcoa branches stay open.
Yassin's Falafel House at Marble City Food Hall, Yassin Terou's Syrian falafel and shawarma counter named Reader's Digest Nicest Place in America in 2018.
Signature: Falafel sandwich, Hummus plate
Order: A falafel sandwich with hummus and the daily Mediterranean salad sides.
Tip: The downtown location runs from Marble City Food Hall while the original Walnut Street space rebuilds; West Knox and Alcoa branches stay open.
Yassin's Falafel House on North Peters Road in West Knoxville, the original Yassin Terou Syrian counter, runs the falafel and shawarma menu that earned.
Signature: Falafel sandwich, Shawarma plate
Order: A falafel sandwich with the chicken shawarma plate and a side of hummus.
Tip: The N Peters Road location runs reliably weeknights; weekend lunches fill the small dining room.
Fadi Kattan's Palestinian dining room on Uxbridge Street in Notting Hill London, opened 2022, spreads across four floors and runs traditional Palestinian.
Signature: Lamb shoulder mansaf, Crispy rice and lamb parcels
Order: Whatever lamb-shoulder course is on, and a glass of arak to open.
Tip: Ground-floor counter takes walk-ins for mezze. Tables upstairs book a fortnight ahead. Brunch service runs Saturday and Sunday.
Chef Noam Bilitzer's MeeshMeesh in Louisville took a 2025 James Beard finalist nod with Levantine plates from his NuLu kitchen on East Market Street.
Signature: Shefha multi-course tasting, Wood-grilled lamb
Order: The Shefha shareable tasting menu with a group of four, plus the wood-grilled lamb.
Tip: Resy opens 60 days ahead at 11:00 for dinner Tuesday to Sunday. The patio takes walk-ins in warm months.
Chef Noam Bilitzer's MeeshMeesh in Louisville took a 2025 James Beard finalist nod for Levantine plates served from a NuLu kitchen on East Market Street.
Ayla in the 6e is the Levantine kitchen with wood-fired flatbreads and mezze platters from €14, the cheapest entry to a sit-down meal in the high-rent 6e.
Try: Mezze platter and Levantine flatbreads
Naranj on Riad Zitoun el Jdid is the Marrakech medina Lebanese spot: a Lebanese-Syrian husband-and-wife team plate mezze and grills on a rooftop terrace.
Signature: Mezze platter, Hummus, Lamb shawarma plate
Order: Build a meal from the mezze, then the chargrilled lamb shawarma plate.
Tip: The rooftop seats half the dining room; in cooler months the covered courtyard below is the calmer choice.
Naranj on Riad Zitoun el Jdid is the Marrakech medina Lebanese spot: a Lebanese-Syrian husband-and-wife team plate mezze and grills on a rooftop terrace.
Signature: Mezze platter, Hummus, Lamb shawarma plate
Order: Build a meal from the mezze, then the chargrilled lamb shawarma plate.
Tip: The rooftop seats half the dining room; in cooler months the covered courtyard below is the calmer choice.
Azar in Marrakech's Gueliz blends Lebanese mezze and grills with Moroccan plates; live oriental dance and shisha bar after 21:00, 20-plus years running.
Signature: Mezze, Shawarma spit-roast, House hummus
Order: The shawarma cut to order from the spit, with the house hummus and pickles.
Tip: Children under 5 not admitted. Book a banquette away from the dance floor if you want quieter conversation.
Mont Liban in Marseille's 1er on Rue Sainte is a Lebanese shawarma and mezze counter from a Lebanese couple, fresh hummus, tzatziki and small fried plates.
Try: Shawarma, mezze and Lebanese small plates
Tip: Two tables inside, mostly take-away; open until 22:00 daily.
A1 Bakery on Sydney Road has been Melbourne's Lebanese bakery anchor since 1992: thick manakish, fresh flatbreads and meat pies at a walk-in counter.
Order: Za'atar manakish with fresh tomato and onion
A1 Bakery on Sydney Road is Melbourne's best A$5 meal: fresh za'atar manakish from a wood-fired oven that has run on Brunswick's main strip since 1992.
Order: Za'atar manakish with olive oil from the wood-fired oven
Casablanca on East Brady Street has run Lebanese cooking since 1997, with mezze, shawarma and the city's deepest hummus list on Brady Street.
Signature: Lebanese mezze, Shawarma
Order: The mezze platter with hummus, baba ghanouj and falafel and a lamb shawarma plate.
Tip: Hookah lounge upstairs runs late weekends; the main floor closes at 22:00.
Casablanca on East Brady Street has run Lebanese cooking since 1997, with mezze, shawarma and the city's deepest hummus list among Brady Street shops.
Try: Mezze platter
Damas brought high-end Syrian cooking to Outremont, Montreal, plating charcoal kebabs, muhammara and cherry-sauced meatballs in a jewel-box room.
Signature: Muhammara, Cherry kebab
Order: The cherry kebab and a spread of cold mezze to start.
Tip: Order family style and share widely; the mezze are the reason to come.
Why locals love it: The casual, cash-friendly sibling beside formal Alep in Villeray, a Bib Gourmand mezze counter that tourists routinely walk straight past.
Tip: Order muhammara, sujuk and the grilled meats; it takes no reservations, so arrive a touch early.
Le Petit Alep is the beloved Syrian-Armenian bistro by the Jean-Talon Market in Montreal, a Bib Gourmand pouring Lebanese wine over warm mezze.
Signature: Muhammara, Sujuk
Order: Muhammara, sujuk and the garlicky grilled meats.
Tip: The casual Petit Alep next to formal Alep is the one you want; it takes no reservations.
Westends Best Döner Kebap in Munich's Westend serves the city's most-cited doener for around €8; oven-baked bread, house garlic sauce, falafel option.
Try: Döner kebab sandwich
Shaarawi on Calle 59 Mérida runs Yucatán-Lebanese tortas árabes for 65 to 110 pesos, the late-night legacy of the 1900s Lebanese migration to the peninsula.
Try: Yucatán-Lebanese pita torta
Rawia Bishara's Palestinian kitchen in Bay Ridge has served the borough Levantine food in New York City since 1998. Lamb fatteh, fried cauliflower.
Signature: Lamb fatteh, Stuffed kibbeh
Order: Lamb fatteh with toasted pine nuts.
Tip: Sunday family-style menu at $58 a head is the deepest value. Bring the appetite of two people.
Mamoun's on MacDougal has sold falafel sandwiches in Greenwich Village New York City since 1971. Falafel, hummus, baba ghanouj, shawarma, under-$10 plates.
Try: Falafel sandwich
Tip: Open until 04:00; the bar-closing slot is the busiest. Order the falafel sandwich with hot sauce; ask for extra tahini.
L'As du Fallafel in Paris is the falafel-pita window on Rue des Rosiers since 1979, a €9 sandwich the line moves through in 15 minutes most lunch services.
Try: Falafel pita
Tip: Closed Saturdays for Shabbat. Take the sandwich to Place des Vosges for a bench seat.
L'As du Fallafel in Paris is the Marais falafel window open until 23:30 most nights, with a €9 sandwich and a queue that moves in 15 minutes at 23:00.
Try: Falafel pita
Tip: Closed Saturdays for Shabbat. The line keeps moving past 22:00; takeaway is faster than table.
King Falafel Palace in Paris is the Marais falafel rival to L'As, three doors up the same Rue des Rosiers. €8 sandwich, faster queue, six pita variations.
Try: Falafel pita
Tip: Open Saturdays unlike L'As. The aubergine-and-egg variant is the order if you want a switch-up.
Suraya in Philadelphia is the Fishtown Lebanese market, garden and restaurant on Frankford Avenue from Greg Root, Nicholas Kennedy and chef Roland Kassis.
Signature: Whole roasted fish, Lamb shawarma
Order: Whole roasted fish for the table, lamb shawarma platter, the labneh with shrak bread.
Tip: Brunch on the back garden patio in summer is the room's best seat. Saturday 10am books out the fastest.
Suraya in Philadelphia is the Fishtown Lebanese market, garden and restaurant on Frankford Avenue, the modern Levantine showroom Michael Solomonov's team.
Order: Whole roasted fish for the table, lamb shawarma platter, the labneh with shrak bread.
Tip: Brunch on the back garden patio in summer is the room's best seat. Saturday 10am books out fastest.
Youssef Akhtarini's Aleppo Sweets on Ives opened in 2019, three years after his family resettled from Syria. Eight baklava plus a mezze menu.
Signature: Baklava, Mezze, Lamb kabob
Order: Pistachio baklava, an order of muhammara and a lamb kabob plate.
Tip: Closed Monday and Tuesday; the takeaway counter does the same baklava as the dining room.
Why locals love it: Operating since 1977 on Beryl Road, well off the tourist circuit, Neomonde is where Raleigh's Lebanese and Middle Eastern community shops and eats. The house-made pita from the bakery counter is outstanding; the hummus is freshly ground. Visitors who know it make a point of stopping; everyone else misses it.
Tip: Buy a bag of the fresh-baked pita to take home and pick up hummus and falafel while you're there. The grocery section stocks Lebanese pantry items you won't find elsewhere in the Triangle.
Lebanese family bakery and restaurant since 1977 with affordable house-made pita and hummus. Shawarma and mezze plates represent excellent value in Raleigh.
Try: House-made pita, hummus, shawarma
Downtown Raleigh's most established Lebanese restaurant. Falafel, shawarma, mixed grill, and mezze anchor the menu; Sunday brunch adds a wider spread.
Signature: Falafel, Mixed grill, Mezze platter
Sumac Grill + Drinks brings North African and Lebanese flavours to Icelandic produce on Laugavegur in Reykjavik, the sister venue that hides the Ox counter.
Signature: Mezze, Charcoal-grilled meats
Order: The mezze spread and the charcoal-grilled lamb; share across the table.
Tip: Sister to the Michelin-starred Ox, which sits behind it. Cocktails here are among the city's best.
Mandi on Ingolfstorg square keeps its halal shawarma window open late, a Reykjavik after-bar staple wrapping kebab, falafel and chips for the night crowd.
Try: Shawarma and falafel
Order: A chicken shawarma wrap with extra garlic sauce.
Tip: Fully halal and central on the square, so it catches the post-club queue. Falafel covers vegetarians.
Mandi on Ingolfstorg fills a cheap halal shawarma or falafel wrap for well under restaurant prices, a Reykjavik budget staple open late on the square.
Try: Shawarma wrap
Tip: The falafel plate is the cheapest filling option. Fully halal and central, good for a fast budget feed.
Lebanese garden restaurant since 2005 in the lower State Street garden district. Mezze, grilled meats, outdoor patio under olive trees. No cocktail-bar noise.
Why locals love it: A Lebanese garden restaurant tucked behind El Presidio Historic Park that most visitors walk straight past on their way to State Street. The fully outdoor patio with fire pits and string lights is one of the most atmospheric dining settings in Santa Barbara.
Tip: Reserve the outdoor patio in advance and arrive at dusk. The free-range chicken and halal lamb kebabs cooked over wood are the reliable order.
Sydney's canonical charcoal chicken shop on South Street, Granville. Whole chickens, garlic toum that defines the Sydney garlic-on-chicken canon.
Signature: Charcoal chicken, Garlic toum, Tabouleh
Order: Whole chicken, large toum, family-size chips.
Tip: Open late; takeaway queue moves faster than the dine-in line.
Late-night Lebanese-Palestinian sweet pop-up on Marrickville Road, Sydney. The Saturday-night cheese knafeh service runs into the small hours.
Try: Cheese knafeh
Long-running Lebanese family-run restaurant on Haldon Street, Lakemba, Sydney. Mezze, mixed grills, halal-certified, generous family-style service.
Signature: Mixed grill, Hummus with lamb, Tabouleh
Order: Mixed grill platter for the table and the hummus.
Tip: Cash-friendly; the Ramadan late-night service is famous in Sydney.
Nuba Gastown on West Hastings is the second branch of Vancouver's reference Lebanese kitchen since 2004, halal-certified, family-run by the Sabbagh family.
Signature: Najib's Special falafel, Crispy cauliflower, Beef kafta
Order: Najib's Special with crispy cauliflower; the family-style mezze plate covers the bar.
Tip: Multiple locations across Vancouver; this Gastown branch takes walk-ins at the bar plus reservations on OpenTable.
Naschmarkt Deli in Vienna runs an all-day breakfast carte for under €13, the shakshuka and sabich the Levantine-leaning brunch the cheap-eats option.
Try: Shakshuka with pita
Tip: Open daily; the breakfast carte runs all day, useful for jet-lag arrivals from outside the EU.
Beirut on Poznanska in Warsaw keeps the kitchen open until 02:00 every night. Late-set house DJ, hummus and warm pita straight out of the oven.
Try: Hummus, falafel, kofta with beer
Albi in Washington DC is Michael Rafidi's Michelin-star Navy Yard Levantine wood-fire dining room on 4th Street SE, a one-Michelin-star kitchen with a James.
Signature: Wood-fire kebabs, Manakish flatbread
Order: The hummus and the wood-fire shish barak (lamb dumpling); the editorial standout of the menu.
Tip: The tasting menu Yellow Door dinner is the chef's signature ticket; book the upstairs Yellow Door room directly.
Albi in Washington DC is Michael Rafidi's Michelin-star Navy Yard Levantine wood-fire dining room on 4th Street SE, a James Beard winner running a separate.
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