Middle eastern cuisine

Will Josh Katz be the one to finally make Fitzrovia’s 7-8 Market Place work?

12-Apr-2024 By Joe Lutrario

The chef restaurateur behind Berber & Q and Carmel has taken the former La Rampa site just off Oxford Circus for his biggest restaurant project yet.

Maray team to launch falafel-focused concession at Boxpark Liverpool

25-Mar-2024 By Joe Lutrario

The team behind Liverpool and Manchester-based Middle Eastern restaurant concept Maray will be part of Boxpark Liverpool’s opening line up of traders.

Josh Katz to bring Carmel to Fitzrovia

01-Feb-2024 By Joe Lutrario

Middle Eastern grilling specialist Josh Katz will bring Carmel to Fitzrovia next month following the all-day dining format’s success in Queen’s Park.

Helen Graham steps away from Bubala to pursue solo projects

06-Nov-2023 By James McAllister

Helen Graham has stepped down from her role as executive chef of meat-free Middle Eastern restaurant Bubala after five years in order to pursue ‘some exciting solo projects’.

Sarit Packer: “For us, baking has always been a big part of what we do”

05-Oct-2023 By James McAllister

The co-founder of Middle Eastern restaurant group Honey & Co on the launch of their café concept, Honey & Co Daily, and London’s voracious appetite for baked goods

Comptoir Group returns to expansion trail with first UK opening in four years

06-Sep-2023 By James McAllister

Comptoir Group is returning to the expansion trail with its first UK opening in four years.

Honey & Co. pair to launch café, deli and bakery in Bloomsbury

11-Jul-2023 By Joe Lutrario

Middle Eastern restaurant group Honey & Co. will open a café, deli and bakery just off Tottenham Court Road this September.

Middle Eastern style American diner Epicurus to open in Camden

20-Apr-2023 By Restaurant

The founders of Middle Eastern Steakhouse The Black Cow are opening a new restaurant in Camden this month.

Latest opening: Kapara

06-Mar-2023 By Restaurant

The team behind Southwark-based Tel Aviv inspired restaurant Bala Baya has launched a naughty Soho sibling.

Oded Oren to launch specialist mediterranean delicatessen in Hackney

06-Dec-2022 By Joe Lutrario

East London-based chef Oded Oren will launch a specialist delicatessen just outside Broadway Market next month.

Maray shutters Allerton Road restaurant

15-Nov-2022 By James McAllister

Liverpool-based restaurant group Maray has permanently closed its restaurant on Allerton Road in order to focus its resources on the rest of its estate.

Operation: Falafel set for London debut

30-Aug-2022 By James McAllister

Dubai-born street food concept Operation: Falafel is to make its UK debut next month in London's Camden, ahead of plans for a wider roll out across the country

John Javier to open his 17 Little Portland Street restaurant to the public

05-Aug-2022 By James McAllister

Chef John Javier is to open up his members-only 17 Little Portland Street restaurant in London's Fitzrovia to the public this month.

The chef and restaurateur who recently launched Levantine restaurant Pascor in London's Kensington on the sector's multi-sensory power, his love of Lego, and his view on the industry's staffing crisis.

Latest opening: Honey & Co. Bloomsbury

29-Jun-2022 By Joe Lutrario

In Lamb’s Conduit Street, Itamar Srulovich and Sarit Packer have found the perfect home for their flagship restaurant.

Tomer Amedi to open Pascor in Kensington

16-Jun-2022 By Restaurant

Former The Palomar head chef Tomer Amedi will launch Levantine restaurant Pascor in Kensington this month.

The Drunken Butler drops tasting menu to focus on Persian feasting offer

25-May-2022 By Joe Lutrario

Farringdon restaurant The Drunken Butler will drop its French-leaning tasting menu early next month to serve an exclusively Persian menu.

Generation Next

Bubala: “Focusing on vegetables has been liberating”

09-May-2022 By James McAllister

Marc Summers and Helen Graham’s meat-free Middle Eastern restaurant Bubala was a Shoreditch game changer. Now they are taking their veg-focus to Soho

Itamar Srulovich: “There is no such thing as Middle Eastern food”

08-Apr-2022 By Joe Lutrario

One half of the husband and wife duo behind Honey & Co on the much-loved restaurant’s move to Bloomsbury and why he’s not comfortable with the term the group currently uses to define its food.

Honey & Co moves to Bloomsbury

15-Mar-2022 By Joe Lutrario

Itamar Srulovich and Sarit Packer have found a new home for their Honey & Co Middle Eastern restaurant on Bloomsbury’s Lamb's Conduit Street.

Dan Pelles named as new head chef at The Coal Office

10-Mar-2022 By Restaurant

Dan Pelles has been promoted to head chef at The Coal Office restaurant in King’s Cross.

Bababoom set for Westfield Stratford City

17-Feb-2022 By Joe Lutrario

Kebab specialist Bababoom will open a site in Westfield Stratford City this spring bringing its total number of sites back up to two.

Honey & Co to close after a decade in business

15-Feb-2022 By Restaurant

Middle Eastern restaurant Honey & Co on London’s Warren Street is to close this spring after 10 years.

Maray heads to Manchester for biggest site yet

15-Feb-2022 By James McAllister

Liverpool-based restaurant group Maray is expanding outside of its hometown for the first time later this year with a new site in Manchester that will be its biggest to date.

Middle Eastern restaurant Bubala to open in Soho

28-Jan-2022 By Restaurant

Critically-acclaimed Middle Eastern restaurant Bubala is heading to Soho with the opening of a second venue.

Latest opening: The Barbary Next Door

17-Dec-2021 By Restaurant

The little sister to The Barbary restaurant in London's Neal's Yard is a buzzy, bijou space.

Australian chef Roy Ner to launch Middle Eastern-inspired restaurant in Mayfair

16-Nov-2021 By Joe Lutrario

Australian chef Roy Ner is to make his UK debut early next month with high-end Middle Eastern-inspired restaurant Jeru.

Morito Hackney launches live music night

08-Sep-2021 By Joe Lutrario

Moro founders Sam and Sam Clark are to launch a live music night at their hackney restaurant Morito next week (14 September).

Palomar pair to open 'little sister' to The Barbary

08-Sep-2021 By Joe Lutrario

Next month will see Layo and Zoe Paskin open a relaxed ‘neighbourhood’ restaurant and wine bar adjacent to its Covent Garden restaurant The Barbary.

Middle Eastern-style steakhouse to launch in Camden

07-Sep-2021 By Joe Lutrario

Chefs Shiri Kraus and Amir Batito will launch a Middle Eastern steakhouse concept in Camden’s Hawley Wharf later this month.

Berber & Q team to launch Carmel in Queen’s Park

04-Aug-2021 By Joe Lutrario

The team behind London’s Berber & Q and Shawarma Bar is to launch a relaxed restaurant in Queen’s Park this October.

Ceru to swap Soho for Queensway

19-May-2021 By Joe Lutrario

Levantine restaurant group Ceru has closed its Soho restaurant citing the pandemic and an unsympathetic landlord.

Simon Shaw to open Middle Eastern restaurant Habas in Manchester

31-Mar-2021 By Joe Lutrario

North West-based chef restaurateur Simon Shaw is to open a modern Middle Eastern restaurant and live music bar in Manchester city centre.

Layo Paskin: “It’s a horrible feeling to be haemorrhaging money”

24-Nov-2020 By Joe Lutrario

The Palomar and The Barbary founder on what it feels like to close a brand new restaurant after just two day’s trading, pivoting to retail and why he’s not taking bookings for his places just yet.

Alex Ghalleb to open Chameleon in Marylebone

24-Nov-2020 By Joe Lutrario

Alex Ghalleb is spearheading a multi-faceted restaurant venture within the grounds of a Grade I-listed former church that will include a restaurant headed by high profile Israeli chef Elior Balbul.

Wirral’s Beacon Arts Village names first F&B outlet

03-Aug-2020 By Joe Lutrario

The first of three restaurants due to open at Wirral arts development Beacon Arts Village has been named as the Middle East-inspired Beldi.

Two further operators confirmed for Elephant Park

10-Jan-2020 By James McAllister

A further two operators are set to open sites within the Elephant Park development in south London this spring.

Jad Youssef to open Lebanese restaurant in Reigate

03-Dec-2019 By Joe Lutrario

Yalla Yalla founder Jad Youssef is to launch a Lebanese restaurant in Reigate, Surrey, early next year.

Middle Eastern promises: James Walters on Arabica KX

18-Oct-2019 By James McAllister

James Walters has opened a second incarnation of his Levantine-inspired restaurant concept Arabica. A lot has changed, but what remains is the chef’s determination to steadily evolve the brand.

Latest opening: Arabica KX

11-Oct-2019 By James McAllister

James Walters has finally opened his second Arabica site in London, featuring a more freewheeling approach and an almost entirely new menu.

Arma to open on former Oliver Maki site

27-Sep-2019 By James McAllister

A grab and go Middle Eastern concept is set to open on the former Oliver Maki site in Soho early next month.

Latest opening: Bubala

11-Sep-2019 By James McAllister

Following a series of successful pop ups and supper clubs, Middle Eastern-style vegetarian concept Bubala has opened its first permanent site on Spitalfields’ Commercial Street.

Haya to open in Notting Hill

09-Aug-2019 By James McAllister

Former Dinner by Heston Blumenthal chef Oren King is to oversee the kitchen at a new neighbourhood-style Mediterranean restaurant opening in London’s Notting Hill this September.

Arabica to open second restaurant

25-Jul-2019 By James McAllister

Chef James Walters’ Levantine-inspired restaurant concept Arabica is to open a second London site in King’s Cross this September.

Vegetarian Middle Eastern pop up Bubala to go permanent this summer

16-Jul-2019 By Stefan Chomka

Vegetarian Middle Eastern feasting pop up restaurant Bubala will open its first permanent restaurant in the capital this year.

Tony Kitous: "I want to see 1,000 Lebanese restaurants in the UK'

09-Nov-2018 By Food Spark

With a new site set to open in London Bridge, the Comptoir Libanais founder discusses the group's star dishes, making Lebanese food more accessible to the masses and why people are rediscovering Middle Eastern cuisine.