yalla yalla

so yesterday, i finally made it to yalla yalla. s, r, o and i turned up at yalla yalla for an early dinner. it was seven and the place was packed but luckily we only had to wait fifteen minutes. i stress the only because the previous four times that i have tried coming here i've been told the minimum wait is forty minutes. and i've usually been too hungry to wait that long. 

the space that makes up yalla yalla is very compact but unlike in other places is doesn't feel cramped. we had a very leisurely dinner, chatting and catching up. the service was good too. not intrusive but attentive at the same time. both o and r had fresh juice. o's carrot good but i'm inclined to believe that it had been sugared too generously. s and i had a pot of mint tea between us which was very refreshing. for starters we split falafel and hummous. the hummous was flawless. smooth with an intense tahini kick tempered with lemon. unfortunately we were so busy scooping it up with our warm pitas that i totally forgot to picture it. the falafel followed shortly after. the exterior of these was deep brown and flecked with sesame seeds and the interior incredibly moist. they were incredibly good and very moreish. they were served with a salad and some tahini sauce that accumulated at the base of the dish. i wonder whether lebanese falafel is slightly different from the ones i've had in the middle east which are slightly more robust. it may perhaps be the addition of broad beans but whatever it was they were really good.

for entrees, there were three mixed grills with me going for the shish taouk, a total feast of meat. my chicken shish was really tender and juicy and it came with vermicelli rice and an onion salad. whilst i loved the sumac in the salad i felt that the onion over powered the lightness of the chicken shish. in the mixed grill it worked beautifully with the lamb kafta. 

we decided to forgo dessert here for gelato at nearby gelupo but i think i've going to have to make another trip here. and the next time i'm trying the mousakka for the entree. 

we all really loved it! 

1 green's court| soho| w1f 0ha