Gazala’s

Gazala’s on UWS Serves Standout New Dishes - Eater NY

"After a three-year absence, Gazala’s reopened on the Upper West Side last month in an expansive new space located at 447 Amsterdam Ave. near 82nd Street. The previous location was on Columbus, right across from the back end of the Museum of Natural History; its surprise closure is still considered a mystery. The places are both comparable in size, but the new Amsterdam locale arguably enjoys more nighttime foot traffic, with such popular restaurants as Nice Matin and Crave Fishbar nearby. It also has an expanded menu, which two friends and I sampled on a recent evening. The new space is divided into two large dining rooms. The first includes a long bar, communal table, and open kitchen faced with handsome ceramic tiles, featuring a rotating vertical shawarma spit and stacked ovens. The second room is slightly larger, positioned up a few steps on the uptown side. Both rooms are sparsely decorated and lit with jeweled wall sconces that cast an uneven glow that dims as the evening progresses. The menu includes that of the restaurant’s predecessor, the still lively Gazala’s Place, located in Hell’s Kitchen in a more intimate space with a BYOB policy. The new branch, called simply Gazala’s, has a full bar with a relatively short wine and beer list, as well as invented cocktails. Israeli Druze chef Gazala Halabi has been busy in the interim, developing several dishes that haven’t been seen at her restaurants before, many served with her signature paper-thin pitas. We set about trying the new stuff along with some old favorites, while sitting at the end of the communal table nearest the kitchen so we could watch the chef at work." - Robert Sietsema