"From award-winning chef Michael Rafidi, this vibrant and cozy confluence of bar and bistro is found through a back alley entrance that leads up a set of dizzying black and white stairs alongside recorded noises and music that recall the Levant. Levantine wines and many cocktails made with arak, a popular Middle Eastern distilled spirit with cooling notes of anise and licorice, star on the beverage menu. (One of Rafidi’s signature apps is smoky escargot steeped in butter made with arak, alongside other more seasonal dishes.) You can also enjoy a full meal at the moody bar, with mains like head-on prawns with harissa tzatziki and hot quail aside tahini ranch. During the day, check out Rafidi’s famous za’atar, pistachio, and sumac-filled bakery that sits below the alleyway hangout, Yellow." - Emily Venezky
