Yalla
Restaurant · Multnomah ·
Mediterranean smokehouse serving pastrami, kebabs, and fried chicken
Mediterranean smokehouse serving pastrami, kebabs, and fried chicken
"Located in a walk-up window near Montana Bar, this spot serves terrific Middle Eastern street food, such as saj wraps, flatbreads loaded with fried eggplant, labneh, or lamb, homemade dips, and desserts such as madlouqa, a creamy orange semolina pudding. It also sells a selection of pantry staples, including pomegranate molasses, Arabic coffee, olives, za’atar, and tahini." - Joey Carreon
"One branch of the Sesame Collective restaurant group, Multnomah Village’s Yalla features a menu of Mediterranean dishes like meze platters, pastrami, kebabs, and a pretty excellent fried chicken with harissa honey and pickled cauliflower. Opening in the summer of 2020 meant patio seating was essentially required, so the team went all out. In front, diners can find individual picnic pods, covered and partially walled, complete with cherry-red bussing trays. In back, a covered wooden deck with heat lamps and white metal seating provides for small groups." - Thom Hilton
"Stepping up to provide food at the new location, Yalla—the popular Capitol Hill Middle Eastern takeout window run by Taylor Cheney—will launch a new concept under an unrevealed name focused on mezzes (small plates) and desserts, with offerings like Egyptian stuffed falafel, hummus with green chili salsa, batata harra (spicy Lebanese fried potatoes), pickled eggplant, kibbeh and desserts such as mastica and orange blossom mint–flavored ice cream, kunafa and Awami (donuts with rose water syrup); Cheney said the operation will donate the proceeds of a different mezze or dessert to charity each month, beginning with HEAL Palestine." - Harry Cheadle
"Located in downtown Multnomah Village, this restaurant from Sesame Collective is a mix of Eastern European and Mediterranean cuisines, featuring meze like warm olives, hummus with burnt beef ends, and falafel alongside house-smoked pastrami and schmaltz cornbread with bourbon glaze and honeycomb butter. Desserts like burnt Basque cheesecake, halva ice cream, and chocolate chip tahini cookies are worth the visit alone." - Rebecca Roland
"This Multnomah Village restaurant recently started serving brunch, and the menu includes a number of dishes that are hard to find around Portland these days, like chocolatey babka and egg-topped khachapuri. Both are must-orders on the brunch menu, as well as the huckleberry caramel Dutch baby, the jammy shakshuka, and the schmaltz cornbread sweetened with a judicious dose of bourbon glaze. Pair the meal with a pistachio gin fizz or the Daily Dose, a Wilderton mocktail with sage, grapefruit, and rose. Brunch runs from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays." - Brooke Jackson-Glidden, Paolo Bicchieri