Yalla Yalla Beirut Street Food: London

Date:  samedi 19 fevrier 2011
Location:  1 Green's Court, W1F 0HA London
T 44 020 7287 7663
http://www.yalla-yalla.co.uk/

Yalla!  "Hurry" in Arabic.  I had been wanting to try this restaurant since it opened about two years ago.  I read about its opening in the Financial Times.  I remember reading it on the floor of my San Francisco apartment one Sunday afternoon, while flipping through the Life and Arts Sunday section as is my weekend habit.  Having spent a month in Beirut during the Christmas and New Year of 2008, I have the fondest travel memories of my life there.  Culture shock, beautiful food and people, controlled chaos roads (worse than Asia), armed French speaking Arabic soldiers (AK47s and grenades) on every street corner and small shrines of Mary enclosed within plastic cases the same (even coming out of the discotheques).  Most of all, a beautiful war stricken country where even the terrain is harsh - one quickly realizes it is no wonder every Lebanese person you've met comes from survival blood.  I have a fond adoration and appreciation of the Middle East, its mysteries, and its people. 

Anyhow, I love Lebanese food from the mother land.  Mediterrenean, fresh, healthy, delicious, clean.  Nowhere have I been able to find homestyle Lebanese food - so I hoped that Yalla Yalla would be the next best thing.  Sure enough, it lived up to my desires.  Baba ghanoush, hummous, Lebanese sausage, potatoes, fattoush, Almaza Lebanese local beer, mint tea, and baklava for dessert. 

Yalla Yalla is located in the happening Soho neighborhood of London...  if you have a long wait (we waited about 45 minutes), there are plenty of fun bars, lounges, pubs to visit while you're waiting.  Oh on price point - totally affordable.  50 pounds for too much food and drink.  A must visit!!! 

Pickled peppers and radish;  Olives.

Front bar area of Yalla Yalla.

Cozy space.

Almaza Lebanese local beer.

Hummus.

Baba ghanoush.

Pita.

Falafel!!!!

Lebanese sausage.  Savory and a little spicy - so good!

Fattoush.  A little too much dressing - I will ask them to go easy next time.

Potatoe with cumin.  Love cumin!  :-)

Lamb.

Dining room.

Dining room, humble wooden tables - much like the ski lodges in the mountains of Beirut.

Mint tea and baklava!

Final check = 50 pounds.

Lebanon.

Yalla Yalla from Soho street.