2012 London’s Top 5 Lebanese Restaurants
For “significant portions” of “succulent”Lebanesefare, these “reliable” west End “oases” are “excellent value for money”the bowl of fresh vegetables on every table is a special touch” the settingsare “some what dated” it’s always “buzzy” and a “fave late-night- falafel andShawarma hangout”too, specially on Knightsbridge and Vere Street, which openuntil 5AM (the former nightly, the latter Thursday-Saturday)
We keep going back to Maroush V because the staffare excellent. The food is very good value. We had the set Mezze for 4 (we werea party of 5 but actually enough food 6) . As usual we had a very enjoyableevening. I Can't praise the staff too highly. Very attentive service andextremely polite.
Unbellissimo ristorante libanese (vero!), molto scenografico, in zonacentralissima, vicino ad Oxford Circus. Il locale è su due livelli, io sonstato al superiore, una sorta di balaustra molto ampia, che si affaccia sulpiano inferiore. I tavoli son ben distanziati e, sebbene fosse affollato,nonc'era particolare confusione. Il locale è pulitissimo e"lussuosamente" arredato.
Il persoanle è molto cortese egentile. Ho mangiato un antipasto di hummus che mi è piaciuto tantissimo e unpiatto di carne di agnello molto saporito. Ottimo anche il dessert (una speciedi risolatte con sciroppo alla rosa).
Temevo il conto fosse piuttosto alto,invece è stato una piacevole sorpresa.
Consigliato.
Maroush is a big name on the London Lebaneserestaurant scene. With numerous offshoots around town, its formula oftraditional food and smart surroundings has certainly proved a success.
High-quality food is an integralaspect of the Maroush brand. Almost every imaginable meze dish is available:from dips (houmous and baba ganoush) to pastries (fatayer and arayes - a bakedpastry with lamb) and hot dishes (fuul, sujuk and beid ghanem - lambs'testicles with lemon and olive oil). More unusual are the 'Maroushspecialties': five dishes of raw lamb in various guises, all served with littlepiles of variously colored, powdered spices - a rare pleasure for those whohave acquired the taste. At most other Maroush outposts, you'll find the sametraditional, well-prepared food, but more sedat surroundings.
You don't have to get a table at theIvy to watch Tom Cruise eat wings! Bjork orders ribs, Jarvis Cocker likes hischeese fondue to come with a yodel.
Sue Webster reveals her secret'celebrity' restaurant list . . .
Maroush V
Orange walls, yellow ceilings, pinkmarble, and belly-dancers - if you love kitsch, this Lebanese hotspot is theplace for you. Just don't arrive before 9.30 - it's dreary without a crowd ofback slapping, oil-rich businessmen.
Who goes: Lennox Lewis, Tina Turner.The Duchess of York was turned away without a reservation.
Celebrity order: Mezze
If all of Lebanon eats and parties the way they doat Maroush, then we're on the next plane out. Part of the continually-growingMaroush empire founded by Abouzki Marouf, this Maroush is a bright, fun, verysmart place to eat, schmooze and be entertained. The space is divided into theupper mezzanine - or should that be mezze-nine - that looks onto the largerdining room below. The looong menu includes the Lebanese top ten and then some.We like to start with araks all around, munch on the huge platter of complimentaryveggies, then choose a million starters and share them - hoummous bothshawarama and awarma, falafel, moutabal, tabouleh, fattoush and kibbeh nayehfor the raw lamb devotees. If you still have room for main courses, try one ofthe simply-roasted lamb dishes with rice or explore the fish. For pudding havethe mouhallabia
Quite possibly the busiest restaurantin the borough (barring, perhaps, McDonald's on High St Ken) Maroush keeps thecrowds coming from midday until early morning. Fans find any excuse - pickingup a picnic, preventing the next day's hangover - to pop by for a quick chickensandwich from the take-away downstairs, while the more formal dining roomupstairs is an 'excellent' place for dinner, serving 'stacks of high qualityfood', of which the mezze is particularly recommended
Maroush dominates the Edgware Roadarea with outlets on most corners & you're sure to find a branch buzzingwith activity until well beyond midnight on any given night of the week . ..'tasty food' is generally matched with 'excellent service.' Maroush I offersextra value in that belly dancers are included in the cover charge, &although most branches close around 1am, you can still get an excellent kebabat Ranoush Juice until 3am, perfect for refuelling for the journey home.
London's Top Ten Cheap Eats
Ranoush Even hardened restaurantcommentators may be forgiven for getting tangled in the Ranoush /Maroush web ofbranches. Call it what you will, this group has various Lebanese restaurantsall over London, plenty of them at the south end of the Edgware Road. Thosethat bear the Ranoush name (as opposed to Maroush, Beirut Express, Randa orwhatever) have a simple and successful formula, very fresh juices, simplekebabs, a selection of meze. Ranoush does stay open until 3am which makes it agood place to rehydrate and take on board some much needed vitamins after afierce night out.
Recommended dish: top-rated lamb shawarma,good meze, excellent yoghurt, fresh bread.
This is a lovely little restaurant, literally right opposite Debenhams on Oxford St. It's so handy togo to after an intense shopping round. Service is great, and the food is very-tasty. Recommend their lamb shawarma wraps! They give lovely fresh fruit at the end of a meal which was complimentary. I'm sure this place will stay around for years as it has a great location and right mix of what makes Middle Eastern food great.
My Paddington
All through the seventies the handfulof Lebanese eateries that were in London were clustered together on EdgwareRoad. These catered for the locals in the area and to the guests of the nearbyIntercontinental and Park Lane Hilton Hotels, but then Europeans started tochange their palate…
As the population of Londondiversified and tourism became more accessible, people started to discover thedelights of Lebanese and Arabic food, and the number of specialised restaurantsgrew. Now you can experience this gorgeous cuisine everywhere, for all sorts ofprices! Momo's in the West End springs to mind, where you pay exuberant pricesfor cous cous with the rich and famous! But to taste the original and somewould say the best, you will have to come to Edgware Road.
Maroush and Ranoush restaurants onEdgware Road are synonymous with Lebanese food and Maroush Beauchamp Place is ahugely popular place to hang out, known for its late opening hours as well asthe gorgeous fruit juice bar. Marouf Abouzaki is the man behind Maroush, and heclaims that the secret to his success is "Good food, good service and fullattention to customers" - something his restaurants seem to take pride in,as whenever I have been there the food has been great and the waiters veryattentive. . .
A part of the Maroush chain of restaurants and cafes, this branch of Maroush is one of the best places to go for fine Lebanese food in London.
The Venue
The restaurant is well located just off Edgware Road behind Marble Arch and near to the main shops of Oxford Street, such as Selfridges and Marks and Spencer. It has recently been redecorated in colours such as orange and yellow, so the new look is a bit toobright. The dining room of the restaurant is divided into three sections and each section is a different colour.
The Atmosphere
Maroush is nearly always busy but nottoo noisy or overcrowded and attracts an international set of people who wishto dine after work. The waiters are friendly and the service efficient andthere is lively Middle Eastern music playing in the background.
The Food
When you arrive at Maroush a dish ofcrudites is placed on the table so that you can crunch on fresh vegetableswhilst deciding what to order. By the same token at the end of the meal acomplimentary platter of Middle Eastern sweets such as baklava arrive on thetable. As for what to eat in between, the choice is extremely wide with over 60starters or meze on offer and another 30 main courses.
In some ways it is preferable to choosea number of different starters instead of a main course, because the hot andcold meze are the pearl of Lebanese cusine and the main courses are veryfilling.
Starters that are particularlyrecommended include houmous and bab ghanouj (aubergine dip), jawaneh - orcharcoal grilled marinated chicken wings served with garlic sauce, falafel,which are deepfried bean and herb croquettes served with a tahine sauce andkibbeh shameyieh, which is deep fried lamb meatballs mixed with cracked wheatand onions, filled with sauteed minced meat and onions. Also worth trying arethe fatayer, which are mini triangles of pastry filled with spinach, and thecharcoal grilled sweetbreads are also very good. All food is accompanied bycomplimentary hot unleavened bread.
The Drink
Maroush specialises in fresh fruitjuices. The melon juice comes highly recommended although it is a little sweet.Mint tea is also recommended at the end of your meal. There is also a good winelist which includes Lebanese red, white and rose wines such as Kefraya from theBequa'a Valley.
The Last Word
Whichever branch of Maroush that youchoose to go to, it is guaranteed to be a luxurious dining experience and, ifyou can't get enough of the Maroush magic, outside catering for private partiesin your home is available.
Maroush is a chain of unmarketLebanese restaurants with authentic atmospheres that serve traditional dishes.They also offer a takeaway and delivery service.
Excellent Lebanese restaurant in allaspects - food, service, & decor! One of the best places to eat inLondon. Best chicken cube sandwich. How do they make that grilledhalloumi cheese on pita. Wow!
Hidden away from the bustle of OxfordSt, Maroush is a smart, fun and lively restaurant perfect for cosy dinners orbig groups alike. On my first visit, I had never tried Lebanese food before butthere are definitely things that you will recognise - namely falafel (which aresoooo much better than supermarket versions), shawarma (chicken or lamb kebabsbut with actual meat) and Tabbouleh.
The menu is vast, which is theperfect excuse to keep going back to try everything, you will discoverfavourites each time (Moutabal, Kibbeh and Baklawa for dessert - mmmm!) Serviceis friendly and efficient, prices are standard London.
You might even be able to spot a goodold D-lister, I once saw Uri Geller eating in here (just after his stint in I'ma Celebrity) and apparently Paris Hilton has been to the Knightsbridge branch!On top of all this, they sometimes also have live entertainment in the form ofa singer or a belly dancer...
“The later you eat, the better the ambience”, at London’s leading Lebanese chain, be it in the “bustling” cafétake-away (at I, II and V) or the restaurants; all branches serve an“excellent” range of “super-fresh” mezze, and “succulent” charcoal-grills.
Maroush is the home of Lebanese cookingin London and there are 17 restaurants dotted around the city. While Maroushhas yet to expand beyond the capital.