Zyara

This Middle Eastern mostly takeout shop is the passion project of Khaleel Salman, a Jordanian expat who emigrated to New York with the goal of opening a place like the one his family runs in Amman. As host, cook, server, and busser, he bounds merrily about the place like a Jordanian Fred Astaire, and his repertoire — black-lime-spiked lentil soup; lively fattoush salad; chicken shawarma rolled up in lavash or served in a bowl with basmati rice — covers all the pita parlor bases with uncommon finesse. But if we had to restrict ourselves to one item from Zyara’s menu, it would be the Vegan Arabic Sandwich, a kitchen-sink sensation of deep-fried veggies (cauliflower, eggplant, and paper-thin zucchini) plus falafel, tomato, cabbage, and assorted pickled things that all gets stuffed into a housemade pita like circus clowns into a Volkswagen. It’s dressed with tahini and hot sauce and would do a meat-free Dagwood Bumstead proud.