• Tanoreen

  7704 Third Avenue, Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, 718-748-5600

  If you’ve been to a Greek, Turkish, or Middle Eastern restaurant, you’ve had meze (even if you called the dips, spreads, salads, and savory pies appetizers). But all too often, one nondescript baba ghannouj blends into the next until you arrive at the dispirited conclusion that if you’ve had one, you’ve had ’em all. When that happens, make haste to Tanoreen in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, where just a glimpse of the well-stocked display case will banish your meze malaise. Parsley-dappled platters are heaped with creamy hummus, garlicky dandelion greens, cauliflower drizzled with tahini and pomegranate syrup, tangy tabbouleh, and eggplant ad infinitum (including an exceptional baba ghannouj). Tailor a cold combination platter to your exact specifications, add a hot meze like delectably crispy fried kibbeh or piquant grape leaves stuffed with lamb and rice, and let the appetizing begin. .

From the 2004 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine