Ali Baba built its Midtown East reputation the traditional way: two decades of consistent kebabs, generous portions, and lavash that arrives puffed like a balloon, hot from the oven, deflating fragrantly at first tear. The lunch rush of UN staff and Midtown workers tells you what the neighborhood already knows.
The mixed grill is the efficient tour — adana, shish, chicken, and lamb over rice — and the iskender kebab, doused in tomato sauce and brown butter over bread, is the indulgent one. Start with the cold meze plate. Portions run large enough that ambition should be calibrated before the bread fills you up.
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