New Meze Grill Opens On 8th Ave.

meze grill
Photo Courtesy of NYC Sidewalker

Getting some reports about a new spot on 8th Ave. & 55th called Meze Grill.  This midtown lunch’er describes it as a “Middle Eastern Chipotle” and from the looks of the menu, posted to the Zagat Blog, that sounds like a pretty fair assessment.  Might have to check this out today…

11 Comments

  • A middle eastern Chipotle? Sounds like most falafel/shwarma joints in Israel. Choose meat and choose from 9 different salads to put on it. Either way I will be there for lunch.

  • User has not uploaded an avatar

    HA! I just read this post and was about to make the same exact comment. Middle-Eastern Chipotle = every middle eastern joint that exists. Ever walk into Kosher Deluxe? You pick Pita or Laffa, choose protein, and pick out of an array of salads and sauces. This is a formula that has existed since the days of wandering in the desert. If anything, Chipotle is a Mexican Meze Grill.

  • I’ll be there today. What are the chances they have lamb shawarma?

  • User has not uploaded an avatar

    just got an early lunch there. I didnt see any lamb shawarma, but the chicken is really delicous. great quality. one of the better versions of this genre in the area.

  • User has not uploaded an avatar

    Just had lunch there; You pick your layout (sandwich, grain, or salad), protein (chicken, steak, falafel) and toppings.

    I had the steak over bulgar wheat with harissa/med salsa/olives/feta/onions.

    Taste points:
    Steak had the texture and taste of tender beef jerky. If you’re looking for freshly grilled skirt/flank, this had a bit of a grittyness to it, perhaps marinated with acid for too long.
    Harissa and the Medit. Salse didn’t have any heat, I was hoping like a red harissa paste or something, but the heat wasn’t there.
    Bulgar wheat was a touch past al dente, still had some good bite.
    Toppings were all seemingly very fresh, didn’t try the mezze salads on the side.

    Observations:
    Chicken *looked* damn good. Falafel was flat shaped, looked slightly overdone, didn’t taste.

    General thought:
    Staff was friendly, tasty and fresh (although not bursting with flavor that I was expecting), i’d pass on the steak for the next couple weeks until they get their stuff done. OH, and the pita is made in house, and is excellent. Just made, yeasty taste, definitely worth the value.

    You’re basically paying a few dollars more than you would get on the street for a clean kitchen, with quality ingredients, worth the value in my opinion.

  • User has not uploaded an avatar

    I already ate my lunch but figured I’d swing in to pick up my afternoon snack since I wanted to try this place out. Got some spicy hummus and pita bread. The hummus is actually spicy hot! And I have a pretty high heat tolerance. The pita bread is fresh and soft, kinda dense. Also, it’s whole wheat. Very yummy. Can’t wait to get a sammie here. And the price/portion is good since I have enough hummus for 2 or 3 snacks.

    The actual place was really nice and clean. Staff was friendly and helpful. It was pretty empty when I was there but I’m sure that won’t last long.

  • User has not uploaded an avatar

    Ate there today too. Overall – Eh.
    Had the chicken pita w/ potatoes and various stuff. Something funny about it consistency wide – maybe overmarinated as suggested above and therefore gritty in texture- almost a cardboard consistency. Everytheing overall was “fine” but not even close to Olympic, etc. Very generic/too clean/Chipotle-esque. That said it’s 1 block from my office -and certainly beats Pax…
    If you do go, the rice platter is the way to go – has everything the sandwich has (pita on side) – plus it comes on a bed of rice which sandwich doesn’t have – better value for same price. Also, the falafel only had 3 balls with it – which seems sort of skimpy to me (didn’t try it though).
    This place will be a popular alternative to those people who frequent Lenny’s and Bread Factory nearby… (i.e. not for me)

  • User has not uploaded an avatar

    Been living in Hell’s Kitchen for 8 years and this place definitely just jumped to the top of my list. I went today on my lunch break to try it out. The place was super clean and the staff was really friendly. I had the rice platter with chicken and topped it with turnips, pickles, tomato and a few other sides. Everything was so fresh and tasty especially the pita straight from the oven. I can’t wait to go back and try the their other offerings, including the spicy hummus which looked amazing.

  • User has not uploaded an avatar

    Meze grill was AWESOME. The food was so fresh and the chicken was cooked perfectly. Its so clean in there and refreshing compared to all the other fast food in the area.

  • Alright, very enthusiastic Meze Grill fans who have never commented on the site and just registered a few hours ago with strange gmail and hotmail addresses that seem like they were just made up…

    We welcome all business owners to comment on the site, and to give or solicit feedback from Midtown Lunchers. Just please be up front an honest! Shilling is not looked on very kindly in these parts. (Engaging your customers in an honest way, is!)

  • I walked by yesterday after work and a guy was practically begging people to stop in. I’ll try it, but having to pick the elements other than my proteins is kinda annoying..

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