After an early afternoon along the mid section of Central Park at the Natural History museum, I was looking for specifically Mediterranean restaurants within a half mile walk. As usual, we did not have reservations in mind, so we were hoping we could walk in. Sorting by the “hot and new” on Yelp, we decided on Miriam which seemed to be a second Israeli location for the owners. Fortunately, the restaurant was quite open around 4:45 PM, and we were able to walk in. If we had came closer to 6 PM, it probably would’ve been much more difficult to secure a spot.
Ambiance
The interior felt very modern with white and natural wood colors. There were a few families eating already, and once we sat down, they dimmed the lights about 25%.
The service was quite fast to start, and the waiter was friendly and provided good suggestions. When there was minimal crowds, the service was quite fast and attentive. But as the night went on towards core dinner hours, it was clear that they did not have enough wait staff as it became a tad more difficult to get ahold of the waiter.
Food
The Guava drink (left - $16) came with gin, guava, fresh lemon, and sweet cardamom. It was very smooth and had a nice balance of the guava and citrus note.
The sparkling raspberry lemonade (right - $6) came with blended raspberries. This was really delicious and refreshing.
The kadaif wrapped shrimp (part of the 3 for $30 meze) came with harissa aioli and 4 fried shrimps. The shrimp was cooked perfectly, and the texture of the wrap was similar to crispy thin noodles. The sauce reminded me of tahini.
The Miriam’s hummus (part of the 3 for $30 meze) came with warm chickpeas and parsley with Tatbelah. The hummus was very finely blended and tasted great.
The falafel (part of the 3 for $30 meze) came with pita croutons and crushed tomatoes with tahini sauce and parsley. The falafel was not as crispy as I would have liked, but the flavors were great. The crispy chip vessel was not really needed, but everything combined did taste good.
The meze came with a warm and thick pita bread and a side of hot sauce. The pita bread was thick but was an excellent conduit for the hummus or in any of our mezes. The waiter mentioned that we can ask for more pita bread if we wanted, but one was enough for us. The hot sauce side had an instant kick to it, but it did not linger. It was a nice contrast to mix in with any of these appetizers including the hummus.
The braised short ribs came with tamarind braised beef short rib, sweet potato latke over labneh, and string beans. The ribs were very fork tender and falling apart. The sweet potato latke had a nice crust and tasted great with the labneh. The string beans were crispy and fairly seasoned. This dish definitely was refined, and the quantity will probably not leave you full if you had skipped appetizers.
The lamb shawarma came with baked dough on terracotta bowl, lamb, yellow rice & chickpea, roasted green chili, and seared tomatoes. It was served with tahini yogurt amba sauce and a side of sumac red onion. The presentation of this reminded me of Indian biryani but with much less seasoning. Due to this, the rice and lamb did taste on the blander side, but when you mix in all the other condiments including some of the labneh from the short ribs, it tasted pretty good.
The kanafe came with Syrian dessert with ricotta cheese baked kadaif and pistachio ice cream. This was a little on the disappointing side for us as it was not that sweet and a little lacking in savory flavors. They reused the same noodles from the kadaif wrapped shrimp appetizer for most of this. Despite this, this dessert would appeal to folks that like hot and low savory and sweet sensations.
Final Verdict
Miriam in the Upper West Side is a pretty new and recent restaurant that serves delicious Mediterranean/Israeli food. It seems like it’ll turn into a hot spot. If you’re interested, definitely invest in a reservation for a prime time dinner or walk in for an early dinner. This is a great choice for a post Natural History museum meal.
Yelp Jabs
The service here was SO bad! We waited 2 hours for our entrees! We were a party of 4, got our appetizers quickly and then waited and waited. Someone came out and apologized, said food would come soon and then we waited 45 min, for a total of 2 hours! The food was OK but not worth the wait!
I suspect this diner came during prime time, and it resonates similarly to our experiences once the crowds were present. I thought there would be more tables of 2s and 4s, but surprisingly, they accommodated a lot of larger 5-6 parties.