ilili Restaurant - Lebanese restaurant in New York - 236 5th Ave, USA

For Lebanese food with great vibes this is the spot. For date night, or catch-up with friends who want a nice place to relax and catch-up over food! The food was really delicious. The octopus and duck were the highlights with tons of flavor but both a bit sweet savory and saltiness combines that kept me wanting more. The pita bread also was nice and warm every time it came out. Staff was great and friendly. The space is huge and bathrooms were clean. Definitely recommend coming in a larger party just to try more things vs date night with that special person.

Ilili catered our event, and they did a marvelous job. Jessie Jodet, the Private Events Manager, was very communicative and helpful and a pleasure to work with. We had originally selected a drop-off boardroom lunch for 30 people but later decided to go with full-service catering of the boardroom lunch to serve 36 people. Jessie assured me that the 30-person boardroom lunch would feed 36, and she was right. There was more than enough to serve 36 people. Alex and a staff member delivered the food and set up the buffet. Alex stayed to manage the buffet, and he even plated food for people who are unfamiliar with Lebanese cuisine. He was professional AND charming! The food was beautifully presented. Everything was fresh and appetizing and absolutely delicious! There was a generous amount of food, so that there was never any worry that we were running low on anything. We were very happy to have leftovers. We will definitely contact Ilili again for our future events!

Food 5/10 I feel like I’ve had better Mediterranean food elsewhere, with a cheaper price tag. The pita was fluffed up and warm. The shawarma was pretty good, but I forget everything else that we ordered, despite the fact that we ordered a LOT of food. Clearly, nothing really stood out to me. I wish I liked it more because so many of my friends rave about this spot. Atmosphere 9/10 Gorgeous interior, super high ceilings. You enter to a lounge area. Quite dim warm lighting. The inside is a lot bigger than I thought it was, plenty of large tables and small tables too. I love the vibes. The bathrooms were gorgeous too. Service 8/10 Friendly service, attentive too. There was a cake fee so we ended up eating cake in Madison Square Park.

This place is absolutely a blast. Food, service, and ambience were perfect and very authentic. Mouhamara is on the sweet side and goes well with the pitas. The lamb grill mix was just legendarily great with exquisite flavor and rich aroma. The only miss was the tuna tartare which tasted kinda weird.

A truly awesome dining experience. The food was fresh, the service was incredible, and the interior was beautiful and had a cool vibe. I will definitely be coming back!

By far one of the best restaurant experiences that I’ve had in NYC this year! Came here with about 6 people and ordered a wide array of dishes. Everything was delicious but what really stood out were the eggplant dishes plus the dips - I’d definitely get these if you’re looking for some options. The drinks were also great but not the star. Service was perfect though the food took a while to come out. Looking forward to coming back soon sometime in the near future!

Excellent dinner spot! We went as a group of 6 for my mother’s birthday and it was the perfect celebration spot. Since we weren’t too hungry we ordered 6 mezze small plates and no main entrees. Everything was absolutely delicious but the muhammara, eggplant, and brussel sprouts really stood out. They also do a super cute birthday plate with baklavas for dessert that were super yummy.

Place is very pretty and ambience is nice. We went as a party of 15ppl and booked a semi private area in the mirror room. All the food was great and all my family and friends enjoyed every dish. Our server, Mathew, was awesome and really helped everyone at the table.