Maydan
Middle Eastern restaurant · U Street ·
Wood-fired hearth serving Caucasian, North African, Middle Eastern cuisine
Wood-fired hearth serving Caucasian, North African, Middle Eastern cuisine
"Maydan is a Mediterranean restaurant from DC that’s insideMaydan Market, a shiny food hall in West Adams that’s home to atlayuda specialist, aThai barbecue spot, a pozole stand, and various pop-ups. Got all that? As the only full-service restaurant in the place, Maydan is useful for a few reasons: it takes reservations, it has a full bar with interesting cocktails, and it’s a fun option for grown-up group dinners. And the food is quite good, too. The cuisine-spanning menu takes inspiration from “Tangiers to Tehran,” so expect dishes like shish kebabs, grilled shrimp marinated in tamarind and dried lime, and sayyadiah, a butterflied branzino slathered in fiery red chile paste. The best items are the mezze, though, like walnut casik made with creamy labne. Each order comes with an unlimited pita basket that’s replenished faster than breadsticks at Olive Garden." - Brant Cox
"A fire-fueled Middle Eastern mainstay, it lost a Michelin star in 2024." - Emily Venezky
"A fire-fed Middle Eastern hot spot a few blocks up 14th Street NW." - Tim Ebner
"If you snag a restaurant reservation here, skip the kebabs, which were underwhelming when I had them, and keep it snacky with an assortment of Lebanese spreads; the mouneh platter with pickled vegetables, honey-soaked dates, and herbs; and the slyly smart Saz-arak cocktail with rye, barrel-aged arak, and hibiscus; for groups, the $95 tawle family-style spread works well." - Nicole Fellah
"Anchoring the market, this Michelin-recognized, live-fire restaurant draws from Morocco, Iran, Georgia, and Lebanon. The menu highlights halloumi grilled over the hearth, roasted baby eggplant, heirloom tomato salad, classic Lebanese muhammara, and kebabs with grilled oyster mushrooms or lamb, plus a $95 family-style tawle with dishes like hummus, a rib-eye plate, and chicken shish taouk." - Rebecca Roland