Much has been written about Shukette including a great review by Pete Wells (New York Times), which makes reservations difficult. Since we had planned to take a friend for her birthday, I diligently got on Resy four weeks out to book dinner and grabbed a decent time.
The name Shukette, like its sister restaurant Shuka, derives its name from the Hebrew word for an open-air market, shuk. Both serve the creative cooking of Brooklyn-born Chef Ayesha J. Nurdjaja who helmed the kitchen that night.
Sadly there was no room outside, so we had to dine in the restaurant, which is quite noisy. We almost had to shout to hear each other. My dining partner ordered a garden Gazoz, one of their spritz-style cocktails made with Cocchi Americano, cucumbers, lemon and sparkling water ($14) while I sipped a glass of the Spanish Malvasia, Bodegas los Bermejos “Volcanico Seco,” 2020 ($15).
From their “When you dip, I dip, we rip” section we ordered their fluffy Not Your Average Hummus ($11) topped with marinated garbanzo beans with red onions and their hot sauce, bang bang shata. The salt cod ($12) comes mixed with crème fraîche and serrano chilies garnished with garlic chips and thin green scallion rounds. With that we sampled, the grilled Moroccan bread, frena seasoned with oregano and whole garlic cloves ($8) and lafa ($6), spread with olive oil and záatar.
From the “the Shuk” part of the menu. we sampled the crispy skate with Castelvetrano olives, preserved lemon, scallions and herbs ($15). That dish was both our favorite! The roasted cauliflower ($16) came with dates, pistachio nuts, tahini and a sauce from cumin, lemon, garlic, cilantro and olive oil. Of course, we had to sample with shwarma-spiced fries, too ($8).
We had ordered too much, just as we did at Shuka. I only wish that we had time between dishes as, within a few minutes of our first dish being placed on the table, all we ordered had arrived!
I’d recommend a visit requesting outdoor seating, weather allowing.
Shukette
Chelsea
230 Ninth Avenue
New York, NY 10001
shukettenyc.com
212-242-1803
That drink is beautiful. I would want to take the herbs home to reuse.
Brilliant idea. Why didn’t I think of that?
It is important to know whether you paid for your meal or if, as a blogger, they were asked to let you eat for free. The answer would change everything! I reviewed foods for twenty years, and paid.
D. Thanks for your comment. I always let my readers know if I was a restaurant’s guest.
I was not a guest at Shukette; I paid for every dish that I ate.
Where may I read your reviews?