ilili

ilili began in Manhattan, where it became one of the city's best-known Lebanese restaurants, and the Washington branch opened on 7 October 2021 at The Wharf, the redeveloped stretch of the Southwest waterfront. It is led by Philippe Massoud, who is executive chef, CEO and owner rather than a name on the door, and the menu is explicitly an ode to the tables and flavours of his Lebanese heritage: mezza-style small plates built for sharing, with a pronounced emphasis on Mediterranean seafood. The room is one of the more considered in the neighbourhood, designed to evoke a Beirut courtyard with custom daisy-tile floors, hand-painted wallpaper, reclaimed barn wood, citrus trees, hanging plants and a water fountain, and it is large enough that it works for a group without feeling like a hall.

The non-alcoholic programme is unusual in form as well as content. Rather than building spirit-free drinks to order, beverage director Rachid Hdouche makes them as bottled drinks, which lets him get Levantine flavours to sit properly rather than relying on a shake to hold them together. Washingtonian, listing ilili among DC-area restaurants with great non-alcoholic cocktails, described exactly that - Hdouche capturing Levantine flavours in the spirit-free bottled drinks at the Manhattan institution's roomy Wharf outpost. The two named pours are the Karkadih, a hibiscus and rosehip cordial that runs tart and floral rather than sweet, and the Levantine Lemonade, made with mint and fresh lemon juice, which is the simpler and more refreshing of the pair and pairs naturally with the mezza.

A few practical points. The restaurant keeps unusually wide hours for a place of its ambition: lunch Wednesday through Friday from 11.30am, brunch on both weekend days from 11am, and dinner every night, to 10pm Sunday through Thursday and 10.30pm on Friday and Saturday. That breadth matters for anyone not drinking, because it means the spirit-free list is available across brunch and lunch as well as dinner. The Wharf setting puts it on the water with a long promenade outside, and it is a short walk from the Waterfront Metro station.