Alon Shaya put modern Israeli food on the New Orleans map a decade ago, and the city now has three places to eat it, two of them still his.
Saba, Uptown
Shaya named Saba for the Hebrew word for grandfather and opened it in 2018 on Magazine Street after leaving his earlier restaurant. The menu travels through the cooking of Israel and its neighbors, from Bulgaria and Yemen to Morocco, Turkey, and Greece. Pita comes puffed and charred from a wood-burning oven, and it goes straight into hummus topped with blue crab and lemon butter. Falafel arrives with a crackly crust and a bright green center.
Gulf fish and local meats cook over hot coals and land on family-style platters, so the table ends up passing plates. Michelin named Saba a Bib Gourmand. It sits at 5757 Magazine Street, serves dinner Wednesday through Sunday and brunch Friday through Sunday, and closes Monday and Tuesday. Call (504) 324-7770.
Shaya, Uptown
This is where the story started. Alon Shaya opened Shaya with John Besh in late 2015, and it won the James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant in 2016. Shaya left in 2017, and the restaurant kept going under new leadership. It now describes its cooking as modern Israeli and Lebanese, shaped by a Lebanese chef and the dishes he grew up eating.
The wood-fired oven still anchors the kitchen. Fluffy pita comes to the table hot, alongside vegetable-driven dips and salads, and many plates are built for sharing across several courses. Diners single out the hummus with wild mushrooms, a hanger steak with toum and za’atar, and a labneh cheesecake to finish.
Shaya sits at 4213 Magazine Street, just a mile and a half from Saba. It serves lunch daily from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and dinner until 9 p.m., with a 10 p.m. close on Friday and Saturday. A weekday happy hour runs from 4 to 6 p.m. Call (504) 891-4213.
Safta’s Table, Lakeview area
Safta means grandmother in Hebrew, and Alon and Emily Shaya built this casual café around the food his Israeli grandmother cooked for him as a boy. It opened in March 2026 near Lake Pontchartrain and runs as counter service from breakfast through dinner, with grab-and-go meals and family-size to-go orders.
Lunch and dinner start with golden garlic pita, mushroom cigars with green goddess aioli, and a mezze platter with a choice of three salads. Pita sandwiches include chilled salmon with tzatziki, and plates like slow-cooked lamb and chicken schnitzel come with two sides. Early visitors have singled out the falafel and hummus. A short list of cocktails, wine, spritzes, and coffee covers the drinks.
Safta’s Table sits at 129 Allen Toussaint Boulevard with free parking out front. It opens daily at 7 a.m. and closes at 8 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Call (504) 355-0045.
