If you're a home cook like me, you probably owe a debt of gratitude to Yotam Ottolenghi. Not only did this prolific cookbook author introduce so many of us to the depth and richness of Middle Eastern cuisine, but his recipes teach how to balance flavors on a plate in bold and surprising ways. Problem is: his recipes also include a gazillion ingredients, including many specialty ones, making them difficult to do very often. Which is why I was so excited to see that I could get Ottolenghi-esque food in London....but with someone else cooking. That someone else is Eran Tibi, a long-time acolyte of the master, who is bringing to London his exuberant version of the cuisine of Tel Aviv. So there are birthday party balloon-sized pitas, baked on site, plus an array of spreads to drag soft shards of them through. He also features several dishes that seem like a culinary take on Vincent Van Gogh's painting a starry night—lots colorful swirled vegetables interrupted by globular stars of either yogurt, aioli, tahini, or creme fraiche. The best of these, his Auburgine Mess, is a wonderous melange of fire blackened eggplant with pomegranite molasses and silky tahini. Tibi is also not scared of heading beyond Israel with Tunisian tartares, and an inspired twist on Greek baklava, starring prawns intricately wrapped with knitting yarn thin strands of the pastry (pictured above). But dessert is a triumphant return to the Holy Land—or perhaps the Jewish diaspora—with a purposefully burnt babka cake that's downright scrumptious.

As for the scene: it's hip enough for the party-happy end of Southwark, with seating upstairs and down, in a spectacularly arched room set under an overpass. Many just come for the hopping bar scene, which spills out to the pedestrian-only sidewalk outside the restaurant in good weather.