We started our birthday celebration with drinks at Up & Up, a fun speakeasy on Macdougal, down the street from where we were heading for dinner. And, as their site says, “Yes, the ice actually looks like this!”

From there, we headed downtown on Macdougal to Shuka, a restaurant serving various Mediterranean cuisines. The six of us started with many selections from their meze from the market, which included their taramasalata ($12) with crudité ($11), shaved Brussels sprouts ($14), falafel ($11), crispy cauliflower ($15), za’atar fries ($8), jeweled rice ($11) and tuna meatballs ($16).  One dish was better than the next, with the shaved Brussels, crispy cauliflower and za’atar fries not to be missed.

Next, we enjoyed their kebabs — chicken ($22/kebab), shrimp ($24), arctic char ($25), and Hawaii mushroom ($20) — each kebab accompanied by lettuce, sumac onions, spiced yogurt, and spicy cilantro sauce. I’d recommend each one. All are good with the flavorful mushrooms not to be missed.

We ended with a happy birthday song and an olive oil cake ($12) before heading to a karaoke bar for the end of our party.

I highly recommend a visit.

Shuka
SoHo
38 Macdougal St,
New York, NY 10012
212-475-7500
shukanewyork.com/
 

Up & Up
SoHo
116 Macdougal St,
New York, NY 10012
upandupnyc.com/