Miznon london - No Booking

4 times in 2 weeks?

Four times may sound like a lot, especially in the mere space of two weeks, but Miznon is no ordinary place. I was first acquainted with Miznon during a trip to Tel Aviv in 2017. The lively, atmosphere, typical of the city, and the quality of pure vegetables. Ever since then, whenever encountering a Miznon, whether, in Paris or New York, I just had to step inside and order a large quantity of delicious food stuffed in pita bread.

View of the counter from the tables

 This review is by no means objective.

I have been a fan of Miznon for 5 years, I consider it a love letter if anything.

 Throughout my four visits to Eyal Shani’s brilliantly planned and organised Miznon London, I have had opportunities to taste 8 dishes, which have given me a fairly good idea of what this restaurant is capable of.

Miznon London is extremely different from its Tel Aviv and Paris siblings, it is table service, the special dishes are rooted in British classics, and the service is impeccable.

When greeted, your waiter will explain the menu and its specificities (mainly what is in a pita, and what isn’t), as well as their original drinks formula: a selection of freshly made juices, with an option to mix them with a spirit of your choice (the gin, vodka and arak are especially distilled for Miznon).

Sunset Juice - £5

For most of my visits, which took place during the day, I’ve picked their Sunset juice made with Pomegranate, Mint, Lime and Barberry. The non-alcoholic option was the one I preferred, and the juice was perfectly balanced and refreshing (if paired with alcohol, I would recommend the house arak).

One cannot be objective when it comes to matters of the heart. I would certainly describe my relationship to all sorts of food in a pita as such.

For my first visit to Miznon London, I sat at the counter, chatting with the managers and waiters throughout my meal.

All day english breakfast pita - £14

On this warm Sunday afternoon, I was promptly served the All-Day English Breakfast pita, made of a steak, a fried egg as well as lima beans in tomato sauce. The pita was filled to the brim, so much so that it collapsed upon arrival in front of me. Having hence to use a fork for the collapsed egg, mixing one bite of egg with a bite of pita filled with lima beans and steak, I still got to experience the mix of flavours and textures carefully crafted by the chefs.

Baby whole roasted cauliflower melted in its own crown - £11

To accompany this marvellous balagan (Hebrew for mess) of flavour, I had to have the cauliflower, which shines through its simplicity. Perfectly roasted, maybe a tad much if for one person in addition to a pita, but the perfect choice to share with friends.

This first meal left me filled but looking forward to trying more of the menu. Already thinking of writing this review, I thought it would have been incomplete without more dishes to explore.

I hence had to promptly get back to Miznon, which I did two days later.

Having once again ordered the Sunset juice to start my meal, I decided to be adventurous and try the Cottage Pie in a pita.

Cottage pie in a pita - £12

I would not describe the said dish as light, but I was flabbergasted about how well the mashed potato flavours and the pita mixed. It was a perfectly executed cottage pie, inserted in a pita, nothing more, nothing less and it WORKS.

Still hungry after this, at first glance, insane dish, I decided to try the ratatouille (not the French one) pita.

Ratatouille - not the french one - £10

The only way I found to describe it, and the first word that came to me were “It’s like a Sabich on steroids.” A Sabich is a traditional Israeli sandwich in a pita which’s principal texture and taste profile are aubergine, tahini and a hard-boiled egg. Miznon’s ratatouille in a pita had these elements, and other and provided a fantastic experience of a pita just melting in your mouth, full of flavours and textures.

I returned to Miznon the following weekend, looking forward to trying more, deciding my review could not be complete before I had tried at least 8 different dishes from their pita-filled menu.

Spaghetti Bolognese in a pita - £12

This is objectively an insane statement, describing a dish that cannot work, a mix of flavours and textures only a deranged mind could come up with. But once again, pulling it off, Miznon made from a crazy idea, a delicious dish (for which you WILL need napkins), filling a delicious homemade pita with a perfectly executed spaghetti Bolognese.

A roasted whole broccoli tree, dripping on your shoes - £9

Fancying once again a simple vegetable in addition, I ordered the broccoli, which is recommended to eat “like an ice cream.” So eat it like an ice cream I did, and it was fabulous. Covered in some sort of Greek yoghurt, it is simple yet delicious.

Having been to Miznon London on my own three times already, I had to check it with a group, and as per previous experience, it was lovely.

Running out of luck this time, they happened to be out both Sunset juice and of house arak. I hence ended up trying the Noon juice (Cucumber, Apple, Celery) with the house gin which was lovely as well, with the celery very much balancing the flavour profile of the drink.

From left to right: Sac de Coq (£12), minute steak pita (£18), long, thick and juicy lamb kebab (£10) and ratatouille on tahini (£13)

This time, I went for the “long, thick and juicy lamb kebab” in a pita, which tasted precisely as described, perfectly cooked and seasoned.

For a change, I had been wanting to try the “Sac de coq”, a chicken salad in a bag being mostly tender cold roasted chicken, fresh coriander and radishes which brought the crispier aspect I had been looking for during the meal.

Exterior of Miznon on broadwick st.

 When it comes down to it, Miznon does things right. The service is fast and done by lovely staff, the food is innovative and delicious, and the drinks are original yet simple. The atmosphere, carefully created by Eyal Shani, brings your tastebuds to Tel Aviv, but with still a hint of Britishness, whether in the table service aspect or the dishes specific to this location.

I would also like to give a special mention to the head chef and the staff members who recognised me from my second visit giving me nothing but smiles and excellent service.

I will be returning to Miznon London, probably before anywhere else.