Frena
Israeli Chef Efi Naon opened a relatively new Moroccan-Israeli and Middle Eastern inspired restaurant in the Hell’s Kitchen area. I saw this on Yelp a few months ago, and the menu items look reasonably interesting. I was able to book a reservation very easily on a Friday for 5:15 PM without any issues. This restaurant is close to the 50th E train station and relatively near some of the outer edges of the Theater District.
Ambiance & Service
The restaurant decor was very comfortable because it had a lot of light, white colored furniture, and had some very chill electronic music playing over the radio. The restaurant feels like it would be great place to bring an after work crowd to have shareable food.
The service was fast, but they made a slight slip in recommending the quantity of small dishes. We were recommended 5 small plates in addition to the dip trio, and it was just too much for it. In reality, if we just ordered 3 small plates with the dip trio, it probably would have been enough, assuming we were going to order dessert.
Food
The Passione Natura “Beginnings” ($16) came from Malvasia, Trebbiano, Abruzzo, Italy 2022. This was a natural skin fermented orange wine. This was surprisingly good albeit light. It paired well with the hummus but not as much with some of the heavier dishes later on.
The Levant Dew ($15) came virgin with honeydew, mint, yuzu, and tonic. This was quite good with the mixture of the honeydew and mint.
The Dip Trio ($25) came with (left to right)
- Hummus - warm chickpeas, tadbil, olive oil, and parsley
- Tzatziki - Za’atar, olive oil
- Spicy Feta - sumac, olive oil
They gave you complimentary Frena Bread, which was their signature homemade bread brushed with olive oil, Maldon salt, and wild dry za’atar.
The dips we picked were all really good. My partner loved the hummus, and I loved the tzatziki.
The Crab Shawarma came with spices, mechonia, and grilled challah panzanella. This was big lump crab meat on top of bread and some tomatoes. The crab was not super sweet, but my partner enjoyed this a lot.
The Squid a la Plancha ($24) came with Persian cucumber, fennel salad, fresh mint, garlic yogurt, and almonds. I didn’t quite enjoy this as much as my partner, but the squid was tasty, fresh, and plump.
The Crispy Zucchini Cakes ($19) came with 3 pieces of zucchini, feta, and fresh herbs. This was the least enjoyed dish of the night. I thought this was would be similar to fried zucchini slices, and I was not expecting minced zucchini with feta and herbs.
The Homemade Merguez ($24) came with Moroccan lamb sausage, gigante beans, and dill pollen. The lamb sausage and the beans were quite good. By the time we got to this course, we knew we ordered too much food, so we took most of this home. When I ate this for leftovers, I just added some pasta noodles, and it was pretty good.
The Madagascar Shrimp Kadayif ($26) came with creamed corn, fermented garlic, lobster, and kefir lime bisque. The best part of this dish was the creamed corn for me. If you enjoy cream corn, you will definitely appreciate this. The shrimp was also good too.
Final Verdict
Frena offered excellent Middle Eastern / Mediterranean food for a tapas like atmosphere. If you’re willing to make the slight trek, it’s a good restaurant for a small party of folks that want to enjoy a variety of tapas, including hummus.
Yelp Jabs
The food is not upto par. We tried the tomato dip (not a fan), the bread (maybe it was an off-night? The bottom was burned!)
I wonder if this Elitist ordered things that just simply was different than what they were expecting. If you stick to more familiar territory, the hummus and bread was fantastic. The bottom was a little burned, but we thought it was fine.
there were a few bites that were just ridiculously salty, to the point that it overpowered any of the other flavors
I also noticed this as well, but if you mix the food with the sauces they come in, it was fine. I think their dishes were meant to be tossed around a bit before they are eaten. For example, the crazy feta was quite salty by itself, but when put on the bread, it was pretty tasty.
Revisions
- Aug 30, 2024 - Initial revision.