1966 Queen E Toronto
(416) 693-5707

Last night Justine and I went out for dinner at the 16th annual Beaches Jazz Festival in the Beaches. We found this cute, charming Mediterranean bar/restaurant in the heart of the Beaches with about 15-20 tables.

The decor of Arax is “homey”, looks like its family run, (we peaked inside the kitchen and it looked like the owner’s mother was the cook that night.) with dim lighting, in an intimate bar-like setting. The place was surrounded by very happy customer, photos of people kissing, depicting a “home-style” neighbourhood restaurant, richly surrounded by an arrays of large mirrors (giving the illusion that it’s larger) and strung with a cheesy floral design resembling trashy curtains from the 1980’s.

Staff are very friendly and the customers looked so comfortable, like family. They were very lively and looked as though they were enjoying themselves immensely. The only drawback is the very small and limited menu. From this simple one page menu of about 15 items, we only found 2 vegetarian options.

Some dishes on the menu include Fried zucchini slices ($5.95) (Lightly battered) , and sweet tomato chutney with mushrooms and peppers ($5.95) , and Lahmajoun ($13.95) grilled flatbread with a layer of seasoned ground beef. ($13.95).

Justine ordered the large Falafel plate, with 4 Falafels, salad, topped with Tahini sauce and a plate of thinly sliced pita (unfortunately white pita) for $13.95. I ordered the vegetarian shawarma plate with spicy red beans and medley of vegetables and salad for $13.95 topped with tahini sauce. I loved the mix of the flavourful beans in a lemony viniagrette, topped with the strong aroma of the tahini. Prices are as follows. Appetizers and salads are $5.95-$9.95 and entrees are $9.95-$13.95

Our food was fresh, tasty, and although there was a lot of tahini on our plate, we still thought the food was excellent. Falafel was not too greasy but fresh, nutty, and flavourful.At first glance, it resembles a bar with a large display of drinks.

They accept all cards. Service was excellent and staff are enthusiastic and seem to love working there. Food was excellent and water was always refreshed with a lime 🙂