The thing about reviewing restaurants for a living is that money is, in many cases, no object when it comes to taking the full measure of an establishment. But tried as I might to break the bank at family-run Alshami restaurant in Arlington’s Bluemont neighborhood, it just wasn’t happening.
I dined alone. I invited friends. We made short work of spiced dips, stews and snacks during a leisurely lunch. We chatted the night away while passing around dinner platters of rotisserie meats and fragrant rice. And then, on my final visit, we broke through the seemingly impossible barrier: the check slipped past $100.
Okay, it was $99.60. But after the county took its tax bite, the price finally felt properly aligned with the bounty of homestyle food owner Basema Chouban prepares for everyone who pulls up a chair at her first solo restaurant.
The location on Wilson Boulevard isn’t new to Chouban. She worked there back when it was the popular Layalina restaurant, although she had nothing to do with Layalina’s successor, the short-lived Ya Hala Bistro, which closed in 2024. Her return to the neighborhood is a homecoming of sorts.
Touting nearly 30 years of cooking experience, the Damascus native declines to reveal too much about her core recipes—“It’s a secret,” she says when I attempt to pry the particulars of the chicken shawarma marinade out of her. But she does offer some tidbits, leaning on her daughter, Eya, to translate as needed. Alshami (whose name means “the Syrian”) focuses on organic ingredients. The food is all halal.
“And I make everything with love.”
Though it shares the same address as its predecessors, Alshami, which opened last summer, looks much different these days. Gone are the ornate tapestries, Arabic art and smoldering hookah pipes that punctuated an evening at Layalina. Guests are now welcomed into a minimalist space dominated by three-dimensional white tile walls, black pleather chairs and a modest stage that’s home to four fez caps and an electric guitar, presumably for live performances.
The adjoining bar is still there, but boozehounds will have to busy themselves elsewhere. Alshami is alcohol free.
The menu features many familiar Middle Eastern staples—crunchy kibbeh; stuffed grape leaves; silken hummus; tender lamb, beef and chicken dishes; and, of course, pickled vegetables galore.
Chouban describes the cheese tucked inside her cigar-shaped rolls of fried phyllo dough as “Syrian” and leaves it at that. The filling is melty, seasoned with herbs and has just a touch of sourness, making for a more interesting mouthful than plain mozzarella sticks. The cheese rolls are served as a standalone dish, but they make fast friends with many of the house dips.
Baba ghanouj delivers on its promise of smoky eggplant. The tender nightshade stars in this chunky spread ringed with tangy yogurt sauce and bolstered by pomegranate seeds that add a pop of fruity sweetness.
Creamy hummus gets a boost from a long pour of fragrant olive oil. I recommend adding some chew with an optional topping of beef shawarma. The marinated rotisserie meat proves a perfect complement to the dip’s nuttiness.
While it’s listed as a side, the garlicky housemade toum is an essential part of the dining experience at Alshami. The airy whipped sauce has a terrific tang that balances out its hefty dose of allium. I smeared it on everything, using any available scraps to mop the serving bowl clean.
Two perfect toum delivery vehicles are the za’atar pizza (warm flatbread studded with salt, oregano and toasted sesame seeds) and the halloumi-honey pizza (easily foldable crust blanketed by salty cheese and drizzled with sticky-sweet honey).
Alshami’s atmosphere feels easy-going, and the dining room’s dozen or so tables can be shuffled around to accommodate groups of different sizes. During one of my visits, a neighboring party of eight retirees talked, laughed and shared myriad plates at an unhurried pace, lingering for more than two hours. A five-top that looked to be an extended Middle Eastern family (mom, dad, kids and grandma) also seemed quite comfortable, the elders catching up over hummus and protein-laced rice dishes while the kids joked between themselves and snuck peeks at their smartphones when they thought no one was looking.
The restaurant enjoys a steady stream of carryout customers, too, from sleepy tot-toting dads happy to shuttle home a hot meal, to an appreciative 20-something couple who couldn’t thank the staff enough for whipping up a large order on the fly. (Sounded like some famished relatives had rolled into town unexpectedly.)
Chouban and her crew seem to take it all in stride. She, more often than not, stays put in the kitchen, leaving the front of the house duties to younger staff who tag-team waiting tables, running out food orders and serving takeout customers.
Not everything on the menu dazzled me. I’ve had better falafel (Alshami’s is drier than I prefer). Of the desserts, the flaky, syrup-drenched kunafeh filled with sweet cheese was more appealing than the honey-kissed baklava.
But much of the homey fare left me hungry for more. The fattoush salad topped with chicken shawarma blew me away. While the well-spiced, spit-roasted bird certainly brought its “A” game, the supporting players really took this dish and ran with it. Fresh lettuce provided foundational crunch. Fried pita chips, sliced radishes and cucumber introduced a symphony of textures from bite to bite. Red onion, sumac and sweet-tart pomegranate vinaigrette flooded the zone with earthiness and acid.
Chouban’s lamb fatteh is another study in delicious contrasts. White rice layered with tender lamb is enveloped by a tongue-teasing cloud of yogurt swirled with tahini. The nest of crispy bits on top looks like fried onion straws, but a server confirms they are actually fried pita strips that the kitchen crew juliennes by hand.
“Isn’t that crazy?” he says.
Crazy good, maybe. Between the steamy grains, succulent lamb, tangy yogurt, crunchy garnish and a scattering of surprise pomegranate seeds, my mouth never quite knew what to expect. So I kept digging in to figure it out—until the bowl was bare.
Shukran, Mama Chouban.
What to Drink
Alshami is an alcohol-free establishment. It does offer one non-alcoholic beer ($7). Other cold drinks include canned sodas ($3), iced tea ($4) and sparkling water ($5), as well as house-made smoothies ($9) spun from mango, strawberry, fruit cocktail or a fun and refreshing lemon-mint. From the list of hot beverages: American-style drip coffee ($4), cardamom-laced Arabic coffee ($6) and a frothy pistachio coffee ($7), as well as hot tea ($4).
Alshami
5216 Wilson Blvd., Arlington
703-373-0291
Hours
Tuesday through Sunday: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Parking
In addition to the half-dozen spaces in front of the restaurant, there is free street parking in the surrounding neighborhood.
Prices
Appetizers: $8 to $11
Salads and sandwiches: $6 to $18
Entrees: $18 to $25
Desserts: $6 to $10
Warren Rojas is always searching for his next amazing meal. Send your dining-related tips, gripes and quandaries to warren.rojas@arlingtonmagazine.com.