Ammoora, a Baltimore restaurant serving Levantine cuisine, has made it into the exclusive New York Times “The Restaurant List 2024: Our 50 favorite places in America right now.”
Every year the Times searches for the nation’s best restaurants, and despite the list’s title, their reporters do not limit themselves to one restaurant per state, nor require each state be represented. It so happens in this year’s list, Ammoora is Maryland’s only restaurant that is named in the top 50.
Ammoora’s owner, Jay Salkini, and its chef, Cima Al-Chaar, grew up in Syria. While the restaurant’s food is Syrian-focused, the menu offers contemporary takes on classic Eastern Mediterranean dishes.
“For anyone steeped in generic Middle Eastern takeout staples, Ammoora will be a revelation,” wrote Eric Asimov, Times reporter. “Dishes like muhammara (roasted red peppers seasoned with chile and pomegranate molasses) and kebbet karaz (minced lamb with tart cherry sauce, cinnamon and pine nuts) achieve a thrilling balance of sweet and sour, spicy and breezy.”
The restaurant opened in January 2023 and is housed in the Ritz Carlton Residences on Key Highway. It is open on Wednesday through Sunday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Upon learning of its designation by the Times as one of their 50 favorite restaurants, Ammoora put out this announcement and statement of appreciation on its social media sites.
“We’re certainly so happy to share this moment with Baltimore and Maryland in general, being the only representative on the list,” said Markie Britton, co-founder of Ammoora. “That really meant a lot.”
“We’re certainly grateful for that and for the entire community that has given us their support and love, because otherwise, we certainly would have never made such a prestigious list,” Britton continued. “It was such a surprise and honor to be able to get that.”
Britton told Baltimore Fishbowl that they were not aware they were in the running and learned that the Times reporters had been there only after reading the article.
“And so that just makes it all the more exciting, knowing that our food, our cuisine, and our culture have really resonated to draw such attention just on that,” Britton said.
In May 2024 Ammoora was listed by People magazine as one of America’s 50 Most Beautiful Restaurants. That list chose one restaurant per state, and of Baltimore’s Ammoora, the magazine said, “The opulent decor here celebrates Syria via ornate architecture with bold mosaics and dramatic archways.”
Combine that beauty with creatively curated recipes lovingly and skillfully prepared, and Ammoora had what the New York Times hailed “enchanting, multidimensional” meals that “make you feel as if your eyes have been opened, revealing vivid new colors.”
Ammoora is located at 751 Key Highway, Baltimore, MD.
