Sefa Kitchen

Overview

Bondi's Middle Eastern diner Sefa Kitchen has undergone some changes. For one, it's appointed Egyptian head chef Mohamed Kharboush (ex-Kazbah), along with chef Bill Vuki (ex-Attica). And, thanks to Kharboush, the kitchen is now slinging meze-style weekend lunches, with bottomless spritzes to boot.

These 'Lafay' lunches are on offer every Saturday and Sunday from 11.30am–3pm. The share menu features the likes of slow-cooked lamb and chicken, Israeli salad, Northern African dips, house pickles and mint-wrapped garden herbs — a popular Cairo street snack — all served with the restaurant's signature laffa flatbread.

You can also nab bottomless spritzes for a limited time at $39 per person. Right now there's the pomegranate spritz ($15), which is fresh pomegranate, Campari, sparkling wine and soda. There's a daily cocktail special to look forward to as well.

In general, Sefa's seasonal menu focuses on the ancient region of Levantine — which spans 400 years of Middle Eastern cooking tradition across Jordan, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, Syria, Cyprus and southeast Turkey. It's a region where seasonality is a given, as is communal dining. Expect quality ingredients here, with all grass-fed, hormone-free meats sourced from local butchers; a vertical garden in which the team grows herbs for the food and cocktail offering; and a compost bin and worm farm out back.

The restaurant is still open for dinner seven days a week, too. If you want to try a bit of everything, as we suggest you do, there's set menus available, spanning from $45–65 for the table. Eating with your hands is preferred here, so go ahead and tuck in.