Saba
Fairfax | Yemini | $$
Bring friends and wear socks to Saba. This is because the portions are generous and meant for sharing, and it’s best to sit on the back stage area where there are couches, but everyone sits on the floor, shoeless, huddled around mashed bowls of fava beans cooked down with tomatoes (breakfast is available all day!), served with foot-long swaths of naan. Yemini food is full of long-cooked meats paired with rice, which gets as much attention from the kitchen as any protein. Slow-roasted lamb (haneeth) is rich and satisfying and chicken mandi is some of the best roast chicken in the region. Order a hummus here because even though you can get this ubiquitous product at 7-Eleven, when it’s whipped fresh, it’s a whole new world. // 3900 Pickett Road A, Fairfax
This post originally appeared in our November 2019 issue’s 50 Best Restaurants cover story. For more food reviews, subscribe to our weekly newsletter.