Middle Eastern Neighborhood Favorite Balaboosta Will Be Reborn in the West Village

After a brief hiatus, popular and pioneering Middle Eastern neighborhood restaurant Balaboosta will return to NYC, this time in the West Village. The Balaboosta reboot is set to debut on September 20 in Admony’s Bar Bolonat space at 611 Hudson St., at West 12th Street — meaning Bar Bolonat will close.

After a quick flip, Israeli chef-owner Einat Admony will once again serve her take on modern Middle Eastern food, with dishes like chicken fesanjoon as well as a Yemenite soup dumpling. Balaboosta will also feature an Israeli wine list.

The original Balaboosta lived in Nolita, and when Admony and her husband-business partner Stefan Nafziger announced its closure in the spring, Admony cited an increase in operational costs and recent changes in the neighborhood as the causes for the shutter. The restaurant — which opened in 2010 to immediate praise, including a two-star review in New York mag and a one-star from the Times — closed in May, and Admony said she and Nafziger were actively looking for a new location at the time.

Bar Bolonat opened in 2014, serving Middle Eastern food from Israel, Yemen, the Maghreb, and other parts of the region. Eater NY critic Ryan Sutton called it “one of New York’s best new restaurants” at the time. Eater has reached out to find out why Admony is closing the restaurant.

Admony, who has been at the forefront of NYC’s Middle Eastern cuisine boom, recently opened her couscous restaurant Kish-Kash, also in West Village. She also owns longtime fast-casual falafel hit Taïm, in the midst of an ambitious expansion plan.

Bar Bolonat will close on August 31 to be flipped into the new Balaboosta, and the designer of the original restaurant, Silvia Zofio, will give the space a bright, Mediterranean-influenced look. Balaboosta will be back in business September 20. Eater NY has reached out for more information.