Talullas Turkish Restaurant has been a Franklin Street mainstay for years. The menu of mezze, main courses, and desserts is perfect for a family-style feast. There is sezbeli moussaka, with layers of eggplant, zucchini, carrots, and other vegetables in a bechamel sauce. The Hünkar Beğendi (Sultan’s Delight) is dish with Ottoman roots that comes with a choice of cubed beef or chicken over a smoked eggplant sauce.

Mediterranean meets the Phillipines at Mediterrasian Bistro, where the menu features dishes like pancit, chicken adobo, and lumpia alongside falafel wraps, tabouli salads, and lamb shawarma. The kabob mishakel for two to four people is a great choice for groups, and fans of Filipino desserts will be happy to see halo-halo on the menu. The entire menu is mostly, but not completely halal, so make sure to ask the server when ordering.

Classic pan-Mediterranean cuisine can be found at South Durham’s Baba Ghanouj cafe. The pita wraps, kebabs, and rice bowls are available with proteins like beef and lamb gyro, chicken shawarma, and falafel. Extensive sides and salads like mujaddara, cilantro hummus, fried eggplant, fattoush, and tabbouleh make for a great build-your-own-mezze moment. A weekday all-you-can-eat lunch buffet at $15.99 is a popular option.

Samosa chaat, chili chicken, chow chow soup, and of course plenty of momos all can be found on the menu at downtown Cary’s Himalayan Nepali Cuisine. There is a large menu of vegetarian options like bhindi masala, malai kofta, aloo gobi, and more, making it a great spot for a meat-free iftar.

It’s rare for any city in America to have a Yemeni restaurant; Raleigh has two. Yemen Arab’s extensive menu runs the gamut from appetizers like sambosas and hummus with lamb to dinner platters piled high with rice, vegetables, and proteins like lamb, beef, and chicken. Close out a meal with a traditional dessert such as masoob (layered flatbread with ghee, honey, bananas, and cream) and sip on a mint lemonade.

Yemen Kitchen is a small, family-run restaurant specializing in Yemenite staples such as fahsa (shredded beef served with cooked vegetables and hilbeh, a fenugreek-based whipped condiment), kibda (fresh lamb liver, flash-fried with tomatoes, onions, and special seasoning), and saltah (a traditional vegetable stew).