Shams Alyemen in Albany wins you over with traditional Yemeni cuisine built on clay pots, bread and a sense of easy abundance. Open since September after being under development for the better part of a year, the restaurant\u2019s dining room makes the priorities clear: tables are big enough to accommodate a decadent spread, and tea arrives steaming to close out the meal. The food proves that some classic dishes need only dedication to tradition to establish their lasting power. The appeal is instant\u00a0\u2014 not in opulence, but in deep, immediate satisfaction.<\/p>\n
Arriving bubbling hot in a clay pot, the fahsah acts as the center of gravity for your meal. Stewed lamb pulls apart while still tasting robustly like itself, sitting in a concentrated, savory sauce. You keep chasing the flavor, sweeping every last bit of broth with rashoosh bread that has a wingspan as wide as the table. A slow-cooked preparation traditional in Yemeni menus, fahsah builds a complex profile around cumin, turmeric, coriander and allspice. The result is a depth of flavor that leaves a profound impression.<\/p>\n
Before the table fills up with food, the meal opens with a gesture of hospitality: a cup of maraq, a golden turmeric broth, and an Arabic salad. The soup holds spice without heaviness, while the fresh lettuce and tomatoes in homemade dressing offer contrast and crunch. Neither demands attention, but both make sense as starters for a meal.<\/p>\n
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A large Yemeni\u00a0flatbread called rashoosh or malooh can be used as a conveyance and\/or envelope for dishes at Shams Alyemen restaurant in Albany, including Yemeni-style\u00a0shakshuka, center, and liver with onion and pepper, right. At left is a spicy condiment called sahawiq.<\/p>\n
Stephanie Gravalese\/For the Times Union<\/p>\n
Along with the starters, we got a heaping teacup of red sahawiq. Made with tomato, cilantro, garlic and a hot pepper in the jalapeno family, the condiment adds sharp heat and acid to anything on the table. It plays well against the richness of liver and stewed lamb, but the bread was the key to building each bite; reaching for it became a reflex. Service was warm and attentive; our server noticed we had ordered several dishes that came with bread and offered to bring out a variety. It was an eye for detail that let us experience more than we might have known to ask for.<\/p>\n
Dishes continued to arrive. With its eggs loose and lightly scrambled, the Yemeni-style shakshuka is made with a hearty mix of tomatoes, onions and spices. With enough structure to scoop easily onto bread, we added sahawiq, which gave the dish a lasting heat without overpowering it. Of everything on the table, however, the lamb liver posed the biggest question mark\u00a0\u2014 and wound up delivering one of the most compelling bites. Cooked down with tomato and onion until coated in its own spiced oil, the cubes of liver offered a dense yielding texture.<\/p>\n
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In the Yemeni version of shakshuka,\u00a0eggs are scrambled with tomatoes and vegetables rather than poached in a tomato-based stew.<\/p>\n
Stephanie Gravalese\/For the Times Union<\/p>\n
Simmered with vegetables into a thicker stew, chicken agda, also called loubia, is made with chicken stewed in aromatics until the meat softens completely. Bread does most of the work here, too, tearing easily to scoop up the mix of poultry and vegetables.<\/p>\n
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Shams Alyemen is on North Allen Street next to the fast-food spot Pepper Jack\u2019s, which has been open for 25 years.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Stephanie Gravalese\/For the Times Union<\/p>\n
Locals will recognize the address as the former home of the soul-food spot Madame Chef and, before that, Rita\u2019s Lebanese Cafe. Shams Alyemen was opened by two friends for whom staff would not provide surnames:\u00a0Abdul Jabbar and Khaled. Inside, black textured walls lined with gold sconces and overhead ring lights give the space a modern sheen, but the spirit remains functional. The tables are noticeably wide and often covered in plastic, built with the intention to handle the splash and share of communal eating. Once the breads and clay pots start arriving, you find yourself happily making room for one more plate. These details tell you something before the food even comes out: This is a restaurant designed for meals that unfold across the table, not ones that stay fixed to a single plate.<\/p>\n
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The space on North Allen Street that has been home to Shams Alyemen since September previously was the site of the soul-food restaurant Madame Chef and, before that, Rita\u2019s Lebanese Cafe. \u00a0<\/p>\n
Stephanie Gravalese\/For the Times Union<\/p>\n
Serving breakfast, lunch and dinner, the halal menu invites exploration. Beyond the clay pots, the kitchen offers large-format dishes like haneeth\u00a0\u2014 slow-roasted lamb or chicken served over rice\u00a0\u2014 and grilled fish. The beverage list keeps things simple but fresh. Alongside standard sodas, the kitchen blends its own juices, including lemon, strawberry and mango, that offer a bright, sweet counterpoint to the bold spices of the meal. It is a place where a feast of roasted meats, stews and bread can be had for a price that feels surprisingly fair, given the portion sizes.<\/p>\n
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For dessert, basbousa and cashew baklava rolls provide a wonderful contrast in textures. The basbousa, a semolina cake lightly soaked in syrup, revealed a light rosewater essence. We took small forkfuls, the sort of attentive bites when you want something to last. The cashew baklava rolls were tighter in structure and easy to pick up by hand, with a cashew filling that gives a denser, earthier bite than the usual walnut version. Against the basbousa\u2019s delicate crumb, it offered a beautifully balanced study in textures.<\/p>\n
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Among the desserts\u00a0are babousa, left, a semolina cake lightly soaked in syrup, and baklava rolls made with cashews instead of the more common walnuts.<\/p>\n
Stephanie Gravalese\/For the Times Union<\/p>\n
While we worked through the sweets, we sipped Adeni tea. Listed on the menu alongside standard Yemeni hot tea, the Adeni version is the one to order. A staple of Yemeni hospitality, it is an aromatic, deeply flavorful emulsion of black tea and milk, fragrant with spices. The aroma\u00a0\u2014 cardamom first, then cinnamon and clove\u00a0\u2014 met me before I took my first sip. The milk gave the drink a mellow edge and a weight that encourages you to drink slowly. While it felt like a grand finale, it functioned more like a pause, letting you gather yourself after a meal. The final, spiced warmth was the perfect, comforting punctuation mark.<\/p>\n
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Shams Alyemen \u00a0<\/p>\n