Image by Barnea Bistro

It’s that time of year again — it’s time for the Forward Food Awards, where we celebrate food as an essential part of Jewish life and ask you, our readers, to pick their favorite places to fress.

The nominees were chosen by Forward staff, but the choice of winners is entirely up to our readers.

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Here are the nominees for Best New Kosher Restaurant:

Barnea Bistro

Midtown New York has gone high end with the addition of this new kosher bistro, intending to offer the most progressive, kosher fine-dining experience available anywhere. Their goal is to have a menu that can easily hold up against a non-kosher one. Barnea’s menu, consisting of dishes like braised lamb riblets in a bourbon glaze on a bed of fennel salad with arugula in lemon vinaigrette, might have achieved exactly that goal.

A post shared by Barnea Bistro (@barneabistro) on Jul 30, 2018 at 5:13am PDT

Abaita

In Hebrew and North Italian dialect, it means home, and the name is exactly what the owners want you to feel in their new kosher dairy restaurant. An easy blend of Italian dishes with the occasional Middle Eastern touch, like the Tunisian olives, offered with labneh, and the papardelle with pecorino cheese, Abaita is trying to create a harmonious, warm and exciting environment, and it seems to be well on its way.

A post shared by abaita (@eatabaita) on Aug 13, 2018 at 5:15pm PDT

Doma Land+Sea

Doma is a swanky, opulent, globally inspired new restaurant whose menu ranges from Barbacoa beef tacos to spicy margarita cocktails. Inspired by recipes from Greek to Portugal, this international menu is one of the best kosher options on Long Island. You can order with confidence at this grand restaurant, whose reliably show stopping food make it an excellent date night choice.

A post shared by Doma Land + Sea (@domalandsea) on Aug 9, 2018 at 1:33pm PDT

Alenbi

Salat Nectarina. Galilean fish. Moroccan tea. This new Israeli-inspired eatery is bringing dishes to the Jewish public that aren’t often seen. Work your way around this surprising menu while leaning one of the comfortable leather couches and prepare to expand your palate.

A post shared by ALENBI (@alenbikitchen) on Aug 9, 2018 at 4:05pm PDT

Mexikosher

This OU certified kosher Mexican food taqueria may have officially opened in 2016, but it’s gaining some serious traction now. There aren’t a whole lot of places where you can consume some kosher Carne Asada tacos, complete with a generous serving of Pico de Gallo. To top it all off, these savory delights are created by Chef Katsuji Tanabe, who has a Mexican mother and a Japanese father. “I didn’t choose kosher. It chose me,” he writes on his website. It seems like the partnership is flourishing.

A post shared by Mexikosher (@mexikoshernyc) on Aug 13, 2018 at 3:30pm PDT

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