Andy Mossack eats at YOPO Zaytoun and takes a deep dark dive into worshiping the olive, tasting sublime Levantine flavours and schmoozing with fantastic fashionistas.
In the normal world, I always get a sense of the type of restaurant I’m eating at by simply by walking in. As I said, that’s in the normal world. YOPO Zaytoun is ensconced deep into the dark and light otherworldly universe that is the Mandrake Hotel. A mysterious and entrancing five-star boutique retreat born straight out of the imagination of its celebrated and storied art connoisseur owner Rami Fustok, whose own art collection decorates every wall.
That is quite an achievement considering it sits on Fitzrovia’s Newman Street, a fairly nondescript road running off Oxford Street. Although, it is worth pointing out, this was once the heartbeat of London’s fashion and textile industry, so perhaps not such a surprise after all.
However, step through the Mandrake portal and you arrive into a parallel hedonistic world of dark mystic beauty and intoxicating decadence. Just getting to the lavatory is an adventure navigating through a maze of spray-painted brickwork corridors and ending in a total contrast, a sublime futuristic space dominated by eight magnificent circular sinks.
However, once you finally reach YOPO Zaytoun there is nothing dark and mysterious about the quality of the food and drink. Make no mistake, this is top drawer Levantine sharing fare courtesy of Head Chef Viktor Yordanov who launched this new signature concept in May 2026.
The Levant is celebrated in everything here. The name is the first clue, taken from the Arabic word for olive, which had me, right there and then, as I worship the oil that comes from this fruit. Just as well really as olive oil is pretty much ever present in everything on the menu. There’s even a tableside choice of olive oils if you want to get serious about it, all sourced from family-run producers across the eastern Mediterranean. But let’s not forget the olive’s other gift as Rami Fustok once commented “I like to call it Zaytoun because we’re extending an olive branch to the world with more positive and healing energy.”
Copy that.
YOPO Zaytoun is unlike many hotel restaurants in that it is seamlessly woven into The Mandrake so beautifully it is difficult to know where it starts and where it finishes. The main room is on the ground floor, just look for the magnificent stuffed ostrich standing on a plinth. I say ostrich, but it also has the neck of a snake and the head of some other creature.
Clearly created by a taxidermist as obsessed with artistry as Fustok, as is the part-peacock part-antelope attached to the Waeska cocktail bar back wall which can be seen from the restaurant through the floor to ceiling glass walls. There’s also the YOPO bar over at the street side of the hotel decked out in unmissable pink lighting.
But the beating heart of this whole sensory production is the Jurema Terrace; a three-floor open air quadrangle festooned with a tropical canopy of jasmine, passionflower and Tasmanian ferns where you can also dine from the same menu. It was packed with a colourful collection patrons who clearly shared The Mandrake’s fashionist mantra.
Are you beginning to get my drift?
As I’ve already mentioned, the whole hotel is an extraordinary work of art, but YOPO Zaytoun is certainly no wall flower, it is a culinary work of art in its own right.
After I’d taken a wander around Fustok’s incredible canvas, I got down to the serious business of tasting Viktor Yordanov’s food.
It’s a brief and easy menu to take in made up of Small, Raw and Large sharing sections promising plenty of Levantine flavours.
The Small consisted of individual Levantine staples like hummus, baba ghanoush, and taramasalata etc, but the mixed platter (£32) offered tasters of all of them, which made it a perfect starter. Creamy whipped taramasalata made with dill oil and salmon roe was a highlight, as was the beautiful smoky baba ghanoush. The homemade olive oil focaccia and flatbreads doused in Manayi olive oil and za’tar were unforgettably moreish.
From the Raw selection the prawn tartare (£22) was a showstopper, topped with circles of apple and the tiny cucumber balls found inside paired perfectly.
It was all going deliciously well, our table struggling to find enough space to fit everything, particularly after the rib-eye (£49) arrived triumphantly in a roasting tray, ready sliced and topped with a wonderful caramelised Roscoff onion. The red wine jus was clearly deemed not quite enough sauce as melted harissa butter was then poured over the whole ensemble.
It was a fittingly decadent main course ably assisted by half a charred hispi cabbage (£9) some delightful baby carrots (£9) covered in cumin, Greek honey and an inspired Feta mouse, and some crispy squares of batata harra potatoes (£9).
It really was a fantastic example of an exemplary sharing experience that will live long in my memory.
To top it all off, a thoroughly indulgent couple of sweets seemed to be highly fitting given our surroundings and they certainly didn’t disappoint. A pistachio mille-feuille (£16) surrounded by a cube of golden pastry was divine, as was the chamomile chocolate fondant (£15) complete with – you guessed it – olive oil ice cream.
Yordanov’s menu should be applauded for the way it maintains its dignity surrounded as it is by so much hedonistic distraction. Funnily enough they both seem to be entirely compatible. Although, I’m not entirely convinced the Levant has seen anything quite like Fustok’s extraordinary world. Personally, I can’t wait to explore The Mandrake as a guest, I’m pretty sure it would be quite a ride.
In the meantime, I loved the YOPO Zaytoun experience. Viktor Yordanov has designed a fitting menu as vibrant and colourful as its host and makes for a stylishly relaxing way of enjoying fine dining.
Highly recommended.
All food photos (C) Andy Mossack Hotel photos (C) Mandrake Hotel.
Tell me more about YOPO Zaytoun at The Mandrake.
YOPO Zaytoun, Mandrake Hotel, 20-21 Newman Street, London W1T 1PG
T: +44 (0)203 146 7770 E: enquiries@themandrake.com
