Here’s the UWS Dish: Noi Due Cafe’s Creamy Green Shakshuka

By Abigael T. Sidi

My love for shakshuka, the Middle Eastern and North African breakfast staple, knows no boundaries, from our family recipe (the traditional base of eggs poached in tomato sauce, with red peppers and garlic), to its multi-national variations and chef-inspired creations. One can add feta cheese, merguez sausage, chorizo (like my grandpa), or creamy fava or cannellini beans; it doesn’t matter: when it comes to shakshuka, I’m in.  

A recent favorite variety of mine, discovered at Jack’s Wife Freda, a bistro in SoHo, is green shakshuka, in which green tomatillos are substituted for the traditional red tomatoes. So, when I noticed the dish on the menu at Noi Due Cafe, the kosher Italian spot on Columbus Avenue (between West 83rd and 84th streets), I didn’t hesitate. 

Noi Due (“the two of us”) is a three-restaurant enterprise consisting of the kosher Italian cafe, a gelateria (right next door), and the protein-focused Noi Due Carne on Broadway (between West 69th and 70th). The trio is owned and operated by Israeli restaurateur Golan Chetrit and his Italian-American wife Imma. At the cafe, they offer Upper West Siders traditional and varied Italian cuisine that is entirely kosher. In a 2020 interview with La Cucina Italiana, Chetrit said, “I would say [the cafe is] an Italian restaurant that happens to be kosher, not the other way around. Kosher for us is important and it’s a symbol, but that’s not what leads us.” 

Noi Due Cafe’s “Creamy Green Shakshuka” is made with green tomatoes, spinach, sauce béchamel, and mozzarella, cooked and served in a small iron skillet. It is gorgeously presented alongside an arugula salad, marinated olives, a delicate, pale-green “mint tahini,” and two Israeli pitas. The first mouthful immediately reveals the true star of the show, the spinach, which dominates the other ingredients (the green tomatoes, in particular, are barely detectable). The spinach is perfectly cooked, vibrant green, and the meaty leaves pair surprisingly well with the runny egg yolks. As is often the case with shakshuka, the dish is best enjoyed as a dip — the freshly baked pita is not to be missed.

I was unsure what to do with the mint tahini. A quick taste had me thinking of parsley, not mint. Contacted by email, Noi Due management shared with the Rag that “We use a combination of both mint and parsley. The mint is meant to add an aromatic touch rather than a strong flavor.”

I did think the dish could have benefited from at least a little heat. But the Noi Due rep explained to me, “Since the red shakshuka is packed with spices, we wanted to take a different approach with the green one and keep it milder. The goal was to allow the eggs and spinach to really stand out.” Noi Due also offers a third variation: “The initial concept was to create three distinct versions of shakshuka: red, green, and yellow, the latter made with yellow tomatoes. While we don’t always offer the yellow version, it occasionally appears as a special.”

The green shakshuka was overall a delicious meal, let alone a healthy dose of iron, vitamins, and other essential nutrients delivered by its main ingredient. 

The cafe’s menu notably features a wide range of gluten-free options, including in the pizza section. As with many kosher restaurants, prices are unfortunately steep; the green shakshuka, while a complete meal with its inclusion of salad, pita, and condiments, is $32. 

Noi Due observes Shabbat and is closed on Fridays and open only from 6:45 p.m. till midnight on Saturdays. It is otherwise open every day from 11 a.m. till 11 p.m. The crowd is a blend of Jewish family regulars and young professionals. Noise levels are acceptable in the front, but on the high end in the back, where the décor is intimate, classy, and beautiful, but tables are packed. 

The Dish: Creamy Green Shakshuka ($32)
The Restaurant: Noi Due Cafe, 491 Columbus Avenue (between West 83rd and 84th streets)