Welcome to Çka ka Qëllue...
Rustic restaurant with exposed-wood beams & brick walls offering modern Albanian & Kosovan dishes.
About Us
Çka ka Qëllu restaurant offers a modern selection of popular dishes and desserts inspired by the rich flavors of Mediterranean cuisine, highlighting the best of Albanian and Kosovan traditions. We prioritize healthy food made from fresh ingredients, so you can enjoy meals that are both delicious and nutritious. Our talented chefs, with their extensive experience, cook each dish with passion and care. We are dedicated to preserving Eastern European cooking traditions while adding our unique twist to Mediterranean favorites.
Our Story
The owner of “ÇKA KA QËLLU” was inspired to open his restaurant when his son asked him where he could take his friends for authentic Albanian cuisine. In his research, Ramiz came up empty-handed and decided it would become his life’s mission to bring Albanian cuisine and culture to NYC. After years of collecting 18th and 19th-century Albanian artifacts to decorate the space, Çka Ka Qëllu is now one of the most unique restaurant/museum experiences in the city.
EXCELLENT Based on 1402 reviews Denisse LApril 24, 2025 Beautiful restaurant, exceptional service, and delicious food! Alexander HongApril 24, 2025 Excellent food - hands down one of the best meals I've had in NYC, and I've lived here for 21+ years. Javier KohenApril 24, 2025 Lovely Albanian restaurant. Albania is surrounded by many countries with popular cuisines so many of the dishes on the menu felt familiar, and yet I was surprised when I dive into them and found unique spice blends and great cooking. The food was comforting, made fresh, and it felt new to me. The staff was friendly. The ambiance was warm and it felt a bit like being transported to another place and time. Aurel BrahajApril 23, 2025 Klajdi is very nice waiter . He knows stuff really well Knows how to explain the food and everything Great service and great food Renaldo BeqirajApril 22, 2025 Arben KadriuApril 21, 2025 Sarah DeeApril 20, 2025 As a Macedonian, bless. The food is so similar to ours, I absolutely enjoyed every bite. Beautiful. 🤩 George DushajApril 19, 2025 Çka Ka Qëllue : From the very first moment to the final bite, the experience was nothing short of extraordinary. The chef is, without question, a culinary virtuoso—each dish was a masterpiece, flawlessly balanced in flavor, texture, and presentation. Every course told a story, blending creativity with timeless technique, and showcasing the freshest, most thoughtfully sourced ingredients. The service was the definition of white glove elegance. Attentive without being intrusive, the staff anticipated every need with seamless grace and genuine warmth. Every detail, from the precision of the table settings to the perfectly timed courses, was executed with the utmost professionalism. This wasn’t just a meal—it was an experience, a celebration of excellence in every sense. If you’re searching for perfection in cuisine and service, look no further. This is five-star hospitality at its absolute finest. 🇦🇱🇦🇱🙏🙏 Daphne ShenApril 19, 2025 Before the temperature gets really heated, I decided to try some Albanian cuisine. My friend said he mistakenly thought it was Turkish (fair, since they got lots of influences from there). Exotic, and quite heartfelt food offered. Apps: Hot pita (complimentary) Steaming hot, out of the oven. Thin but very marshmallow pillowy interior. It got that nice bread gumminess and gluten-stretch to it . Ajvar Roasted pepper + eggplant dip. If you ever had the Trader Joe version of the pepper/eggplant dip, you kinda have the idea of the taste profile. Not spicy, sweet and smoky and roasty and topped with some feta cheese with some creaminess. Paired super well with pita. Main: Tava Kosi Lamb 🐑 + rice 🍚 in a clay pot baked with yogurt, egg + roux (essentially a egg+rice custard mixture, slightly separated). The custard itself is tangy, not very eggy. The lambness was kinda soaked in so the custard also tasted meaty. Quite addictive if you keep eating, feels like a savory Greek yogurt cheesecake. The lamb is fall off the bone tender. You taste the flavor of the meat itself as I don’t taste much seasoning in it. The custard is the star of the show. Tradita grilled platter Qebaqa, Qofte, sausage (Suxhuk), chicken, and liver with squash, potatoes, and cabbage salad. Kudos to the cabbage salad on there. It is refreshing, very peppery, and has a veg sweetness to it. Not your typical pickled sour sour cabbage styled. It got some crunchy texture and very flavorful. On the same level are the grilled summer squashes. Not mushy and seasoned right with that added smokiness. Potatoes are also good. Loved that slightly mushy-mochi texture. Warning to the grilled green pepper. Don’t take it unless you can handle taste-bud killer spicy. With regards to meat department, sausages (Suxhuk) are the best because they retained the fat inside. The other meats Qebaqa and Qofte are salted slightly over and are kinda dried after being grilled. My second favorites would be the liver and the chicken, for different reasons. The liver got good char and seasoning just enough to supplement the original organ flavor yet had quite a bouncy texture, not like a mashed/pate/choking texture. I liked it. Chicken is stringy as it is pounded so thin, but it got enough flavor to save it. Also it is not overly salty. Their decor and hospitality are also bonus. I wished I had brought more friends to try more dips, savory baked item, and more tava dishes. These are homey dishes, so don’t expected Michelin star finesses. They are just comfortable. And the amount of the food that you are presented with what you pay is amazing (by NYC standards ofc). kristina kondakciuApril 19, 2025 This place is adorable and it breathes Albanian culture. They did a great job decorating it. The food was amazing as well. The baked cheese and their tave e dheut is incredible. I loved the big meat platter that was suggested by our server Klajdi. He was very much on point with knowing what we would have liked and made some great suggestions. Appreciated the hospitality. Their bread is made to order and its incredible as well so make sure to ask for more. Wish i lived here because I would visit more often
HOURS
Monday - Sunday12:00 PM - 11:00 PM