Restaurants in Hockessin

Brothers Riyad, Ousamah, Bachar, and Haitham Albaroki draw from years of work at their family restaurant in Fez to transport diners to the Maghreb region with exotic banquets of Moroccan cuisine. The walls and floors set the scene with red, yellow, and green rugs and drapes, and stone vases and receptacles of polished brass evoke images of rustic North Africa. After washing their hands with fragrant rose water, diners take their seats amid a sea of cushions and, on weekends, troupes of dancers regaling the room with flowing movements and metronome impressions. Over the next two hours, guests work through seven courses, which they can complement with honey-drizzled pastries and flavorful wines from Europe, California, and Morocco.

With a menu of scratch-made meat and veggie dishes accented by colorful sauces and collar-heating Cajun spices, the culinary artists at Nora Lee’s French Quarter Bistro transport taste buds to the lively streets of New Orleans. Hunks of daily-baked bread soak up creamy crayfish bisque or chicken-sausage gumbo, and bacon-wrapped meatloaf made with ground fillet and andouille sausage tempts forks and knives.

At Oasis Restaurant’s sunlit, yellow-hued café, the aroma of simmering lamb and sizzling falafel drifts through the dining room and breaches the borders of the adjacent market and halal butcher shop. Chefs procure fresh cuts of the 100% halal meat from next door to prepare from-scratch Lebanese, Egyptian, and Moroccan delicacies for individual orders or the bountiful weekend buffet. Though Middle Eastern classics such as grape leaves and hummus abound, chefs also pay homage to less prevalent delicacies, such as molokhia, a thick broth made from mallow leaves simmered in garlic. Once diners have finished chewing in unison, they can peruse the adjacent grocery store for imported groceries and fresh goat and lamb.

Matt Crist, the new executive chef of Union City Grille, crafts lunches and signature dinners of handmade pastas, rich short-rib chili, and steaks seasoned with a house rub. An updated list of hand-selected wines and over 70 craft beers augment dishes that include hand-turned ricotta gnocchi and gourmet burgers. Guests can enjoy fare in the comfortable dining area, or in the eatery's cozy banquet room, accented with a modern fireplace. Sunday "choose your cut" fillet specials allow guests to feast on steaks discounted by the ounce, or pretend they are directing a film starring steaks.

Each day, the diligent staff at New York Bagel Cafe' & Deli fill their shop with scents of freshly brewed coffee and warm bagels straight from the oven. Seventeen varieties of the baked circles anchor an all-day breakfast menu, causing tongues to smack in approval of flavors such as plain, asiago cheese, and cinnamon raisin. Additions of meats, eggs, and cheeses transform the bagels into breakfast sandwiches, which complement stacks of pancakes drenched in sweet maple syrup.

Alternatively, customers can sidestep breakfast fare and sink into a selection of salads and deli sandwiches, including turkey melts and cubans. Gooey swiss cheese melts over classic reubens, which pile sauerkraut atop either hot turkey or pastrami. New York Bagel Cafe' & Deli can also cater events or deliver their eats directly to their customers' human-size terrarium.