Polydish city guide
Best Shebakia in New York
“Deep-fried pastry coated in honey and orange blossom, made to resemble a rose.”
What the real thing tastes like
Shebakia (Arabic: شباكية) or chebakia, also known as griwech or griouech, is a Maghrebi sweet pastry made of strips of dough rolled to resemble a rose, deep-fried until golden, then coated with a syrup made of honey and orange blossom water and sprinkled with sesame. It is typically consumed during Ramadan and religious celebrations. Chebakia is from the Ottoman desserts culture. Chebakia is made using yeast spiced with anise, cinnamon, and saffron. The dough is made from ground sesame seeds mixed with flour and maybe squeezed through a pastry tube or twisted by hand to achieve the flower-like shape. It is then fried like a doughnut. The pastry is often produced in large batches at the start of Ramadan. Although it is sweet and is often paired with coffee and tea, Moroccans also eat chebakia with spicy food such as harira. Similar pastries include cartellates and fazuelos, though the latter are constructed differently, and are thinner, less dense and from different regions.
0 voices, one story
Shebakia is a Maghrebi pastry that arrives at the table as edible geometry—strips of dough coaxed into rose-like spirals, then deep-fried until golden and baptized in honey and orange blossom syrup. The dough itself carries warmth: yeast animated by anise, cinnamon, and saffron, bound with ground sesame and flour. It's the kind of sweet that anchors Ramadan tables and religious celebrations, yet doesn't shy from the contrast of spicy harira or coffee.
Order it here when it has
- aromatic spices
- ornate shape
- traditional celebration food
- pairs with both sweet and savory
Walk away when you see
Restaurant-level rankings for New York land as the Polydish review engine processes this city's reviews. Explore the dish itself while you wait —
Shebakia on Polydish →