DANVILLE, CALIFORNIA — Downtown Danville has a new restaurant that is doing something a little different from the usual suburban opening.
It is called Albi’s, and the concept is essentially a Lebanese-rooted Middle Eastern beer garden — with kebabs, mezze, local beer, wine, and a serious fine-dining resume behind it.
The restaurant is located at 455 Hartz Avenue, behind Incontro on Railroad Avenue, and is currently open Wednesday through Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.
A Middle Eastern Beer Garden in Downtown Danville
Albi’s describes itself as a “Middle Eastern Beer Garden” inspired by the Levant and rooted in California’s seasonal bounty. The name comes from an Arabic term of affection meaning “my heart,” which fits the restaurant’s stated goal of being a gathering place.
Here are some of the beers served:
The Michelin Connection
The restaurant comes from Monique Moufarrej, listed by Albi’s as chef/partner. Moufarrej grew up in a Lebanese household and trained at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone before heading to New York, where she joined the team at the Michelin-starred Del Posto under chef Mark Ladner.
Her Bay Area fine-dining resume is also notable. Albi’s says Moufarrej played a pivotal role in Rich Table receiving its first Michelin star, then joined the opening team at Angler San Francisco, which received a Michelin star in its first year. She later returned to Rich Table as chef de cuisine before moving toward beverage and operations.
In other words, this is not “Michelin” in the sense that Danville suddenly has a starred restaurant. It is “Michelin cred” in the sense that the person behind the food has worked in and helped build kitchens with that level of recognition.
What’s on the Menu
The menu is built around mezze and grilled items. Current mezze include hummus with green harissa chickpeas, baba gannoush with pickled eggplant relish, muhammara with roasted red pepper, pomegranate molasses and mint, batata harra with crispy potatoes, pickle aioli and tomato jam, plus fattoush, labneh, olives, and house-made pickled vegetables.
The grill section is compact but very on-theme. Albi’s serves shish tawouk, a yogurt-and-garlic-marinated chicken kebab with toum; 7-spice lamb with green harissa; a rotating seasonal veggie kebab; and arayes, a ground lamb-stuffed pita with garlic labneh and pickled vegetables. Kabobs are served with pita and house-made pickled vegetables.
For dessert, the current menu lists a sticky date cake with brown sugar caramel and orange whipped cream.
Beer, Wine, and a Very Danville-Friendly Setup
Despite the beer garden label, Albi’s is clearly making room for wine people too. The restaurant says it has 16 rotating taps of beer and wine, with names including Cellarmaker Brewing, Original Pattern Brewing, Ghost Town Brewing, Humble Sea Brewing, Mommenpop, and Revel Wines.
That combination — Lebanese food, kebabs, beer, wine, and an outdoor-centered downtown setting — is what makes Albi’s feel a little more interesting than a standard “new restaurant opens” story.
Danville already has plenty of polished dinner spots. It has fewer places that feel designed equally for a casual beer, a plate of grilled lamb, and a family meetup–especially outdoors!
We can’t wait to try it out! Make sure to join our free 925 News newsletter so we can share a review when we stop in.
