'I tried London's Lebanese pistachio café and for £6.10 got an overflowing ice cream with a secret ingredient'

With my office reaching a suitably uncomfortable 26C, I made the only reasonable decision one can in a heatwave: abandon all work and eat my body weight in ice cream. Festok, on trendy St Christopher’s Place just off Oxford Street, answered my ice-cold desires, their unique Middle Eastern desserts pulling me away from the hustle and bustle of Central London with ease.

Claiming to be the capital’s only Lebanese ice cream (or booza) parlour, the family-run café has recently been heralded as pistachio paradise by Tiktok’s foodfluencers. It’s easy to see as you step through a green façade, sit at a green table, and tuck into a green-encrusted scoop: this is a place that doesn’t shy away from what they love.

Met with a list of tasty-sounding but unfamiliar flavours - what exactly is meghli? - the smiling man behind the counter is more than willing to help and assures me I’d love achta. One wide-eyed ‘yeah sure, whatever you think’ and £6.10 later, I am presented with an overflowing tub. Although put off by the price at first, you really do get a lot for the money, plus the option to mix and match.

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The texture was truly unlike anything I’ve ever had. Imagine traditional gelato combined with jelly sweets; that’s booza. I’m told by staff that the secret ingredient is salep, a powder made from orchids that acts as a natural gum, giving the ice cream a distinct elasticity.

Achta, as it turns out, is clotted cream and mastic, with Festok also adding a fresh hint of orange blossom water. The generously sprinkled pistachio crumb adds a satisfying crunch, cutting through the perfectly balanced sweetness with ease. Spoonful after refreshing spoonful, I quickly conclude vanilla is old news, achta should be the it girl of perfectly done simplicity. In short, it was utterly delicious.

From my seat - one of only eight inside - I see the owner working away in the in-house kitchen. She initially started the venture as a market stall in 2017 before opening this shop, just off Oxford Street, in 2021.

Business is booming during my visit at 12.30pm on a Wednesday afternoon and everyone is seemingly in agreement that this is the place to be. I watch as a constant stream of people are greeted with the same warmth I was, staff eager to share their knowledge. Plates of gooey semolina cake (nammoura), delicately spun vermicelli nests (osmalieh), and flaky baklava cups whizz past me, each looking more inviting than the last. If you told me I'd been transported to a local's favourite spot in Beirut, I'd believe it- and ask to stay.

Not quite content leaving having only tried one flavour, I opted for a cone for the sweltering journey back to my desk. “Nuts?”, they ask, but of course, it would be silly not to - Festok does mean pistachio after all. My choice - one scoop of halva, one of date - is somehow even better than the last.

The tahini of the halva is light, the sesame flavour so delicate it almost dances on your tongue. The richness of the date takes me by surprise. Noticeably heavier, this feels like an adult ice cream, one to be taken seriously. Together, the combo is a delight. Belly full and taste buds tingling, I bid farewell to this little slice of Lebanon knowing I’ll be quick to return.

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