Sohaila on Shoreditch High Street looks and feels about as comfortable and unassuming as any other restaurant nearby. The walls are naked, save for a hodgepodge of artworks loosely curated by the co-founders Meg Doherty and Nathalie Moukarzel; the tables and chairs are a shade of bare wood that look at once chic and slightly retro; the downstairs bar is lit by harsh strip lights until the evening, when amber hues thankfully take over.
My service at Sohaila is a short one: a single, influential lunchtime table of just six diners. But the Lebanese-leaning fare isn’t the only reason this Shoreditch restaurant is my home for the day — this enterprise is a purpose driven one.
