Mantee Café, a restaurant from Hrag Darakjian that debuted in 2009 near the Studio City bend in the Boulevard, features a welcoming back patio with trickling fountain, birdhouses, umbrella shaded tables and plenty of plant life. You’ll also find a sprawling menu of Lebanese comfort food, including the namesake boat-shaped dumplings. Given all the dips and kebabs to experience on the menu, making it to dessert is very much in doubt … but be sure to save space for kadayef.

Kadayef ($9.75), the top choice listed under “Desserts, Taste From Lebanon,” towers more than four inches above the plate. Two crunchy, golden brown nests of fried vermicelli are sandwiched with ashta, a type of rich clotted cream that’s popular in desserts across the Middle East. Fluffy tufts of floss halva provide textural contrast, as do crushed pistachios. Halva is typically a dense sesame brick, but in this case the floss provides an experience similar to cotton candy but less sweet.

10962 Ventura Blvd., Studio City, 818-761-6565