Beyrouth, Lebanon

Restaurants of Beirut will be genuinely liked by vegetarian food adherents, because you can hardly find such a great selection of vegetable salads and stews in restaurants of other countries. Vegetarians are recommended to try the beans paste "hummus". If you cannot imagine a meal without meat, then "kibby" will become your favorite. The dish is cooked from small balls of minced meat, which is richly flavored with spices. Not only fresh but also pickled vegetables are often added as a side dish to the local meat delicacies. Most often the dishes made of meat and poultry make up the basis of menus of the majority of the local restaurants. Meat cooked on an open fire, as well as different kinds of barbeque meat are particularly popular among the local people and travellers.

Fans of seafood will also not have to make a long search in order to find a suitable dish. Local chefs prepare excellent gefilte fish on the coals. There are also specialized restaurants that offer visitors various rare delicacies. However, when it comes to first course dishes, the local restaurants have nothing to be proud of. Soups are not very common for Lebanese cuisine. As a rule, chefs simply add a small amount of broth to meat dishes. Bread remains one of the most important elements of any meal. In some cases a slice of bread can replace the cutlery, but in all modern restaurants visitors will certainly be served with a standard set of tableware. The menus of Beirut restaurants will surely please sweet tooth travellers. Honey baklava, semolina desserts, fresh and candied fruits and cakes with various fruit fillings – the local sweets are not only delicious, but also surprisingly healthy.
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