Food & Drink
Lebanese cuisine is widely known to be the finest in the Middle East. The country’s gastronomic tradition is characterised by the use of an enormously wide variety of locally produced, and therefore extremely fresh, vegetables served in all forms and shapes with an abundance of fresh herbs (mostly coriander, parsley and mint).
Brilliant Lebanese food is available everywhere. A dish traditional to Lebanon is kebbeh, made of lamb pounded to a fine paste, with burghul or cracked wheat, and served raw or baked in flat trays or rolled into balls and fried. Also suggested is the traditional Lebanese mezza, a range of up to 40 small dishes served as hors d’oeuvres with arak.
Main courses are likely to include Lebanese staple ingredients of rice, vegetables and mutton. Lahm mishwi (pieces of mutton with peppers, onions, and tomato) is popular. Other general dishes are tabbouli, houmos and mtabbal. Lebanese palates also favour pastries with local varieties of baked doughs flavoured with nuts, cream and syrup. A meal is always concluded with a wide variety of fresh fruit, including melon, oranges, persimmon, tangerines, apples, cactus fruit, grapes and figs, which are all grown locally.
Beirut also offers a large selection of international restaurants which offer dishes from all over the world. Bars have table and / or counter service. Alcohol is not prohibited in Lebanon.
Nightlife
Nightclubs excite the evenings in Beirut and mountain resorts. Entertainment ranges from orchestras to solo guitarists and floor shows. A few British style pubs can be found in Beirut. There are several cinemas presenting the latest films from all over the world. The internationally renowned Casino du Liban in Maameltain (22 kilometres / 14 miles north of Beirut) is equipped with lavish gambling halls, luxurious restaurants and a cabaret.
Shopping
Lebanon’s traditional souks or markets are found all over the country offering ornamental and precious handmade items at very low prices. Special purchases include traditional pottery and glassware, as well as cutlery made of tempered steel or copper with ram or buffalo bone handles shaped in the form of stunning and colourful birds’ heads.
Brass and copper goods include braziers, ashtrays, bowls, fluted jugs, swords and doorstops, all attractively designed and hand engraved. Cloth, silk and wool kaftans, abayas (embroidered nightwear) and table linen are popular, as are hand worked silver and gold. Shops sell the latest Western goods including cosmetics, clothes, furniture and electrical appliances.
General shopping hours are Monday to Saturday from 8.00 am to 7.00 pm.
Social Conventions
Lebanese people are well known for their hospitality and handshaking is the general form of greeting. It is acceptable to give a small gift, especially if invited home for a meal. As far as dress is concerned, casual dress is acceptable for daytime wear, except in main towns where dress tends to be rather formal. Smarter hotels and restaurants often entail guests to dress for dinner.
Since Lebanon is almost evenly divided between those adhering to the Muslim faith, and those adhering to the Christian faith, visitors should dress according to the tradition of the majority in the individual places being visited. Smoking is common and acceptable unless mentioned otherwise.
Tipping
In hotels and restaurants, a tip of between 5 % and 10 % of the bill is expected. It is not obligatory to tip taxi drivers. |
