It was not long after his move to Jounieh that Ramia Chihane, born on the 12 of June 1912 in Kessarwan, opened his first restaurant in 1936. Ramia quickly became known for his amazing fool and Balila plates which in his words “fed all my children”. Aided by his wife Rosalie, Ramia went on to cement his presence in Sahet Jounieh until his untimely passing in 1967.
That was when his eldest son Toni, then only 17 years old, decided to take the rein of the family business and help his mother and 6 brothers and sisters. With his arrival, began a new chapter that eventually turned Chihane Resto into the household brand it is today. Toni went on to open his second and bigger location in Chahtoul in 2000. Though Toni succeeded in making his Balila taste even better than his father’s it was his mother Rosalie’s Ghamme recipe and preparation secret, further perfected by his wife Soad, that made Chihane resto the success story it is today. While the secrets have been passed on to yet another generation of Chihane’s, you can still see Toni roaming around his restaurant with the same pride his father once had!
