3 Lebanese Restaurants Make It On MENA’s 50 Best List
The Worlds 50 Best Restaurants has published their annual Middle East & North Africa’s 50 Best Restaurants 2023. The list, which had Dubai’s Orfali Bros Bistro at #1 and Kuwait’s Bonjiri at #50, saw the inclusion of three Lebanese restaurants. Amidst continuing volatile conditions at home, it is great to see local restaurants keeping up with, and competing against, their international counterparts.
The first was Em Sherif at #20, which the curator described as:
“The quintessential Lebanese dining experience, Em Sherif offers guests a taste of traditional home cooking. Chef Yasmina Hayek’s marathon 30-course dinner of mezze platters, all designed to share, is coupled with her mother and restaurateur Mireille Hayek’s infallible service. The triumphant combination earns the restaurant this year’s Art of Hospitality Award.”
Directly after, we had Tawlet Mar Mikhael come in at #19 with the following description:
“Rotating weekly, the menu at Tawlet could include any variety of dishes from all corners of Lebanon. Dozens of women from villages across the country take turns designing menus that showcase their local recipes. The restaurant provides a space for open conversation – about the dishes, traditions, and significance of the food for local communities.”
Finally, Lebanon’s last and top entry came with Baron at #16.
“Chef Athanasios Kargatzidis’s Baron is a fun, unfussy, locavore neighbourhood joint hidden in the hip streets of artsy Mar Mikhael in Beirut. Eclectic small plates characterise the seasonal sharing-style menu that changes every few days. Heavy on the vegetables, the food is modern and innovative with Mediterranean and Japanese influences.
We are glad to see three of Lebanon’s finest restaurants represented on this list, and hope to see more next time around. To check out last year’s list, you can click here.
