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Lebanese food in Australia lacks variety, says Jinan Afiouny Ammoura, co-owner and manager of Café Levant, a family-run Lebanese restaurant in Sydney’s Greenacre. Afiouny Ammoura says all the Lebanese food here is “a bit of the same same”.
“The main Lebanese dishes that are quite pronounced at restaurants here are hummus and tahini, which aren’t really dishes — they’re more mezze,” she says. “We’re lacking authentic dishes. The dishes you would get at Mum’s house, Grandma’s house, that they make. Obviously, when you go to a restaurant, you want them to be more elevated.”
Fortunately, Afiouny Ammoura has seen progress in Australia’s Lebanese food offering. Two decades ago in Sydney, there were just a handful of places in certain areas, like Lakemba. That’s now changed and Lebanese restaurants are all over the city.
Afiouny Ammoura says what Lebanese restaurants here have in common with those in Lebanon is that you can expect to be fed. You will not walk out hungry. And you can also expect to be presented with lots of dishes — not just an entrée, main and dessert.
“Expect four or five entrées, three or four main dishes, some salads and then some desserts when you’ve finished,” she says. “The essence of Lebanese food is just trying different things. You’ll have a little bit of this and a little bit of that.”
Here, Afiouny Ammoura shares her favourite picks for Lebanese restaurants in Sydney, including the best fine-dining, cheap eats and Iftar menu.
Aalia
Afiouny Ammoura’s pick for best Sydney fine-dining restaurant serving Lebanese is Aalia. The two-hatted restaurant in Martin Place has a Middle Eastern menu and interiors she describes as beautiful but not pretentious.
“I love their elevated dishes,” says Afiouny Ammoura. “They take a few ingredients that are Lebanese or Middle Eastern, and they use them in a very modern and delicate way. The menu changes often, but the lamb neck shawarma on it now is just chef’s kiss.”
Zahli
Another favourite for fine-dining is Zahli. The restaurant was in Surry Hills but will soon reopen in The Rocks, though no date has been set. Afiouny Ammoura says the restaurant is usually buzzing with families and friends gathered around a table. When you visit, order the kibbeh nayyeh, described as the Lebanese version of steak tartare.
“If you want to try something unique that you’ve never tried before, I would recommend their raw smorgasbord, which has raw liver,” says Afiouny Ammoura. “You have it with salt and pepper and lots of different accompaniments.”
Arabella
Afiouny Ammoura’s pick for the best kibbeh nayyeh in Sydney is at Arabella in Newtown. They make it exactly the way her grandmother used to and the way her mum makes it now. “Other than home, I’ve never had it anywhere better,” she says.
The dish is fresh raw meat with a mix of dried rose petals, orange peel and herbs like cumin and marjoram. “It’s really fragrant and delicious,” she says.
Arabella is also the place to go if you want to party. Alongside their food, they’ve also got shisha you can order, and, on the weekends, belly dancing entertainment.
Bayti
The Sydney Lebanese restaurant with the best atmosphere is Bayti in Parramatta. It’s filled with family and friends, many celebrating special occasions. Afiouny Ammoura’s most recent visit was for a 50th birthday. The restaurant’s décor is simple and elegant, with a few Middle Eastern-style cornices.
Al Afrah Pastry
Best place in Sydney for Lebanese desserts? Al Afrah Pastry in Sydney’s Punchbowl, open since 1982. Most people takeaway but you can sit in, if you’d like. Afiouny Ammoura orders the backlawa, made with layers of flaky pastry dough and finely ground pistachios.
She also likes their knefeh, halawet al-jeben and znoud al-site. “It’s a beautiful puff pastry with clotted cream and then drenched in sugar syrup,” she says.
Al Aseel
Al Aseel is the Lebanese restaurant Afiouny Ammoura considers the most affordable in Sydney. It has 10 locations in the city and its suburbs, including in Chatswood, Parramatta and Castle Hill. For 22 years, it’s been serving dishes based on recipes passed down from generations.
“I would definitely recommend the lemon garlic chicken,” says Afiouny Ammoura.
Café Levant
Finally, the best spot to break Iftar is at Afiouny Ammoura’s own Café Levant. In Ramadan, the restaurant opens from Wednesday to Sunday and has a banquet of traditional foods you’d eat to break your fast.
“Lentil soup, fatteh, which is chickpeas with a tahini and yoghurt dressing and pine nuts on top,” she says. “And then you’d have fattoush salad and then we’d get a main meal and some finger foods as well.”
The restaurant’s in Greenacre, which Afiouny Ammoura says is the hub of Sydney’s Muslim community, which, during Ramadan, you can feel. “Everyone around us is fasting and then everyone breaks their fast at the same time,” she says. “And there’s a little prayer hall across the road, so you really feel the essence of Ramadan.”
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