Jai – Clemenceau

When I think of Jai, I think “good food but will we find a place to eat?” Well, this time the thought of eating their food again outweighed the fact of the seating issue. Don’t get me wrong, Jai is small in a cozy sort of way. I like that they have a common table next to their open kitchen, and a cute seating arrangement on the pavement outside; they give the place its charm. Although, if it is cold outside or it is raining, unfortunately not many seats remain—I witnessed the hassle of the folding and packing of a table firsthand. It would be nice if they could relocate to a bigger area, maybe not too big so that Jai retains its charm, but just enough for more people to enjoy the melange of flavors they have to offer. Luckily, we found a place at the common table indoors. I love peanut sauce, and they have one of the best in the country, so of course we had to order both the Chicken Satay and the Beef Satay as appetizers. The tender chicken and meat were smothered with the delicious peanut sauce, and we couldn’t help but eat every bit of it. As mains, we ordered the Butter Chicken and the Dhal Makhani. They are both comforting platters that come with a side of rice. The Dhal Makhani was rich and felt kind of smoky to me in a way, but the closer one to my heart was that very tasty Butter Chicken. We had the Poppadoms as a side too, and they truly are addictive; they are light and crispy in a delicate way. When we were done, we were kindly offered Ginger Beignets on the house; it seems to be their way of appreciating their customers. The dessert was good, but it has an eccentric taste that you have to like to enjoy. Then, it was time to pay. When you order the bill, you get a handwritten one, which you can also say is part of Jai’s charm. Yet, liking the personal touch to our receipt was followed by a cash only request. It so happened that we were out of cash, so my husband had to walk under the rain to an ATM machine at a nearby hospital. To be honest, it is not a far walk, but it still was a bit impractical I think. However, this is all forgotten when you consider the friendly service and welcoming people at this “hidden gem”. To sum up my lunch experiences at Jai: whenever I feel like satisfying my craving for peanut sauce, this eatery is definitely one that comes to mind.

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Em Sherif Restaurant – Achrafieh

Yes, it was all the hype about Em Sherif and their high review scores that eventually aroused my curiosity. We were in the mood for Lebanese cuisine, so we decided to finally give it a try. When you go in, you notice that the restaurant is fancy, with its mirrored tables and silver cutlery (although I liked some aspects of the interior decoration more than others). A noteworthy issue to mention here is that the service was great from when we entered Em Sherif till when we left. The waiters were very welcoming and friendly, and swiftly brought the food to our table. Things work differently at Em Sherif; when you sit down you do not get a menu to choose from but instead the food directly starts coming your way. For a first-timer, the set menu descending at a fast pace in front of you as well as the waiters passing by with trays of food can be exciting, yet a bit overwhelming as you are trying to keep track of what is being offered and trying to taste everything. However, we did request for room to breathe when we were asked if we would like the hot constituents to be served. I am glad we did that because it was then that I enjoyed all the delicious flavors. Em Sherif does have great food. Their hummus is creamy and their humble labne is really really really good. From the items on the “hovering mezza” tray, the la7em bi3ajeen and sambousik were very tasty, and honestly I would rather that the tray land on the table permanently. The chickpeas in the balila were cooked perfectly and it was well seasoned, though a tad oily. I was surprised at how good the harak osbao was; it had the right amount of tanginess. Additionally, the marination of the skewered shrimps was great and I enjoyed the tender meat chunks (I preferred them to the chich taouk). I could go and on about the immense number of platters we tasted, but if I wanted to describe Em Sherif’s food concisely, it would be well-balanced; their seasoning and the combination of flavors were spot on. I also have to commend them on the kibbe nayye, which had the mint and onions within the mixture, meaning all you had to do was add the olive oil. After this feast of salted dishes, it was time for the sweet ones. Their um ali sauce is to die for! I loved their take on the foret noire presentation; it was placed in a bowl and the chocolate cake was in itself a moist hollow vessel in which the fruits and cream were placed. It seems the maamoul bi jibne is popping up everywhere nowadays, and I am a fan of it in general, and a fan of it at Em Sherif. The waiter places it on your plate and professionally slits it open so that the drizzle of syrup reaches the melted cheese beneath the crumbly crust. All in all, Em Sherif provides a rich set menu with a bit of everything and it left us feeling stuffed for the rest of the day.

Fadel – Bikfaya

Fadel is a patisserie that I first encountered during my childhood. We went up for the occasional ice cream fix, to get a black forest cake to celebrate a birthday, or to get some freshly baked bread. Since then, a large number of pastry shops have opened their doors, but we still do visit Fadel once in a while. Their classic black forest cake was the cake we resorted to recently for my mother’s birthday, certain we wouldn’t disappoint. It surely did the trick; the cake was fluffy and light. The last time I tasted products from Fadel, I had a cheese croissant, a chocolate chip muffin, a piece of success cake (“succès“), and their thyme pain au lait. I know croissants are the epitome of buttery concoctions, but the cheese croissant was too buttery and heavy, in my opinion. As for the muffin, it was fine, and I appreciated their generosity with the chocolate chips. Their succes was okay, but not as successful as another patisserie makes them; I go to that pastry shop exclusively for their succes, yet that is a story for another day. However, the very successful item at Fadel is their thyme pain au lait. I have tasted the regular one with no filling, as well as the one filled with cheese, but it is the zaatar one that I love. The bread is very soft and there is thyme sprinkled in the dough and used as a filling simultaneously, which highlights the taste. That is one item I am sure I will return for.

DIVVY – Hazmieh

For another eatery to whisk my sister away from work on her lunch break, we headed to DIVVY in Hazmieh to try out items from their new menu and not so new menu. We started off with the Crispy Strips and an appetizer we always order: the Brie and Blueberry. I love how the purple color of their signature blueberry dip is so vibrant, and needless to say, its delicious taste went perfectly well with the melted cheese cubes. Another way to visit this lovely coupling is in their tasty DIVVY Brie and Blueberry Burgers. In fact, that specialty burger was the reason that I decided to try out the new burger on their menu; the Grand Burger. The meat was juicy and if you like your patty on the thicker side, this would do. However, the component I couldn’t get enough of was that bun! It could not possibly get any softer. Also, the sauce was good, but all in all, I do still prefer their Brie and blueberry burgers. We also ordered the Beef Teriyaki platter, which has great comforting flavors, and the Caesar Sandwich. For dessert, I was very excited to try their new Salted Caramel Pain Perdu and I was not disappointed. It was decadent. The moistness of the pain perdu chunks topped with the salted caramel’s just right sweetness was a delightful end to our meal. On the whole, it was a satisfying lunch, and one shouldn’t forget to commend the presentation of their dishes, as well as their friendly yet professional service. Additionally, although I did not order it this time, I would like to recommend their Countryside Steak Sandwich, which never ceases to awaken my taste buds with its bursts of goodness.

La Petite Table – Dbayeh

Ok, so I have a long list of restaurants I want to visit; most of them are in Beirut. However, we did not have the luxury of time on our hands, and so I began thinking about eateries located in Dbayeh. Although not on my list, I recalled that I had visited La Peitite Table at tea time and that we had sat in the cute seating area outside. It was cold this time around so we would have to sit inside, but I thought it was worth a try and I was pleasantly surprised. La Petite Table has a cozy interior with lovely colors and bursts of greenery. Amidst the comfortable ambiance, I would really like to highlight an issue: their lighting. I am a person that loves bright light and sunny days, and their globes lit the restaurant wonderfully at dinner. The staff was very professional, and we were warmly welcomed and led to our seats. Our waiter was friendly and politely took our order, and no mistakes were made; I actually loved the service. Now, for the part that satisfied our hunger. We chose the Salmon Crudo, the Fish & Fries, and the Double Cheese Burger as our salty items. First, a bread basket is placed on the table with olive oil to dip the slices in before they head to your mouth, and then your platters arrive. Considering the cheese burger, I found the patty to be juicy, and biting into the burger resulted in repeated deliciousness with every bite. The fries on the side were crispy, well-seasoned, and really good in flavor. However, the component of the dish I want to focus on the most is the Hickory BBQ Sauce. It was to die for! I put some on my burger, and when that was done, I smothered my fries in it. As for the fish and fries dish, the outer shell was crunchy and the fish within it seemed fresh. I enjoyed the fish, yet I was not really a fan of the accompanying soy sesame sauce. For dessert, we ordered one of each of the available Macarons flavors and the Chocolate-Peanut Waffle. The waffle was good, although not one of the best I have had. The caramel sauce was a tasty addition to the waffle, and I preferred it to the chocolate sauce, which was not as rich. At the end of the whole meal, I felt relaxed and was left intrigued to return and try other menu offerings, such as their Molten Chocolate Cake.

Urbanista – Dbayeh

Urbanista in Gemmayze was my go-to destination in the months preceding my wedding, when I was undergoing my big day’s dress alterations. It never disappointed. Anyway, this is about the branch at ABC Dbayeh, and as I am writing this, it just came to my attention that Urbanista at this location was my go-to restaurant during my pregnancy—I had to have their BBQ Burger again and again. For no particular reason, it had been a while since I had last visited Urbanista and unfortunately, this review is about my most recent experience. Honestly, in general, I felt that the food was mediocre in flavor. For appetizers, we ordered the Goat Cheese & Tomato Pizzetta, the Quinoa Chips and Chicken, and the Chicken Mini Bites. The goat cheese pizza was very dry and the amount of cheese topping could have been more generous. The quinoa chips were crispy and I enjoyed them with the melted cheese but there was a bit too much barbecue sauce on some of them. For our main dishes, we ordered several burgers, Fish and Chips, and the Veal Escalope. The Double Cheeseburger’s sauce was too sweet for my taste, yet I did like the accompanying coleslaw which was fresh and crunchy. As for the Fish and Chips, I thought that the crust was a tad oily, although the fish encased within it was delicious. When it came to the service, the waiters were very friendly but we didn’t appreciate it when the main dishes arrived before the appetizers. However, they were quick to apologize and gave us two big slices of chocolate cake for dessert along with our choices of coffee on the house. The cake tasted good, even though the cake layers were unevenly moistened. When lunch was over, I left Urbanista with mixed feelings. I had enjoyed the amicable ambiance, but I certainly remember the food being better.