My Taste Buds don't lie!

Dear foodies, please stop asking Le Gargotier to become a modern restaurant

⁰

by Celine Chami • Must-Try Foods • Tags: food, french bistro, steak

If you have been reading my blog for a while, you know I never review restaurants. The reason why I don’t do it is because I am not a restaurant expert, nor do I pretend to have the qualifications to professionally rate the service, prices, décor, etc. of any given restaurant. Moreover, my aim in writing blog posts is to simply talk about good food, regardless of where it is found.

But today I decided to make an exception and talk about a restaurant, because I’m appalled by the amateur reviews I’ve been reading about it. The restaurant I want to talk about is Le Gargotier and the reviews I’m targeting are ones asking for more modernism in this place. Let me start by saying that Le Gargotier has been around for 46 years, way before these so called foodies and sometimes even their parents were born. It has a typical French bistro architecture, décor, carte and style, the very elements these foodies are criticising. It is a cozy restaurant whose charm is built on its old décor, old music, old waiters and Hoda. Hoda is the owner who knows everyone’s name and everyone’s parents. She is the very reason this restaurant exists and is a landmark in an otherwise forgotten area.

The menu is simple, straightforward and simply good. It is authentic in everything that’s served. It may not be the best food you’ll ever get served in Lebanon but it is damn good and totally worth your dining experience.

When you ask Le Gargotier to become more modern and change its decor, music and staff, it is exactly like when you tear down another old house in Beirut to replace it with a faceless, characterless building; it will lose its identity and the very essence of what makes it what it is and what it has always been.

To me, Le Gargotier is a place where my parents, my family and hopefully my children have had and will have great memories to share. It has an unparalleled value proposition that the best modern restaurants haven’t been able to compete with.

My infallible tip to refresh a leftover salad

⁰

by Celine Chami • Tips • Tags: food, leftovers, salads

There is nothing I hate more than throwing food away. It just drives me nuts the amount of food we discard every day, especially when the reason is simply because we get bored of eating what’s in our fridge, or because we do not eat leftovers.

I always make sure to store in the freezer all the food we are not going to be eating in the near future, preserving it and making sure it doesn’t go to waste. This is not as obvious with salad that simply cannot be frozen because freezing fresh vegetables (like lettuce, cucumbers or tomatoes) ruins them and makes them inedible.

But I also understand that a leftover salad is the least appealing thing to eat the next day, especially when it’s mixed with the dressing, because the vegetables lose their crunch and color and most of the time become mushy. But that doesn’t mean that I’m willing to throw it away, so I found the perfect way to refresh leftover salads and make them almost as fresh as when first prepared.

My tip for this is to add one or two fresh elements to that leftover salad. If your salad initially had lettuce leaves or cucumbers, I suggest you add few fresh leaves of lettuce or chop a fresh cucumber over it and the trick is done! Don’t ask me why that works; I know nothing scientific about it but I know that adding a fresh ingredient changes the texture of your salad and brings it back to life :).

Featured photo credited to Raphael Nogueira.

Château Heritage: In Vino Veritas

⁰

by Celine Chami • Drinks • Tags: Lebanese wine, wine

Few days ago, we were invited by 209 Lebanese Wine as part of a small group to visit Château Heritage winery and discover their latest wines. I’ve known Château Heritage wines for a long time and some of their wines are always found in our cellar at home, but I was eager to go on that adventure and further explore the story behind this winery.

Once we got there, we were greeted by the man himself: Dr. Dargham Touma. The minute you meet the guy, the pieces of the puzzle start fitting in. He is simply incredible. He radiates passion, generosity, charisma and an unfathomable love of live.

After a very insightful tour of the winery, seasoned with the right dose of information and laughter, we reached the most important part of the winery aka the tasting room. I still cannot believe we tasted 10 different wines, out of which we had five reds, one rosé, two whites, one sweet wine and one chocolate wine.

The wines I particularly want to talk about are the newest Cuvée Saint Elie white and red, produced in commemoration of Dr. Touma’s late father. The white wine is simply incredible. It is a blend of Chardonnay and Viognier, the oldest vines of the winery, and is mixed with staves of oak that add richness and give the wine an exquisite hint of spices.

The red wine is a blend of Cinsault, the oldest Lebanese grape and Cabernet Sauvignon, the most resilient grape variety. It has hints of oak that do not overthrow its balance, and a velvety finish that is extremely smooth on the palate.

Both wines are a pure delight and are sold exclusively on 209lebanesewine.com. I highly recommend you give them a try; they’re a true commemoration of a winemaker’s story, passion and persistence.

You say Potato, we say Batata Bkezbra

by Celine Chami • Quick Fixes • Tags: Lebanese food, potatoes

For those who have been reading my blog for a while, I guess you know by now how much I love Lebanese food and our delicious interpretations of otherwise dull dishes or ingredients.

Today, I decided to dedicate a post for potatoes and how we prepare them in Lebanon. Maybe you’re not familiar with all the below preparations, but I strongly suggest you give them a try because they’re all simply amazing.

Batata Maslou2a: this is simply boiled potatoes that are mashed and mixed with salt, pepper and olive oil. I’m sure everyone in Lebanon knows this version. I love it best with oat bread and green onions that add crunch in every mouthful.
Bayd w Batata: this is a mix of eggs and potatoes. Potatoes are a cut in dices and roasted with a little oil, and then mixed with eggs, salt and pepper. The whole mix is then left to cook before it is enjoyed with markouk bread and fresh tomatoes.
Batata Bkezbra: I believe this is Lebanon’s favorite interpretation of potatoes. They’re diced, roasted with oil and once they’re golden, you add chopped coriander, crushed garlic and salt and keep on the stove until the coriander is well cooked. Enjoy it as is, with or without bread.
Batata Harra: this is exactly the same as the previous one, but with the addition of hot pepper powder. The taste doesn’t change much, except for the spiciness that the pepper adds.
Batata w Tarator: this is one of my all-time favorite dishes. You boil the potatoes and dice them, then add tarator made of tahini paste, lemon and salt. The mix is simply incredible! Just make sure you are generous with the tarator so you get enough with every mouthful. This mix is best enjoyed with markouk or bran bread and with some fresh mint.

Voila! I’m sure there are other famous potato-based dishes that I am not aware of and that are prepared in specific regions across Lebanon. I would love to hear your recommendations if you know of anything new I can try!

Judging the pre-HORECA cooking competition

⁰

by Celine Chami • Must-Try Foods • Tags: HORECA, sandwiches

A few weeks ago, I got asked by one of my students to be a judge for the HORECA selection competition at university. Let me explain further; I teach digital marketing at Saint-Joseph University and I have, among my students, the Hospitality Management students. Each year, they participate in HORECA cooking competitions and win almost unequivocally the Gold and First Gold medals.

I was assigned to the sandwiches category and was judging along the brilliant Chef Adnan Khoury. While he was checking everything from hygiene, students’ motivation, presentation and taste, I was mainly focused on the taste of the sandwiches and the balance of ingredients in them. All participants had of course the same sandwich to prepare, so that we could easily compare who made the best one. The ingredients they had were chicken, poached quail eggs, arugula, double-crème cheese, cornichons, brown bread and an avocado paste. The whole secret for the success of the sandwich was based on the latter that they had to prepare from avocado, mayonnaise, aioli, salt, pepper, olive oil and lemon juice.

Needless to say that all sandwiches were absolutely delicious, because the selection of the ingredients was an all-star. But most of them had too much garlic, or too much salt or too much lemon juice in their avocado paste. One student however had hit the jackpot and the absolute perfect balance of ingredients. His avocado paste was impeccable. The avocado wasn’t overthrown by the weight of garlic or lemon juice, so it mixed perfectly well with the chicken, eggs and cheese.

I recently found out that based on our grades, it was this student who was selected to participate in HORECA. I cannot wait to see what he will be preparing then and I am sure he will ace the balance of ingredients to present a true delicacy to HORECA judges.

Featured photo credited to Michel El Esta.