Jounieh
Considered one of the best seafood restaurants in Lebanon, Chez Sami offers great seaside views from its elegant glassed-in pavilion and magnificent…
Must-see restaurants in Lebanon
Beirut
Beirut's capital of sourdough, Tusk bakes a wide variety of breads, as well as seasonal cakes and pastries (including fun riffs on the croissant, like…
Beirut
In the heart of the Badaro eating and drinking area, this appeals for its tables in the handsome covered streetside garden of a villa. The menu is…
Beirut
Beirut is certifiably mad for burgers, and for our money, this is the city’s best. You don’t come here for ambience (it’s a tiny space with a few…
Byblos
Substantially better than the rest of the restaurants overlooking the port, this has a lovely location and is a prime sundowner spot. It serves decent…
Beirut
Oslo is a charming shop founded by a Lebanese confectioner who made it big in LA and returned to Beirut to shake up the ice-cream scene. The shop scoops…
Beirut
As international as it name would suggest, this industrial-chic cafe is as popular with expats as it is with locals. It has individual and communal tables…
Beirut
After indulging in a happy hour or two in Hamra, many locals head to this trattoria for a restorative bowl of pasta or a Roman-style (ie thin-crust) pizza…
Beirut
Set in a very charming historic house pleasantly screened by greenery from this quiet street, this is a likeably discreet spot that does a pleasing line…
Qadisha Valley
This modern cafe-bar on the main road (opposite the more noticeable RTC restaurant) makes a pleasant venue for tasty grilled meats served with fresh-cut…
Qadisha Valley
The restaurant at Le Cedrus Hotel is the best at the Cedars, offering everything from fondue for two to burgers, pastas and Levantine mezze and grills…
Beirut
This Indian pop-up restaurant in the design district was such a big hit that they've made it permanent. There's still plenty of change in this space…
Beirut
Don’t miss lunch at this beloved Beiruti institution where waiters dish up vast platefuls of ‘workers’ food’ to all and sundry. There’s little atmosphere,…
Tyre
Hotel Al Fanar has a pub with a marvellous seaside terrace, a prime spot for a late-afternoon drink. They do a range of classic Lebanese dishes and also…
Beirut
Yes, it's a chain, but Bar Tartine's original Mar Mikhaël location is set back from the road, up a set of stairs (as many restaurants on this stretch are)…
Beirut
Beirut first fell for sushi in the naughties; today myriad sushi joints are dotted throughout the city. Tsunami is the best you can get without putting on…
Beirut
The Beirut food community, deprived of affordable Asian food for so long, lost its mind for a minute when Don opened. This place hits all the trend marks:…
Beirut
Any given Beirut manoushe (Levant-style ‘pizza’)stand can be hit or miss. The best turn out better manoushe than the Lebanese Bakery does, but on a short…
Beirut
Jai is Beirut's first pan-Asian restaurant, and it remains a stalwart. The restaurant itself is minuscule, only large enough to house the kitchen and one…
Beirut
Head up the wooden staircase to access this huge and ultra-popular restaurant and then choose between a garden table or one in the attractively decorated…
Beirut
Supremely out of place in the sleepy Geitawi neighborhood, El Brimo's Vegas-style facade hides an elegantly restored manor house with a garden. The mezze…
Beirut
A favourite with the affluent Achrafiyeh set, this chain cafe at the start of Rue Gouraud is a fine spot to indulge in some people watching. You'll need…
Beirut
The poke wave is crashing into Beirut in a big way. Ahi Poke was the first poke place to open in the city, and, for now at least, it’s the best. Ahi Poke…
Beirut
Zwizz, as the kids call it, is the hometown hero of the Lebanese fast food scene. Franchises abound, and they all sling the same tasty, healthy-ish,…
Tyre
Also known locally as ‘Hadeed’, this place is famous for its fresh fish, which is served fried or grilled. A pleasant outdoor terrace overlooks the…
Beirut
Beirut is home to the only international outpost of this Los Angeles institution, slinging cholesterol-rich breakfast sandwiches to AUB students morning…
Qadisha Valley
Situated on the street directly below Hotel Chbat, this bar and restaurant succeeds in channelling a rustic mountain theme, with wooden furniture and a…
Beirut
Despite Hamra's buzzing scene, it's not that easy to find a straight-up Lebanese restaurant without a hipster slant or burger menu. This fits the bill:…
Beirut
Had your fill of hummus? Das Küche has opened smack in the middle of Mar Mikhaël, slinging imported (read: overpriced) pork and beef brats and wursts…
Tyre
On a busy intersection in the centre, you can't miss the huge signage of this place. It's a friendly spot, doing a range of great falafel and shawarma…
