Can You Guess Which Meal Lebanese People Love The Most?

The answer to that question is: all of them! Jokes aside, every country has a prized meal which seems to be central to the family’s day. For some it’s breakfast, for others it’s dinner, and in other places brunch seems to take the place as the favorite meal. In Lebanon, that meal is lunch.

Lunch, especially during weekends and holidays, is essential to the Lebanese. As their guest, you’re more likely to be invited for that meal than breakfast or dinner. The main two categories for these special day-feasts are mashawi (kebab barbecue) or warak inab. These are very distinctive and are part of every Lebanese household’s routine.

If you are invited out, or to a lunch in a Lebanese home on Sunday, it’s very likely that the menu includes a lot of meat. From kefta (meat Kebab made of meat mixed with parsley and onion) to chicken, not much is spared in this signature meal. The typical scene would be a group of people over the barbecue fanning coal in preparation as others work on giant bowls of tabbouleh and the different members of a giant family all around talking. Some of the other essential dishes would be kebbe nayyeh (a dish made of raw meat) and appetizers like hummus. For many families, this is a weekly tradition at a parent or grandparent’s home, and involves a lot of group effort to finally sit down and eat.

If it’s a holiday meal you’re invited to, you’re more likely to encounter warak inab than anything else. The dish is made of rice and ground meat wrapped in vine leaves. The dish is prepared overnight and boiled in lemon juice over a meat and bone base. Typically, the rolls are eaten with pita bread, mint leaves, and onion. It’s a difficult dish to make and takes a lot of preparation, which makes it the preserve of special occasions. Some of the appetizers for this meal include the typical tabbouleh or fattoush salad and hummus.

Both meals are followed by traditional Arab sweets and Turkish coffee. Some of the local delicacies you’ll see include kunafa, a pastry-based sweet filled with cheese, or ashta, a milk-based cream, and halawet el jibn, a sweetened cheese-based dish.

Generally, lunch is an important meal in the Lebanese culture—it’s the meal when the family sits together and is an essential part of the day. Not all lunches are feasts, of course—the Lebanese have their own local meals that many foreigners don’t hear about, like kousa mahshi (zucchini stuffed with rice and ground meat), yogurt-based dishes like sish barak (a lentil-based rice dish), and sometimes they’ll just order in or grab a Big Mac!

landscape with balloons floating in the air

KEEN TO EXPLORE THE WORLD?

Connect with like-minded people on our premium trips curated by local insiders and with care for the world

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.