~ Tasty fare for all ~
Beirut is new on the block and right on the road next to RBC Bank in Simpson Bay. The renovations have produced a large indoor dining room with kitchen at the rear and a small deck under a canopy roadside.
Loving all flavours of the Mediterranean and Middle East, I was intrigued to try out this new restaurant and keenly observed as the renovations were being done. The colour scheme of red/burgundy, cream and dark brown is classy and soothing. Seating is plentiful inside. A large bar follows along the length of half the room and a TV with Middle Eastern music videos plays constantly. At the rear of the room is a large cold-case which has a variety of cakes and desserts therein.
We were seated indoors immediately. As we were there early, not many tables were occupied. We lingered awhile and slowly the tables filled, the deck being the most popular seating area. Service was quick, although the waitress had to refer a couple of my questions about the meal; after all, this restaurant had just opened. Looking over the menu, we were intrigued to see that every now and then a listed item was definitely not authentic Lebanese but Caribbean.
We ordered the Freshly Made Island Conch Fritters and boy were they good! They were quite possibly the best we've eaten in a long time. They were plated with a typical (and somewhat disappointing) seafood dip, lettuce, mixed salad and lemon wedges. It was all very refreshingly fresh! We also ordered Labna, a Middle Eastern yogurt mixed with garlic, dry mint and olive oil and a bowl of plain humus; they have a number of choice toppings listed for the humus. With these small bowls, a dish of regular, plain, pitta bread wedges came alongside for dipping. We did enjoy the Labna very much, preferring to dip the conch fritters into this rather than the pink seafood dip.
Our starters arrived just as the most delightful "amuse bouche" came to the table. This offering was a bowl of incredibly tasty lentil soup. We think that something like this should be offered at all establishments "On the House" as it is at Beirut. It is certainly a draw card as one can order drinks and linger over choosing one's meal while sipping on the light, refreshing and very welcome soup. After all, there should be no rush to eat and leave when on a date, should there?
We made our second menu choice only after we were served our starters. We love to eat Mezze (Tapas) style and were debating whether to order more Mezze or go for one of the Main Courses. The Beirut plate won! This main course was a kebab of minced lamb and small dishes of taboli (there are so many spellings for this dish that is basically made of cracked bulgar wheat, finely chopped parsley, cucumber and tomatoes with a lemon vinaigrette), baba ganouj (again, there are various spellings for this dish of roasted and mashed eggplant – brinjal) roasted red pepper, plain Labna, salad and stuffed grape leaves. For the side, we ordered the house special of freshly made fries – these were yummy!
I was not terribly overwhelmed with the kebab, tasty as it was. For myself, I do prefer the lamb to be cubed and crispy on the outside; but the small dishes were good. We did not have any wine so I am afraid I did not even look at the wine list; but the bar appears to carry a wide array of mixes.
We did ask about dessert but the choice appeared to be more Caribbean/American than Lebanese – I was looking for Baklava, Knafeh or Awamat; all very sweet and unusual ethnic desserts.
All in all, a pleasant evening was had and the bill was very reasonable – next time we will go for wine, hookahs and hope we get that truly excellent soup as the amuse bouche to start our meal.
Beirut
Located in Simpson Bay,
#29 Airport Road.
Call: + 721 545-3612
Cuisine: Caribbean and Lebanese
Price range: $7 starters - $22 main
Vegetarian/Vegan menu: Yes
Kids' menu: Yes
Good: Easy parking
Large groups
Ratings out of 5
Staff friendliness: 4
Service speed: 4
Restaurant cleanliness: 4
Food quality: 4
Value for money: 4.5
Ambience: 4
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Total score: 24.5/30
