Written by: Samer
One of the best parts of visiting Lebanon is bringing its flavours home, not just in memory, but in the bags of spices, pickles, and pantry treasures you collect along the way. On a sunny Saturday, we headed to Souk El Tayeb, Beirut’s open-air farmers’ market. In a middle-class area of the city, it’s easy to forget where you are if it weren’t for the smell of za’atar hanging in the air, you could mistake it for any other urban market in the world. The scene is familiar, then you hear it “Hi, keefak, ça va?” a perfectly Lebanese mix of English, Arabic and French, all in one casual greeting.
Stallholders come from every part of the country, wine from the Batroun Mountains, honey from the Cedars, fruit leathers from the valleys of Wadi al-Taym, olives from Akkar. It’s a celebration of Lebanon’s rural traditions, stalls brimming with local olives, pickled vegetables, raw honey, handmade biscuits, and spice blends passed down through generations. We picked up some of our favourites sun-dried tomatoes, labneh, honey, and a jar of pickled stuffed aubergines before treating ourselves to a fresh manoushe saaj, hot off the griddle.
Souk El Tayeb couldn’t be more different from the Old Souk in Tripoli, where time feels heavier. The Tripoli souk is a living, breathing labyrinth of narrow streets, timeworn stalls, and crumbling beauty. There, locals haggle over spices, textiles, meats, and gold, fewer tourists, more grit, and centuries of stories in every corner.
That evening, we laid out a family-style tray, something we've done for generations. No heavy dinner, just a beautiful spread: halloumi, tomatoes, labneh, olives, shankleesh (a fermented cheese rolled in za’atar and served with diced tomatoes, onions, and lots of olive oi), jam, fresh cucumbers, and peppers. Everyone grabs what they like, and we eat together, casually but joyfully, the Lebanese way.
Back in Tripoli, we returned to the old souk, where the air smells like cardamom, cumin, and grilled meat. Even though I know the place like the back of my hand, we still got lost in the maze-like alleys, part of the fun, really. We picked up some groceries for lunch: minced meat, cabbage, potatoes, onions, and, of course, spices.
At home, we cooked a feast: Kafta bil Sayneh (spiced meat baked with potatoes, aubergines, onions and tomatoes), malfouf (cabbage rolls filled with rice and meat), koussa (stuffed courgette in a light tomato broth), kibbeh (bulgur and meat patties, oven to golden), shish Barak (little meat dumplings in a garlicky yogurt sauce), and a big bowl of fattoush, tossed with crispy bread and sumac.
These are the recipes we grew up with, and now, with the spices and ingredients we sell, we want to help others bring that warmth and flavour into their own kitchens.
