Sydney’s best Lebanese restaurants, and top dishes to try

From practical street snacks to lavish banquets, Lebanese food has it all.

Sydney has the country’s largest Lebanese community where a good kebab or manoush flatbread covered in the zingy zaatar spice mix is never far away.

For many people, the first experience of Lebanese food will be eaten on the run.

Perhaps it is a shawarma of lamb, salad and garlic sauce wrapped in puffy warm pita, or crisp falafel and pickled veg rolled up the same way.

As practical and delicious as these street foods are, Lebanese cooking at its best can only be experienced amongst a large gathering sitting at a table laden with plates.

Acclaimed Melbourne-based chef, Greg Malouf, has played a leading role in introducing Australians to the flavours of the Middle East.

In common with other Middle Eastern cuisines, a feast such as this will be a mix-and-match affair, served in one hit, and usually including grilled or slow-cooked lamb; a choice of dips; an array of pulses and vegetables; and a flat bread to use as both a scoop and for mopping up.

Dips, such as labneh, pictured, are an essential accompaniment to a Lebanese meal.

The food will be full of colour – think crimson jewels of pomegranate and pistachio green – and fragrant with orange blossom and rose waters, as well as herbs such as mint and parsley.

If anything, the cooking of Lebanon is a touch lighter than its neighbours, with a stronger focus on the produce itself and less sauces or strong spicing. And with a long stretch of coastline on the Mediterranean Sea, fish and other seafood is also prevalent.

Melbourne’s Greg Malouf has played a leading role in introducing Australia to the food of Lebanon and the wider Middle East, through both his restaurants and numerous books. Sydney, however, has the country’s largest Lebanese community, much of it settled in the western suburbs, where a good kebab or manoush flatbread covered in the zingy zaatar spice mix is never far away.

Wilson’s is believed to be the city’s first Lebanese restaurant, opening in Redfern in 1951, and, remarkably, is still trading today. The unlikely name came from one of the founding brothers.

Wilson's Lebanese Restaurant in Redfern has been trading since 1951.

Zahli in Surry Hills offers a blend of traditional and more contemporary creations, in a modern restaurant setting. Seafood features strongly in dishes such as seared barramundi with spicy tahini sauce and whole fried sand whiting.

Not far away in the same suburb, Nour takes this a step further, promising to “leap outside the box” and playfully tease out the full potential of Lebanese flavours. Dinner here might include yellowfin tuna nayyeh with caramelised kishk or glazed lamb shoulder with preserved hindbeh. Staff will help with the translations.

Also recommended is Cubby’s Kitchen (Sydney CBD or Bondi), where both the name and the

cooking are inspired by owner Matt Yazbek’s mother. Still, there are some contemporary twists in dishes such as smoked labne with pistachio crumbs and black sesame.

MIDDLE EASTERN DELIGHTS

Elie Abi Rached, executive chef of Zahli in Surry Hills shares his passion for Lebanese cuisine.

Elie Abi Rached, executive chef of Zahli in Surry Hills.

Top dishes

If we had to pick the most popular, it would be coupled between hot and cold mezze, like dips (hummus, baba ghannouj and mouhamara), salad like tabouli and mains including kibbeh nayyeh, kibbeh mishwee (oven-baked kibbeh) and samke harra. For first-time diners, I think a banquet is a great idea, as it generously provides an insight into the Lebanese dining experience, from hot and cold mezze to mains and dessert.

Don’t forget dessert: Baqlawa with coffee is the perfect conclusion to a Middle Eastern feast.

Lebanese love-affair

Being of Middle Eastern descent, I feel drawn to the cuisine and being able to create memorable experiences for diners. Cooking is my passion and Lebanon is in my DNA, so every day at Zahli I get to bring the two things I love most together and show the local community the beauty and essence of Middle Eastern cuisine. It is rich in flavour and

diversity, and has something to offer for every palate. I love that I can showcase this and present to people just how incredible our cuisine is – not just by tasting, but by providing a whole sensory experience.

Must see

We have many hot spots in Lebanon that are most known for creating the most authentic and tastiest dishes. The most prominent must include Zahle (our namesake), Baalbek, Jezzine and Wadi Chahrour, as well as the larger cities including Tripoli, Jbeil, Beirut, Saida and Tyre.