We had a surprise birthday last sunday at Rikky’z in Faqra at lunch time and i must say it was a lot of fun and very different from what i was expecting. I had never been to that place before but i knew it was a nice place overlooking Faraya that had open BBQ and drinks and a nice atmosphere. What i did not see coming is that i was practically going to a party but in day time.

The place is right before the Faqra club and is very easy to get to. You have to give you car away (Valet Parking of course) and pay a 30$ entrance fee that includes open food and drinks and a free sombrero. You get in a wooden house and head toward a large terrace where there are lots of tiny tables, just like any night club, a bar and very loud music. The sun is a killer so you will need your sombrero.

The party picks up bit by bit and around 2 pm, food is served in a buffet. You have salads inside and a large grill outside. Food wasn’t that great to be honest but just like night clubs, you don’t expect it to be good but don’t really care as the whole atmosphere is nice.

Read the rest of this entry »

I always thought rolling sushi was difficult and wondered how they managed to do them that quickly. Well it turned out it’s not that hard. I was invited to a sushi dinner on Friday night where the hosts were doing their own sushi.

I went into the kitchen to have a hint on how it’s done and what are the things one needs to get. The main components are basically salmon, crab, rice, avocado, Japanese mayo, sesame, cucumber and seaweed rolls. Of course there’s the soy sauce and ginger needed later on.

The hardest part in this process is to roll them, but you have those wooden rolls to help you, so it just needs practice. My friends rolled over 200 makis and sushis that night in an hour or so. One of them also rolled some cones which are supposedly pretty hard to make.

As for me, i was drinking white wine (Chardonnay 2008) and tasting here and there and watching the world cup game of course. Anyway, they turned out to be really good and better tasting than in some sushi places I’ve been to.

I recall hearing about it on the radio but there was not much advertising done on this event. I wonder why. Same for the boat show, barely any ads on TV or billboards.

The girls partied at Cellar club in kaslik, not the most famous or known of clubs, and had dinner at Nahawand restaurant.

(More Pictures at beirutnightlife)

And then there was the fashion show. I must say those aren’t the best looking playmates i’ve seen.

Here are some more pictures:

Summer is here.

During my walk in Jbeil Souks the other day, i had a nice encounter. It took me time to recognize the guy, but then i asked him “Elie?” and he answered. That was probably the first time i speak to this guy while i am sober lol!

So who is this “Elie” ?
He was a bartender at Treesome pub in Gemmayze and i was a regular there two years ago. I usually don’t like cocktails but Elie’s cocktails were a killer, specially that one Absynth-Vodka drink we always ordered.

It didn’t have a strong taste but when you’ve had 5 or 6 of that drink, the rest of the night would be a story to tell, that is if you remember anything! Maybe i should share some of those stories or maybe i shouldn’t.

Anyway, it turns out he is launching his own pub in the next few weeks, but he didn’t tell me its name yet as he didn’t pick one, but it will be near The Electricity company in Gemmayze, most probably around “Behind the Green Door”.

Guess i will pay him a visit once it’s open.

I went to Batroun the past weekend to drop a friend and decided to pass by Jbeil and have dinner there. I haven’t been to Jbeil souks for a while, so i thought i take a walk and see what’s happening. To my surprise, the streets were fully renovated and packed with restaurants, pubs, shops and lots of people.

Turns out i’ve been missing out since the past summer!
I was advised to go to écafe and so i did. The place was big and beautiful and was more of a cafe trottoir than a restaurant. The food was also delicious and affordable and most importantly the service was quick and professional.

The only problem i faced were cats, as my gf hates them and i had to interrupt my dinner many times to scare them away lol!

Over all, i will definitly be going there soon to try the pubs and see how’s the nightlife picking up there.

This place was one of my favourite hangouts few years ago, until the food and service deteriorated so i stopped going there for a long while. I decided to go there tonight with my brother mostly because i miss the location. It is situated at the beginning of Kaslik and is more like a cafe trottoir than a restaurant.

I must say the food looked decent and the service was surprisingly good, but it was mostly the location that i enjoyed and my Almaza draft beer. During the summer, the place is always packed day and night during week days and weekends.

I had a birthday party yesterday at Pierre & Friends, a pub-resto located right on the beach in Madfoun, a region between Jbeil & Batroun. I’ve been to the place before last summer, it’s really nice to go there, chill out and have a drink and even go for a swim during the day or at night. However, make sure that you eat before going there because the food is horrible.

A minor issue about yesterday’s party was that the weather was still a bit cold and so everyone was freezing, but apparently the organizers had that figured out and were planning to light a fire and so they did. Too bad they miscalculated the wind direction and all the smoke was coming our way, so we had to turn the fire off eventually. Still, it was a nice relaxing night away from closed pubs, smoke clouds and loud music.

During the summer, the place gets packed on weekends so i advise those wanting to enjoy a relaxing evening to go there during weekdays. Here are some more pictures of the place.

One of the typical Lebanese show off places on the weekend is Lina’s Cafe at Kaslik on a Sunday afternoon. Its become the place to show off with your car, your clothes, your bags and you sit and talk about what you did Saturday evening and gossip about what happened during your weekend. It is such a cliché tradition where all Lebanese show offs like to do after a nice long weekend. The valets will park the best cars in front of the café (by best I mean Audi R8, Porsche Turbos, F430′s etc…) and the girls will come fully loaded with make up and designer clothes. Men with cigars and drinks, ladies having a glass of wine or coffee…

If you’ve never experienced it you should. I passed by Lina’s yesterday with my girlfriends (for the only reason that one of them is pregnant and wanted an open area coffee shop close by Jounieh) and it was a very funny experience.