Arabic coffee anchors social interaction across Jordan with a brewing ritual that has remained consistent for centuries. The drink called qahwa arabiyya uses lightly roasted beans ground to powder with cardamom, sometimes flavored with clove or saffron depending on the household. Hosts pour from a brass dallah pot into small handleless cups called finjaan, filling each cup only one-third full. The guest drinks, returns the cup, and receives a refill up to three times. A fourth cup is considered excessive. Declining the first cup insults the host. Shaking the empty cup side to side signals you want no more. In Bedouin tents throughout Wadi Rum and the eastern desert, this coffee ceremony precedes any conversation about business or personal matters. The coffee tastes bitter with cardamom sharpness and no sugar. Gas station shops across Amman, Aqaba, and Madaba sell pre-ground blends in foil bags, but traditional families roast green beans at home in a shallow pan called mihmas and grind them in a brass mortar called mihbash, producing rhythmic metallic sounds that announce coffee preparation to neighbors.
Sage tea dominates as the everyday hot drink consumed at breakfast, after meals, and throughout the workday. Fresh or dried sage leaves steep in boiling water for three to five minutes. Most Jordanians drink it unsweetened, though sugar is available upon request. Roadside stands in Ajloun and the northern highlands sell bundles of wild sage collected from hillsides. The drink is called shai maramiyeh. Black tea with sugar appears in homes and restaurants but holds secondary status to coffee and sage tea. Mint tea exists but appears less frequently than in Morocco or Egypt. During Ramadan, families break the fast with dates and water or a drink called qamar al-din made from dried apricot paste dissolved in water, served cold.
Laban, a thin salted yogurt drink, accompanies street food and sits on restaurant tables in glass jugs. It tastes sour and salty. Vendors selling falafel or shawarma sandwiches keep plastic bottles of laban in small refrigerators. The drink originated as a way to consume excess yogurt before refrigeration. Jallab appears as a festive drink during Ramadan and at celebrations, made from grape molasses, rose water, and date syrup diluted with water and poured over crushed ice, then topped with pine nuts and raisins. The color is dark purple-brown. Tamarind juice, called tamr hindi, is sold from street carts that dispense it from large glass containers with spigots. The vendor adds water and sugar to tamarind concentrate. The drink tastes sour-sweet and brown. Carob juice, made from carob pods boiled into syrup then diluted, appears occasionally but less often than tamarind.
Jordan produces no wine commercially due to Islamic cultural norms, though small Christian communities in Madaba and Fuheis have historically made wine for personal consumption. Beer brands like Amstel and Heineken are available in liquor stores in Amman, Aqaba, and tourist areas near Petra, sold to foreigners and the small percentage of Jordanians who drink alcohol. Arak, the anise-flavored spirit common in Lebanon and Syria, is sold in Jordan but rarely consumed openly. Alcohol sales are restricted during Ramadan. Hotels catering to international tourists serve alcohol in bars and restaurants. Locally produced craft beer emerged in Amman in the 2010s with brands like Carakale Brewing Company, established in 2013 in the Fuheis area, producing ales and lagers sold in select restaurants and hotels.
Falafel stands operate on nearly every commercial block in Amman, Irbid, Zarqa, and Aqaba. The vendor fries ground chickpeas mixed with parsley, garlic, cumin, and coriander into spheres about four centimeters in diameter, typically six to eight balls per sandwich. The falafel goes into a pocket of Arabic flatbread called khubz arabi with diced tomatoes, cucumbers, pickles, and tahini sauce. Some vendors add fried eggplant slices or french fries inside the sandwich. Prices range from 0.5 to 1 Jordanian dinar per sandwich. Lines form at popular stands during lunch hours between 1 PM and 3 PM. Al-Quds Falafel in downtown Amman near the Roman Theater has operated since 1985. Hashem Restaurant on King Faisal Street in Amman serves falafel at shared outdoor tables and has operated since 1952, gaining fame after King Hussein visited regularly. The restaurant opens 24 hours and serves an estimated 10,000 customers daily during peak seasons.
Shawarma vendors operate vertical rotisseries with stacked lamb or chicken sliced thin as it roasts. The meat turns on an electric or gas-powered spit. The vendor shaves off cooked layers with a long knife, catches them on a plate, and wraps the meat in flatbread with tahini, pickles, and sometimes french fries. Chicken shawarma costs approximately 1.5 dinars, lamb shawarma 2 to 3 dinars. Stands cluster near bus stations, universities, and shopping districts. Reem Al Bawadi chain operates multiple locations across Amman serving shawarma and grilled meats in sit-down restaurants. The shawarma arrived in Jordan from Greater Syria in the mid-20th century and became standard street food by the 1980s.
Kunafa vendors operate storefronts with large circular metal trays about one meter in diameter where the dessert bakes. The base layer is shredded phyllo dough called kataifi soaked in clarified butter. A middle layer of soft cheese, usually Nabulsi cheese from cow or goat milk, melts during baking. The top gets inverted onto a serving tray after baking, revealing the crispy orange phyllo layer, then soaked with simple syrup flavored with rose water or orange blossom water and topped with crushed pistachios. Kunafa Nabulsieh refers to the cheese variety. Vendors sell by weight in kilograms or half-kilograms. A half-kilogram costs 4 to 6 dinars depending on location. Habibah Sweets in downtown Amman, established in 1951, produces kunafa throughout the day in a window-front oven visible from the street. The shop serves it hot on paper plates. Consumption peaks during Ramadan when families purchase trays after iftar meals. Kunafa originated in Nablus in the Palestinian territories but became standard across Jordan.
Hummus operates as both restaurant food and street food. Vendors serve it as a shallow bowl of chickpea paste blended with tahini, lemon juice, and garlic, topped with olive oil and sometimes whole chickpeas, pine nuts, or ground meat. Customers scoop it with torn flatbread. A bowl costs 1 to 2 dinars. Hummus stands open for breakfast, serving it alongside foul, a fava bean stew mashed with olive oil, lemon, and garlic. Abu Jbara in Amman serves hummus and foul at outdoor tables beginning at 6 AM. Workers and students eat standing or seated on plastic chairs. The restaurant closes by early afternoon when the day's batch runs out.
Manakeesh vendors sell flatbreads topped with zaatar, a mixture of dried thyme, sumac, sesame seeds, and salt mixed with olive oil. The vendor spreads the zaatar paste on dough, bakes it in a stone oven, and folds it into quarters for takeaway. A single manakeesh costs 0.5 dinars. Cheese manakeesh use akkawi cheese. Some vendors offer ground meat or kishik, a fermented yogurt and wheat mixture. Bakeries selling manakeesh open early morning between 5 and 6 AM to serve breakfast customers. The food is Levantine in origin, common across Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine.
Ful medames appears at breakfast stands as slow-cooked fava beans served in a bowl with olive oil, cumin, lemon juice, and chopped vegetables. Customers eat it with bread. The dish costs 1 to 1.5 dinars. Vendors prepare large pots overnight, cooking dried fava beans for eight to ten hours until soft. The dish originated in Egypt but became standard breakfast food across Jordan. Street vendors in downtown Amman serve ful from metal carts with propane burners keeping the pots warm.