Lebanon's drink culture centers on arak, an anise-flavored distilled spirit typically containing 40 to 63 percent alcohol by volume. Production involves distilling fermented grape juice with aniseed, a process historically concentrated in the Bekaa Valley and Keserwan District. The drink turns milky white when water is added, a reaction caused by anethole becoming insoluble in diluted alcohol. Serving protocol dictates mixing arak with water in a ratio between one-to-one and one-to-three, then adding ice—never ice before water, as this causes premature cloudiness that Lebanese drinkers consider improper. Arak accompanies mezze throughout the meal rather than serving as an aperitif or digestif. The major commercial producers include Ksara, founded in 1857 in the Bekaa Valley, which distills arak using traditional alembic stills. Massaya, established in 1998, and Domaine des Tourelles, operating since 1868 in Chtaura, maintain production using indigenous grape varieties including Obaideh and Merwah. Home distillation remains common in mountain villages, though the government officially prohibits unlicensed production.
Lebanese wine production dates to Phoenician times, with archaeological evidence from Byblos indicating wine storage jars from approximately 3000 BCE. Modern commercial production began under the French Mandate when Jesuit priests established Château Ksara in 1857 in Zahlé. The Bekaa Valley accounts for roughly 90 percent of Lebanon's vineyard area, with approximately 2000 hectares under cultivation as of 2019. The region's elevation between 900 and 1000 meters provides the diurnal temperature variation that produces acidity in grapes. Château Musar, founded by Gaston Hochar in 1930, gained international recognition after British wine merchant Michael Broadbent featured the 1967 vintage at the Bristol Wine Fair in 1979. Musar continued production throughout the Lebanese Civil War from 1975 to 1990, missing only the 1976 and 1984 vintages when fighting blocked access to the vineyards. Indigenous varieties include Obaideh and Merwah for whites, though most wineries also plant Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Cinsault, and Carignan. The sector includes approximately 40 commercial wineries, with annual production reaching around 6 million bottles. Château Kefraya, established in 1979, farms 300 hectares in the western Bekaa. Ixsir, founded in 2008 near Batroun, sources grapes from elevations up to 1800 meters on Mount Lebanon.
Jallab is a non-alcoholic syrup made from grape molasses, dates, and rose water, diluted with water and served over ice with pine nuts and raisins floating on top. Vendors prepare it fresh at street stands, particularly during Ramadan when demand increases. The drink appears brown to dark red depending on concentration. Rose water comes primarily from the Bekaa Valley town of Zahlé, where producers distill Damascus roses harvested in May. Ayran, a salted yogurt drink thinned with water, accompanies street food throughout the day. Preparation involves whisking or blending yogurt with cold water and salt until frothy. White coffee, despite its name, contains no coffee—it consists of orange blossom water diluted with hot water, served as a caffeine-free alternative. Coffee in Lebanon means Turkish-style coffee unless otherwise specified. Preparation uses finely ground beans boiled with water and sugar in a long-handled pot called a rakweh. The coffee is never filtered, so grounds settle at the cup's bottom. Sugar level is specified when ordering: sada (no sugar), wasat (medium), or helou (sweet). Reading coffee grounds after drinking, called tanjeem bi finjan, remains a social practice where the cup is inverted onto the saucer and patterns are interpreted.
Manakish functions as Lebanon's primary street breakfast, consisting of flatbread topped with zaatar (a mixture of dried thyme, sumac, sesame seeds, and salt mixed with olive oil) or cheese, then baked in a wood-fired oven. Bakers prepare dough overnight, shape it by hand-stretching in the morning, and bake individual rounds in approximately two minutes at temperatures exceeding 400 degrees Celsius. Zaatar proportions vary by region, but standard Beirut bakery mixture contains roughly 40 percent dried thyme, 30 percent sumac, 20 percent roasted sesame seeds, and 10 percent salt. Manakish bi jibneh uses akkawi cheese, a white brine cheese originally from Acre, now produced throughout Lebanon. The cheese is desalinated by soaking in water for several hours before shredding. Manakish bi lahm uses minced lamb mixed with tomato, onion, and pomegranate molasses. Bakeries sell manakish by weight, typically 200 to 300 grams per round, priced between 2,000 and 5,000 Lebanese pounds depending on topping and location as of 2020 before the currency collapse. The bread is folded into quarters or rolled for eating while walking. Zaatar blend recipes remain family-held formulas in established bakeries. Spinach fatayer, triangular pastries filled with spinach, onion, lemon juice, and sumac, bake alongside manakish. The dough is identical but shaped differently and sealed at three points.
Falafel in Lebanon uses chickpeas exclusively, unlike Egyptian versions that incorporate fava beans. The chickpeas soak overnight but are not cooked before grinding—this produces a texture that is crisp outside and fluffy inside when fried. Ground chickpeas are mixed with parsley, cilantro, onion, garlic, cumin, and coriander, then shaped using a specialized scoop called an aleb falafel that portions and forms the mixture in one motion. Frying occurs at 180 degrees Celsius in vegetable oil for approximately four minutes. Falafel sandwiches are assembled in pita with tahini sauce, pickled turnips, tomato, parsley, mint, and radish. Vendors in Tripoli add a small amount of pomegranate molasses to the tahini. The pickled turnips, colored pink with beet juice, ferment for at least one week before use. Falafel stands operate throughout the day but see peak traffic between 11 AM and 2 PM. Prices ranged from 1,500 to 3,000 Lebanese pounds per sandwich before 2019.
Shawarma preparation involves stacking marinated meat slices on a vertical rotisserie, then shaving portions as the outer layer cooks. Chicken shawarma uses thigh meat marinated in yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, and spices including cardamom and cinnamon for a minimum of four hours. Lamb or beef versions marinate in vinegar, baharat spice blend, and onion. The rotating spit cooks meat at approximately 200 degrees Celsius while fat from upper layers bastes lower portions. Vendors shave thin slices using a long knife, ideally including both crispy exterior and tender interior in each portion. Chicken shawarma wraps include garlic sauce (toum), pickles, and sometimes french fries inside the bread. Toum is an emulsion of garlic, oil, lemon juice, and salt, whipped until white and fluffy—a single batch may contain 50 or more cloves of garlic. Beef shawarma uses tahini sauce instead of toum, plus parsley, onion, and sumac. The wraps use either pita or saj bread, a thinner flatbread cooked on a domed griddle. Beirut's Barbar Restaurant, established in 1979, operates 24 hours and became a landmark for shawarma, though quality debates persist among locals. Portion sizes typically reach 250 to 350 grams of meat per wrap.