Felafels in Beirut

 
 
 

Vocabulary

rapid	sluggish	strength
count	lettuce	leave behind
scar	staple	once again
alike	crispy	constantly
enjoy	mill (2)	in and out
snack	choice	snack bar
local	joint (3)	across (2)
thick	parsley	Middle East
chop	physical	generation
peas	require	chickpea
ready	civil war	seasoning
roll	yogurt	spring onion
serve	fresh	countless
fine	amount	finely chopped
slice	radish	customer
add	garlic	fry/fried
fold	made of	cucumber
sauce	nut (2)	crush (2)
labor	manual	establish
site	kind (2)	construction
	prepare	bitter (2)

 
 
 
 
 

Video

 
 
 
 

Transcript

Beirut is changing rapidly. After a bitter civil war that left behind countless scars, locals and tourists alike can once again enjoy the city.

Customers constantly mill in an out of Sohev Sayon’s snack bar. Here felafel is the snack of choice. It’s a staple of food joints across the Middle East.

“This place was established maybe in 1933 when my grandfather was the first one who made the felafel business in Lebanon. And then came my father, and now I’m the third generation.”

Making felafel requires large amounts of hot oil and chickpeas.

“In the morning we start preparing it, so it might take about three to four hours to prepare everything.”

The chickpeas are crushed and seasoned with parsley, coriander, garlic, spring onions, salt, pepper, cumin and cayenne pepper. Then everything is rolled into little balls, and deep fried until it is crispy.

In Beirut, felafel is served with fresh lettuce, herbs, finely sliced radishes and tomatoes.

And finally, tarator is added. It’s a thick sauce made of yoghurt, garlic, cucumbers, and nuts. Just fold it over, and it’s ready to eat.

“All Lebanese people love this food. We could eat it from morning to night. Most of the customers here are manual workers. They’re people who do physical labor, like the kind of work you do at construction sites. Chickpeas give your body strength and energy.”

So if you’re feeling sluggish, head to Beirut.

 

 

 

 

Questions

1. Beirut has changed rapidly. True or false? Why has Beirut been changing rapidly?

2. Is felafel eaten only in Lebanon?

3. The snack bar is very old and very popular. Is this correct or wrong?

4. Is it a family business?

5. Do they prepare felafel very quickly, or does it take a long time?

6. How do they make felafel? What is felafel made of?

7. Who eats lots of felafels? Why do they eat felafels?

A. I have eaten felafels. Yes or no?

B. Is Middle Eastern (Arabic, Lebanese, Moroccan, Turkic) cuisine popular in your city?

C. What snack foods are popular in your city?

D. Food stalls are good business. Do you agree?

E. Would you like to own and operate a fast food stall? Why or why not?