Host offerings
Marie taught herself to cook and has been cooking since she was 10 years old. She now has over three decades of experience cooking traditional Lebanese food for her family and friends. Cooking is one of Marie’s biggest passions and she is excited to share her culinary traditions with guests. Marie’s children Sarah and Jad love their mother’s cooking. In fact, Jad has inherited his mother's cooking skills and enjoys cooking with her in the kitchen. Marie believes that Lebanese cuisine is passed down from generation to generation and it promotes values such as friendship, good relationships and family. Marie says, “you will always feel welcome at the Lebanese table!”
Please note menu might vary. If there are particular dishes you are interested in trying, please include your request in the booking form.
In-home meal (1 - 5 guests) Marie lives in a modern, minimalist apartment in a suburb of Beirut, with beautiful views of the river and roman vestiges. Her apartment is about 7km from downtown Beirut. Marie cooks a variety of traditional home-cooked Lebanese dishes from stuffed wine leaves to rice-based dishes to Lebanese mezzes. You will begin your experience with a welcome drink and a mezze spread of tabbouleh, humus, baba ganoush, fried meatballs with burgul and a garlic lemon dip. For the main, you might be served chicken, fish or meat served the traditional way with rice or potatoes topped with roasted seeds. Your meal concludes with Lebanese coffee or tea and sfouf, a Lebanese tea cake or a pistachio, date or walnut shortbread infused with orange blossom water.
Cooking experience (1 - 5 guests) Join Marie in her small kitchen for your cooking class and learn to make 2-3 authentic Lebanese dishes. During your 1.5 hour class, help Marie prepare from scratch a baba ganoush appetizer, fried meatball main and a pistachio shortbread dessert. Enjoy the meal you helped prepare at her dining table after your cooking experience.
Market visit (1 - 5 guests) Marie will drive you 15 minutes to an organic grocery shop near her apartment. Please note that this is not a typical market tour to a central bazaar but a shopping trip to the neighborhood store where locals shop. Marie buys all her local, seasonal and fresh produce and ingredients at this store. Join her to learn about local produce and purchase together a few ingredients for your cooking class.
Notes: Please note that Marie can offer vegetarian, gluten free and halal meals on request. On occasion, Marie will be joined by her daughter Sarah, son Jad, neighbor Samira and friend Joyce.
Languages spoken: #<HostLanguage::ActiveRecord_Associations_CollectionProxy:0x00007ffad714a5a8>
This is just a sample menu to give you an idea of the types of dishes the host cooks. Your menu will vary according to seasonal availability.
A Traveling Spoon ambassador visited this host. Here is their personal review.
Marie is very sweet and having her girlfriends around made the experience more interesting and entertaining. Everything I ate was very tasty and the mix of spices in the chicken and rice was perfectly balanced and a joy to the taste buds. It was also lovely to prepare the pistachio shortbread with Marie, they were delicious. Marie’s version of the pistachio shortbread is like little jewelry to the eye and mouth, perfect combination of flavours.
May, Traveling Spoon Ambassador
Pricing (per person)*
| 1 person | 4 people | 5+ people | |
|---|---|---|---|
| In-Home Meal | $40 | $30 | $24 |
| Cooking Experience + Meal | $50 | $40 | $30 |
| Market Tour + Cooking Experience + Meal | $70 | $60 | $50 |
| Alcohol | $6 per person | ||
| Transportation | $30 per car | ||
| *Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout. | |||
| Lunch | Dinner | |
|---|---|---|
| In-Home Meal | 1:30pm - 04:30pm | 6:00pm - 09:00pm |
| Cooking Experience + Meal | 12:00pm - 05:00pm | 5:00pm - 10:00pm |
| Market Tour + Cooking Experience + Meal | 11:00am - 05:00pm | 4:00pm - 10:00pm |
Traveling Spoon connects you with meaningful culinary experiences, from private cooking lessons to homecooked meals in people's homes. Enjoy an immersive cultural experience that gives you a glimpse into the local way of life.
