Beirutista

I’m no marketing expert or digital media guru, but I think we can all agree that the landscape of blogging has completely changed from what it used to be not just two decades back, around the time of its inception, but even a mere year ago! The term “weblog” was coined in 1997 to describe exactly that: a web log, or online journal, populated with opinion on matters of interest to the author. A blogger, thus, is not a media representative as all too often they are classified, but a self-appointed editorialist or commentator who seeks a platform wherein to voice his or her ideas. Under those notions my own blog Beirutista was born nearly six years ago. To this day, I continue to insist that everything on my blog reflects my own beliefs, sentiments, and perspective. Each post is a manifestation of Beirutista, expressing my values unequivocally. When the term “influencer” came to be a few years ago, it served as a convenient catch-all for emerging social media users, namely In...

When Salem Akiki first invited me to come explore his new pastry shop Whisk in Naccache, I did what all modern-day stalkers and sleuths do: I jumped onto his Instagram page and carefully combed through photo after photo of edible artwork. A stunning charlotte aux fruits rouges crowned with raspberries and dusted with confectioner’s sugar. A block of chocolate with crushed almonds peeking through the surface, topped with clouds of piped latte-tinged cream and coffee beans. A veritable mountain of cream puffs decorated with candied chestnuts and meringue in what is surely the artist’s take on Mont Blanc. Studying these photos in complete awe, I was reminded of Cyril Lignac, France’s cherished patissier and TV celebrity chef whose sweet renderings are breathtaking and, as my last trip to Paris confirmed, worth their weight in gold. So on a calm Saturday afternoon, I paid a visit to Whisk, which beautifully channels sunlight and minimalist décor in true Parisian spirit to ...

Like many Lebanese who were sucked in to the ravaging Civil War, Georges and Daniel Daou’s emigration from their homeland is a common one. The brothers fled to Paris and thereafter to southern France when an errant rocket struck their family home at the start of the violence. Later, they would transplant half way across the world to pursue engineering degrees at the University of California San Diego. What is rather uncommon, and admittedly very courageous, is how they went from being successful techies to passionate winemakers in their newfound home and heartland. It seems the Daou duo always yearned to partake in the beauty of the land and nature. In their minds, they held sacred their grandfather’s ancient olive trees and often reveled in the vineyards from childhood visits to the family village. The Daou brothers reveled in the vineyards they visited as children in their family's village When Daniel decided that the time was ripe to find a terroir conduci...