Cycle 3 – Item 337
7 (Fri) December 2012
Manouche Kafta
4.0
at Beirut Fast Food
-Itaewon, Yongsan, Seoul, Republic of Korea-
with JHJ + gf
Project 30/30/30: 37 of 45 (see also 45/45/45)
Throughout the past November, I challenged myself to eat 30 dishes from 30 countries over the course of 30 consecutive days – and succeeded. I will continue the project until I run out of dishes or countries or restaurants or steam or money, aiming for 50.
Lebanon is the 37th country.
Beirut Fast Food is a Lebanese restaurant. Specializes in quick-fix fare. Probably the only such place in Korea. In addition to many variations on manouche, the rest of the menu seemed to align generally with what I know about Middle Eastern eats: items like falafel, hummus, baba ghanoush, and french fries. From the street, frankly, the establishment doesn’t look like much; within, there’s barely any room to move around, especially if customers are already present (max capacity = 4 customers).
Manouche is a Lebanese dish. It consists of a flatbread that’s baked in an oven, topped with various meats/vegetables/cheeses/herbs, then folded into a sandwich or served whole/sliced like a pizza. The term – as well as variations of the term, including “manakish” or “manaeesh” – derives from the Arabic “manqushah (to sculpt)” in reference to the act of rolling the dough out and making indentations across the surface to better hold the toppings. It’s a popular/common dish for breakfast/lunch/snack in Lebanon.
When I walked in, I asked the owner/chef: “What’s your best Lebanese dish?” Without hesitation, he replied: “lamb sandwich.” Later, he explained about “manouche.” He proceeded to make the flatbread base on the spot, weighing a ball of dough on the scale, rolling it out by hand, sliding the pie into the oven. After a few minutes, he removed the cooked bread, added the toppings down the middle – minced lamb (“kafta”), tomato, onion, some kind of pickled radish, combination of yogurt/herb/chili sauces -folded in the sides, wrapped the bundle in paper, and proudly handed it to me. I took a bite. The remainder went down in a frenzied blur. From what I can recall, it was similar in essence to other Mid-East-style sandwiches, like a kebab wrap, but the difference here was in the bread. The bread was exquisite – slightly crisp on the outside, soft inside, chewy throughout, nutty/buttery in flavor – reminding me of a perfect pizza crust or tandoori naan. I ordered another one, even before finishing the first. I can’t wait to go back for more. If nothing else, this project will have been worth it just for discovering this sandwich.
(See also GLOBAL FOOD GLOSSARY)
(See also RESTAURANTS IN KOREA)