What Souk el Tayeb
Creator Kamal Mouzawak
What An organic produce market
Why Healthy options and a respect for local traditions and farmers bring a fresh outlook to organic eating
www.soukeltayeb.com
In a day and age where ‘going green’ has become the latest trend, eating organic is the hottest habit sweeping through well travelled Arab socialites and high profilers while aborad. Yet there’s no organic movement within our region, right? Wrong. Souk el Tayeb in Beirut embraces the notion that supporting small scale products such as food is one of the most authentic and genuine ways of expressing local tradition.
It’s more than just fresh produce, according to Kamal Mouzawak, Souk el Tayeb’s founder. It’s about expressing high quality products to city people. It’s ultimately about “bridging two ends and two worlds to create one.”
Souk el Tayeb was launched four years ago and is Lebanon’s first farmer’s market. It takes place every Saturday morning (from 7am till 2pm) in Saifi Village in Beirut. The market gathers organic farmers and Lebanese producers together in one forum where you can find an array of products from organic/natural fruits and vegetables, jams, conserves, traditional dishes and flowers.
These products, which come from the length and breadth of Lebanon, are presented each week in the very heart of the capital. The goal is clearly about preserving tradition and bridging two seemingly opposite elements within ‘the world of all things organic’. The producer and the consumer, as well as tradition and modernity, are brought together by the authentic ingredients that the organic market offers.
Early in 2009, Mouzawak began to ask himself, “Why should we, in this country, be restricted to simply buying fresh ingredients?” This question created space for the training and development of culinary taste buds that clearly lie within Lebanese and non-Lebanese alike and had yet to be stimulated. It was for this reason that Tawlet Souk el Tayeb was developed and launched. Operating under the premise of wanting to ‘grow in a natural way’, a home kitchen nestled in the Souk el Tayeb headquarters will host a different producer and cook who will be cooking the typical dishes that feature their, locally produced, ingredients.
Another fresh addition to the already successful and popular concept and business of Souk el Tayeb is ‘once a month foodies’. Essentially, the idea is to bring international organic cuisine to Lebanon through the vehicle of a guest chef once a month, as well as through the words of a food writer. Everyday of the week offers a different cuisine the one commonality through the project is the highlighting and celebrating of tradition through the means of local production.
It is clear that Souk el Tayeb, the brainchild of Mouzawak, works with freshness, immersion and tradition. It is without a doubt the hottest place to be on a Saturday morning to get to know Lebanon, its produce, colourful traditions and above all, its people.
Two locations are in Beirut, one at Saifi Village and one at Rue Verdun. The third location is in the city of Byblos.
