SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
In Lebanon, a favorite breakfast food isn't just breakfast. It is a U.N.-certified part of intangible cultural heritage, a flatbread ubiquitous in the region, but given a special twist by generations of Lebanese. NPR's Jane Arraf tells us more from Beirut.
(CROSSTALK)
JANE ARRAF, BYLINE: At the Aloumy Bakery in the Bourj Hammoud neighborhood of Beirut, there's almost always a lineup. There are all kinds of pastries and glass cases, but the real draw is manoushe - a simple flat bread, hot out of the oven, usually slathered with za'atar, a mixture of thyme, sesame seeds, sumac and olive oil. Manager Tony Youssef Aloumy (ph) rolls up the bread with fillings inside, wraps them in paper and hands them across the counter.
TONY YOUSSEF ALOUMY: (Non-English language spoken).
ARRAF: "Like we say, if you cut the veins of a Lebanese person, za'atar will come out," he tells us. The Lebanese identify so deeply with their traditional foods that the U.N., three years ago, inscribed manoushe on its list of intangible cultural heritage. Aloumy tells us his father started the bakery half a century ago.
ALOUMY: (Non-English language spoken).
ARRAF: He says the customers begin arriving at 5:30 in the morning - people who have finished work and people who are just starting. At about 50 cents for each one, it's affordable for almost everyone.
ALOUMY: Bonjour.
ARRAF: We've come here with a lifelong neighborhood resident, Avedis Der Boghossian (ph). These bakeries are such a part of the neighborhood that some families, including his, bring their own za'atar mix and have the manoushe baked here.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
UNIDENTIFIED MUSICAL ARTIST: (Singing in non-English language).
ARRAF: We take the manoushe back to his upcycled antiques shop, Vintage 961. We sit on the sidewalk with his brother, Krikor (ph), and a friend around a battered wooden cable spool that serves as a table.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Haj (ph), we need a knife.
ARRAF: It is crunchy on the outside, and it's full of stuff in the middle.
This one has za'atar, of course, labneh, a kind of cream cheese, onion and olives. You can top the bread with anything you want, but few places take it as far as Bakery Abou Daoud, which offers 101 varieties.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Habibi. Habibi.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #3: (Non-English language spoken).
ARRAF: Daoud Haddad's (ph) parents started the bakery in 1966. I asked Haddad to name the different kinds.
DAOUD HADDAD: (Non-English language spoken).
ARRAF: "Meat. Meat with cheese. Meat with pomegranate syrup," he starts. Dozens of items later, he's at dandelion greens, and still reciting. Abou Daoud is a tiny, humble shop, but clearly beloved.
ZIYADH SALAMEH: Za'atar (non-English language spoken).
ARRAF: "Za'atar is part of my identity," Ziyadh Salameh (ph), a sharply dressed businessman, tells us. "Whenever I travel, the first thing I want to eat when I'm back is za'atar manoushe," he says.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #4: (Non-English language spoken).
ARRAF: A mother and her daughter. Haddad recalls he used to serve the mother when she was a child. This is a more upscale neighborhood and the manoushe considerably more expensive. But no matter where it comes from, for many people, it's the distinctive aroma and taste of home. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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