Cool Summer Breeze Menu @ Motto

From the 29th to the 1st of July... We are cooking at Mótto at night only... To reserve a table you have to call or SMS them at 70 954 057.

Cool Summer Breeze

• Homemade baked bread with red pepper dip on side
• Cold cucumber, mint and yogurt soup
• Quinoa and beetroot salad
• Filet chipotle sauce with fresh herbs served with organic Ratatouille
• Dessert: Orange dark chocolate with Grand Marnier with Sarah’s homemade cookie 

Barbara Abdeni Massaad is a Lebanese / American cookbook author, photographer, local and international food consultant and TV host. Massaad is currently president of Slow Food Beirut. She is also the author of award-winning books: Man’oushe: Inside the Street Corner Lebanese Bakery, Mouneh: Preserving Foods for the Lebanese Pantry, Mezze: A Labor of Love and will launch in fall 2015 Soup for Syria: Recipes to celebrate our Shared Humanity. All proceeds of the book will go to help refugees in dire needs. She is currently working on other book subjects related to food.

Albert Massaad has just graduated from high school at Notre Dame de Jamhour and is heading to Lyon, France to study at the famous Paul Bocusse Culinary Institution. His passion for food dates back to his early childhood when at the age of two he set the table to eat a chocolate bar with a fork and a knife. He has traveled often to Slow Food’s fairs and has recently been making lots of pizza in street food festivals all around Beirut.

Baking Pizza "en Famille" at the Beirut Street Food Festival

Caramelized onion and fresh mozzarella made in Lebanon

"Mourou, this is my happiness. How can people not see it?"

"Mami, it's OK, if everyone knew it, there would me too many of us." — Albert, my son at the first Beirut Street Food Festival on the day of his 18th birthday, May 17 2015, while baking flat breads (pizza).

This was such a special evening for us as a family. It reminded me of the "restaurant" years with my own family in Florida.

I'd like to thank the organizers of this event  for doing such a great job namely Zeina Halawi and Youmna Mteiny. The only problem they had was that the festival was so in demand to so many that food stalls could not deliver so much food to such a crowd. Lesson learned .... next time will be even better. You have my full support.

It all started with Lea and the balloons

And then it suddenly filled up like mad

And we had hundreds of people waiting to EAT

And we we were very hard at work

Lea and Sarah became perplexed on the crowd's demands

Mia finally showed off her talent

Albert baked like mad

A moment of tenderness with my youngest daughter Sarah

We watching in awe the crowd and giving thanks. This will be a memory someday.

Miou and me

Papi (dough, cut cheese, bring cheese) ... Our constant support

It was a memorable day.... 18 years ago today, I had given birth to my first child. It had been one of the happiest days of my life... Today, the happiness continues. I am lucky to have such a supportive family at my side. It's definitely my strength.May we always cook, eat and share our food together and with those who want to share it with us...Can't wait till the next one...