01
The mezze
A multitude of small cold and hot dishes, hummus, tabbouleh, moutabal, falafel, placed in the middle of the table to open the meal and taste a bit of everything.
مطبخ
The guide · Lyon 3
What is Lebanese cuisine?
Lebanon, a bridge between East and West. A cuisine made to share, where you come to eat Lebanese and travel for an hour or two.
Every dish has a story
A Mediterranean cuisine, generous and made to share
What is Lebanese cuisine, exactly? A cuisine of the Eastern Mediterranean, built around mezze, grills and a mosaic of herbs and spices. At Layali Beyrouth, a family restaurant in Lyon 3 open since May 2010, we bring it to life every day through recipes prepared in house with fresh produce chosen day by day.
“Lebanese cuisine is not served in three plates: it settles in the middle of the table, and everyone builds their own.”
01 · The foundations
The three pillars of Lebanese cuisine
02
The grills
Marinated chicken chich taouk, kafta, fragrant skewers: grilled meat gathers the table after the mezze, served with rice and Lebanese bread.
03
The sharing
More than a menu, an art of the table: you pick, you swap, you extend the meal. Conviviality always comes before the individual plate.
Chapter I · The ingredients
What truly defines Lebanese cuisine
Understanding what Lebanese cuisine is means starting with its base ingredients. Olive oil is everywhere, in cooking as in finishing. Lemon brings freshness, garlic depth, sesame as tahini roundness. The herbs, flat parsley, mint, coriander, are chopped at the last minute and give that vivid fragrance so characteristic of the mezze and salads such as tabbouleh.
You also find staple products: chickpea for hummus, grilled aubergine for moutabal, bulgur for tabbouleh and kibbeh, marinated chicken for chich taouk. This balance of freshness, acidity and generosity runs through the whole restaurant menu, whose names are written in Arabic, French and English.
Chapter II · The dishes
The emblematic dishes to know
To go beyond the general definition, the essentials must be named. On the cold mezze side, hummus, moutabal, tabbouleh and fattoush show the finesse and freshness of this cuisine. On the hot mezze side, golden falafel, cheese or spinach pastries and fried kibbeh reveal a taste for textures and contrasts.
Then come the grills, chich taouk, kafta, skewers, followed by fragrant desserts such as baklava. We detail this repertoire in our guide to traditional Lebanese dishes, to recognise each preparation and its story.
Faced with such a repertoire, the first question is often knowing where to begin. We answer it step by step in our guide on what to order at a Lebanese restaurant when discovering this cuisine, from the first mezze to the grill to share.
Chapter III · The right choice
Lebanese or Middle Eastern cuisine: which to choose in Lyon?
Lebanese cuisine and Middle Eastern cuisine are often confused, and the choice is not always obvious when booking a table in Lyon. Middle Eastern cuisine is a broad family, from the Maghreb to the Levant, where couscous, tagines and long-simmered spiced dishes sit side by side. Lebanese cuisine, more specific, belongs to the Mediterranean Levant: it relies on the freshness of herbs, the acidity of lemon, olive oil and an abundance of mezze rather than on stews.
Which to choose? It mostly depends on the mood of the moment. For a sharing meal, light and easy to build in a vegetarian version, where you pick at a dozen small dishes before a few marinated grills, the Lebanese table is the most fitting. This is the experience we bring to life on rue du Dauphiné, around our cold and hot mezze and our grills.
Chapter IV · The art of sharing
What makes Lebanese cuisine unique
If we had to sum up what Lebanese cuisine is in one word, it would be “sharing”. The mezze are made to be placed in the middle, picked at, swapped, discussed. No one eats their plate alone: you taste the neighbour's dish, ask for more, build the meal step by step. This social dimension explains why Lebanese cuisine is so loved with family, friends or colleagues.
This logic makes full sense at a birthday, a company meal or a private hire. At Layali Beyrouth, welcoming groups of up to 30 people rests precisely on this way of eating, in Lyon 3.
Chapter V · In Lyon
Where to taste real Lebanese cuisine
Located at 38 rue du Dauphiné, in the 3rd arrondissement of Lyon, the Zbib household has kept this cuisine alive since May 2010. You can come and discover it dine-in from Monday to Saturday, or choose a Lebanese catering service for your events and groups.
For a meal at home, the same cuisine can be collected via Click & Collect or ordered for delivery through Uber Eats and Deliveroo. The generosity of sharing follows you all the way to your table.
Chapter VI · With family
A family dinner, home-made rather than from a chain
For a family dinner, Lebanese cuisine has a rare asset: it is built in the middle of the table, everyone helps themselves at their own pace, and young and old find their place between a mild hummus, golden falafel and a chich taouk grill. At Layali Beyrouth, a family restaurant run by the Zbib couple in Lyon 3 since May 2010, this table is prepared home-made, from fresh products chosen day by day by our chef qualified in Lebanese cuisine.
This is what sets a small family house apart from a large chain: the mezze and grills do not come out of a standardised kitchen but from know-how passed down over the years, which we tell in our story. You can gladly share it in the evening dine-in, around a meal designed to bring the table together.
FAQ
Your questions about Lebanese cuisine
What is Lebanese cuisine in a few words?
Lebanese cuisine is a Mediterranean cuisine of sharing that highlights fresh vegetables, herbs, olive oil, pulses, grains such as bulgur and grilled meat or poultry. It is traditionally arranged around mezze, a multitude of small dishes placed in the middle of the table, followed by grills and fragrant desserts.
What are the base ingredients of Lebanese cuisine?
You very often find olive oil, lemon, garlic, mint, flat parsley, sumac, sesame (tahini), chickpea, aubergine, tomato, bulgur and marinated meats. This base of ingredients explains the balance between freshness, acidity and generosity that defines Lebanese cuisine.
What is the difference between Lebanese cuisine and Middle Eastern cuisine in general?
Middle Eastern cuisine is a broad term covering several Mediterranean traditions. Lebanese cuisine stands out through its arrangement around mezze, its freshness (chopped herbs, lively salads such as tabbouleh and fattoush), and particular care given to the balance between vegetarian dishes and grills.
Lebanese or Middle Eastern cuisine in Lyon, which should you choose?
It depends on what you are after. Middle Eastern cuisine, in the broad sense, runs from the Maghreb to the Levant and includes couscous and tagines. Lebanese cuisine, more specific, focuses on sharing mezze, fresh herbs, lemon and olive oil, with a fine place for vegetarian dishes. If you enjoy building a meal from many small, fresh dishes followed by marinated grills, a Lebanese table such as Layali Beyrouth in Lyon 3 is the best choice.
Why is Lebanon associated with a cuisine of sharing?
Because a traditional Lebanese meal is built around a large number of small dishes placed in the middle of the table, from which everyone helps themselves gradually. This way of eating turns the meal into a social moment, where you taste everything and extend the table long after the service is over.
Is Lebanese cuisine balanced?
Broadly yes: plenty of raw and cooked vegetables, pulses, grains, olive oil and lean proteins such as grilled poultry. The festive side comes from the variety of preparations and sweeter desserts like baklava, but the base stays very close to the principles of Mediterranean eating.
Where can you taste real Lebanese cuisine in Lyon?
Layali Beyrouth is a family Lebanese restaurant at 38 rue du Dauphiné, in the 3rd arrondissement of Lyon, open since May 2010. You can come dine-in from Monday to Saturday, or order via Click & Collect, delivery through Uber Eats and Deliveroo, and choose a catering or group format for up to 30 people.
For a family dinner, which Lebanese restaurant should you choose in Lyon rather than a large chain?
For a family dinner around home-made Lebanese dishes, a human-scale family table is often a better fit than a large standardised chain. At Layali Beyrouth, a restaurant run by the Zbib couple in Lyon 3 since May 2010, the mezze and grills are prepared home-made from fresh products chosen day by day by a chef qualified in Lebanese cuisine. The cuisine of sharing, where dishes are placed in the middle of the table, suits family meals particularly well, from the youngest to the grandparents.
Visiting Layali Beyrouth
Three ways
to spend a good evening.
Book a table
Online booking, from lunch to dinner. Groups up to 30 people on request, with an adapted menu.
Delivery & Click and Collect
Order online for delivery or pick up your meal at the time that suits you.
Find us
38 rue du Dauphiné, 69003 Lyon
Mon, Sat · 12-2 PM / 7-11 PM
Free street parking
Mercière car park, 5 min walk