Tis Me Michelle

One of my cousins came to visit and I knew she loves Middle Eastern food so I took her to this spot I’ve wanted to try. Beirut Bakery and Deli is restaurant serving up Lebanese / Middle Eastern food. I’m so mad I hadn’t tried it sooner!

The Parking: This spot is located off of S. Orange Blossom Trail. I’ve been to plenty of spots on OBT before, yet somehow missed this bakery/deli. Kind of a hidden gem in a small strip, with a little parking. There are dedicated parking spots, so you really should have no trouble.

The Atmosphere: It is super low-key. Just a couple table to dine in, and regulars dropping in for takeout orders. Nothing fancy, but very comfortable. It felt neighborly, like going over to your family’s place for dinner. They offer free tea as you wait and to have with your meal. Very much like going to visit your aunty’s house. The cashier/server was helpful in ordering and super sweet, letting us take some free waters as well.

The Food: We ordered more than anticipated, but ultimately a great sampler. Started with some hummus, that came with pickled veggies, olives, and flatbread. The hummus was perfectly smooth and creamy. I wish I took a tub to go. Didn’t realize the hummus would be accompanied by flatbread, so we got a zaatar flatbread too. We wanted to get the meat fatayer, but they didn’t have it on hand. Our server ended up recommending basically another flatbread with meat, the lahm ajeen. On top of all that, we had falafels and a lamb sandwich/wrap.

The flatbreads, zaatar and lahm ajeen were good, but I was more than happy with the hummus and plain flatbread. I really enjoyed making a falafel sandwich with all the miscellaneous parts. Safe to say the falafels were really good too. I would have liked to try the fatayer, it would have been a nice difference from the other items we chose. We ended up being too full, so we saved the lamb wrap for later. I thought the lamb wrap was decent. Lamb can be tricky, and it wasn’t bad, but I think I would have liked the chicken more.

Of course I got some desserts to go too, the Knafeh and pistachio baklava. This version of Knafeh wasn’t what I expected. I thought it would be topped with kataifi, which is super popular with the Dubai chocolate craze. Ended up looking it up, and some versions top it with what’s called farkeh, a finely ground semolina dough. It was a bit too sweet for me, and I didn’t enjoy the textures here, but I was also looking for that crunchy kataifi texture.

On the other hand, the pistachio baklava was one of the best I’ve had. Of course sweet, but somehow balanced with the saltiness of the pistachios. And I think I prefer a pistachio baklava over walnut. Now, I wouldn’t mind trying the walnut one they have here and putting it to the test. I also loved that the layers were so intact and still crispy, crunchy. Sometimes baklava can get goopy and soggy, but this one held its structure super well.

Overall: I would go back just to stock up on hummus and the flatbread, called mankoushe. And I would love to try their other dips and sides like baba ghanoush, mouhamara, and tabouleh. I’d give anything on this menu a try to be honest. And of course more of that baklava. I learned they have a location in Oviedo as well which is a grill and deli, so I would like to give them a try since I see shawarmas on that menu!

It’s not trying to be fancy or ‘hot’, rather welcoming and relaxed. I love that this spot has clearly been found by the right people and serving the community.

Rating: 9/10

Address: 11757 S Orange Blossom Trl unit D, Orlando, FL 32837

Where should I try next ?!