Anissa's Blog

So, I had my first supper club night, a Lebanese/Syrian dinner, and it was great. Full house with charming guests, and none of the ladies wore spiky heels — I asked them not to because my wooden floor hates them! And nothing went wrong. Oh, one thing. I forgot to offer the promised Turkish or…

Last month’s belly dancer was ‘mulazlazeh’ (endearingly plump in Arabic) while this month’s has a pretty gorgeous figure, and an even prettier face and skin. And for a change she is Greek — the clip is from a 1964 film called Allos… gia to Ekatommyrio! She may even be a touch too thin but her movement is beautiful…

Ka’keh is the quintessential Lebanese street food. Vendors have them precariously strung on various structures which they fit on their bicycles and wheel along the corniche or regular streets. No one ever makes them at home but after I recently got into a twitter conversation with a lebanese tweep about ka’keh and how we’d both love it if…

I am finally taking the jump and joining the supper club crowds but only for a limited time and to coincide with Shubbak, which means window in Arabic and is the first ever festival of contemporary Arab arts in London. Shubbak is taking place from 4 to 24 July and is supported by London Mayor, Boris Johnson.…

There is an Arabic word that my sisters and I loved using when I lived in Beirut, mulazlazeh meaning plump but with a faintly vulgar connotation. And when I found this Turkish dancer on youtube, I immediately thought “wow, she really is mulazlazeh!”. Perhaps even more than a little more than plump, I would say…