You have been born and raised in Beirut and studied at Les Roches in Switzerland earlier than shifting into the culinary world. What components of your Lebanese upbringing stayed with you thru that journey?
Undoubtedly, my Lebanese upbringing has profoundly formed each facet of who I’m and the individual I proceed changing into in the present day. As an illustration, my earliest and most cherished recollections are Sundays in Mechmech with my grandparents, crammed with heat and shared traditions. Particularly, I keep in mind selecting figs with my grandfather and gathering eggs, then watching our harvest flip right into a scrumptious do-it-yourself lunch.
Consequently, that connection to meals and custom deeply planted the preliminary seeds of my ardour for the culinary world. In the meantime, hospitality was one thing I naturally absorbed from my father’s household, who possessed a uncommon and memorable reward with individuals.
Certainly, they persistently went above and past to make everybody really feel particular by creating unforgettable and significant moments of connection. Moreover, my mom’s unwavering help and powerful entrepreneurial drive have at all times been my strongest supply of motivation and encouragement.
Notably, her ambition, power, and success in Lebanon have continued to encourage me as I’ve confidently carved out my very own path.
Opening Albé in the course of a pandemic was a daring transfer. What pushed you to maneuver ahead throughout such an unsure time?
Opening Albé through the pandemic was a daring determination, but it instantly felt proper regardless of widespread concern and uncertainty. Afterward, when the resort I labored at in Barcelona closed as a result of Covid-19, I had surprising time immediately readily available.
Like many others within the trade, I discovered myself at a whole standstill and looking for a brand new course. However, in that uncommon quiet, the concept of constructing one thing of my very own stored rising steadily to the floor. Repeatedly, I attempted to disregard it, however I merely couldn’t shake the sensation or silence that persistent internal calling.
Though the timing appeared chaotic, my entrepreneurial spirit, handed down from my mom, as an alternative stored urging me to maneuver courageously forward.
Subsequently, at solely 23 years outdated, I lastly took the leap and launched Albé, pushed by the whole lot that formed me. Naturally, I drew inspiration from my father’s hospitality, my Lebanese roots, and a ardour for working with native farmers and components. In fact, we confronted large challenges, opening in September 2020 whereas Spain remained closely affected by ongoing waves of COVID-19.
But in fact, each impediment strengthened my resolve, and uncertainty itself gave me readability, braveness, and function to construct one thing significant.
Albé shortly turned a platform for Lebanese delicacies, wine and tradition in Europe. What did you need company to really feel or perceive the second they walked in?
My objective was that they’d really feel a way of heat. Above all, Albé was constructed on generosity and reference to values deeply rooted within the coronary heart of Lebanese tradition and hospitality. Past that, nevertheless, I envisioned an idea that revered native, seasonal merchandise whereas reimagining them via a distinctly fashionable Lebanese lens.
Importantly, it wasn’t about replicating custom however slightly providing a up to date and deeply private interpretation of heritage.
What was the most important problem in translating Lebanese flavors and traditions right into a fine-dining expertise that resonated in Barcelona?
One key characteristic of high quality eating in Barcelona is a robust give attention to respecting and showcasing the area’s distinctive native produce. Consequently, one main problem we confronted was balancing genuine Lebanese flavors with the culinary expectations and preferences of this metropolis.
As an alternative of replicating dishes precisely as in Lebanon, we aimed to seize Lebanese delicacies’s heat, generosity and layered complexity. Subsequently, we expressed that essence in a contemporary, inventive manner that remained sincere but additionally felt pure inside a Barcelona context.
Our objective wasn’t strict custom, as an alternative, we reinterpreted Lebanese meals with originality, considerate intention, and a respect for seasonal components. In the end, that mix of authenticity and flexibility helped Albé resonate with company whereas honoring the unbelievable producers of this area.
Shortly after launching Albé, you co-founded âme, which made it onto the Michelin Information in simply three months. What do you suppose made that fast recognition doable?
âme was based in 2023, and the timing performed a big function in shaping its course and early momentum. By then, we had already gained priceless expertise via Albé and earned a robust status throughout Barcelona’s dynamic eating scene. Consequently, that journey gave my co-founder and me a strong basis to construct on with higher confidence and clear intention. Moreover, our unbelievable staff at âme made the whole lot doable via their dedication, expertise, and perception in our shared inventive imaginative and prescient. From the very starting, we stayed targeted and intentional, making certain each element aligned with our requirements and expressed precisely what we envisioned.
How do Albé and âme differ in character or function?
Albé and âme differ considerably by way of total idea, visitor expertise, and the ambiance they every goal to create. In distinction, âme is a smaller, intimate tasting-menu restaurant the place cooks lead the expertise and luxuriate in inventive freedom to experiment freely. Moreover, the setting at âme helps a extra classical, French-inspired strategy that enables refinement, precision, and creative culinary expression to flourish. Albé, alternatively, emphasizes the complete eating expertise. We mix meals, hospitality, and Lebanese tradition in a heat, relaxed setting.
Importantly, what unites each eating places are shared values: seasonality, help for native producers and look after every thoughtfully crafted dish.
In the end, regardless of their stylistic variations, each Albé and âme are pushed by craftsmanship, ingredient integrity, and the tales meals can inform.
You’ve talked about wanting to place Lebanese wine on the European map. What’s one bottle or varietal that you just suppose may shock European wine lovers?
Undeniably, Chateau Musar is a straightforward passport to somebody’s coronary heart, and its presence has grown throughout European wine menus lately. Nonetheless, at Albé, we goal to showcase all of Lebanon’s wine areas, sharing the tales and terroir behind every bottle. By means of considerate storytelling, we introduce company to completely different Lebanese wineries, transmitting their historical past and distinctive character via each glass we serve.
In consequence, company at Albé are loving the expertise, particularly throughout our wine pairings that spotlight regional Lebanese range fantastically. The truth is, our pairings take company on a journey via Lebanon’s wine areas, making every sip really feel each immersive and memorable.
If I had to decide on grape varieties, I’d proudly spotlight Merwah and Obeidi—each native to Lebanon and remarkably distinctive. Furthermore, it’s a real honor to introduce these lesser-known grapes to company who could also be tasting them for the very first time.
As one in all Barcelona’s youngest restaurateurs, how do you deal with management?
Undoubtedly, management in hospitality is evolving, with a rising shift towards fostering more healthy, extra supportive environments for groups, an encouraging growth total.
For me personally, that’s at all times been a key precedence: making a office the place individuals really feel valued, motivated and proud day-after-day. At each Albé and âme, our groups are the heartbeat of the whole lot—we merely couldn’t create memorable experiences with out their dedication. Certainly, they’re the rationale company return, and their happiness immediately shapes the vitality, service, and heat company really feel all through every go to. That’s exactly why I’ve persistently targeted on making certain wonderful working circumstances that genuinely help and empower each particular person on our staff. By prioritizing workers wellbeing, we’re not simply bettering tradition—we’re reworking your entire hospitality expertise for each our staff and our company. In the end, a fulfilled staff results in a welcoming ambiance, real service, and an setting persons are at all times excited to return to.
Having already achieved a lot so younger, what do you suppose drives your ambition in the present day in comparison with once you first began?
Ambition is an evolving drive; consequently, what motivates me now differs significantly from what initially sparked my need to attain. At first, I used to be pushed by a must show myself and produce my boldest inventive concepts to life. Nonetheless, over time and thru numerous experiences, I’ve found that true development arises from dealing with stress and mastering moments of stress.
Furthermore, every problem has strengthened my resilience, refining how I face obstacles and enhancing my skill to steer underneath stress. Now, as I replicate on all that I’ve achieved, I acknowledge each the milestones reached and the street forward.
In the end, that imaginative and prescient, understanding there’s at all times one other stage to succeed in, ignites my present ambition and retains me progressing towards higher targets.
Lebanese delicacies is commonly underrepresented in Europe. What stereotypes or misconceptions are you hoping to problem via your work?
Overseas, Lebanese delicacies is commonly grouped with different Center Jap cuisines which might result in misinterpretations. Whereas there are various shared influences, Lebanese gastronomy has distinct flavors and traditions that deserve recognition.
What are your future plans?
To repeatedly signify Lebanon within the F&B trade in Spain and in different European international locations sooner or later.
