‘Peeling every chickpea’: how Hong Kong Middle Eastern restaurant Sumac aims to change ideas about Lebanese cuisine, starting with the hummus
- Nadim Hamze, chef-owner of Sumac, says a lack of good Lebanese food in Hong Kong has made it hard for diners to get acquainted with his home country’s cuisine
- He aims to change this in his newly renovated restaurant by using top-quality ingredients to make authentic dishes so guests ‘visit Lebanon while in Hong Kong’
A kebab for lunch or dipping crudités into hummus at a dinner party – these might be the most common images of Lebanese cuisine that come to mind for Hongkongers.
While Chinese, Japanese, French and Italian restaurants dominate “best restaurant” lists in the city, Middle Eastern cuisine is woefully under-represented when it comes to fine dining.
Here to change that is Nadim Hamze, the culinary and managing director of Sumac, which opened in 2010 and is located on Glenealy, in Hong Kong’s Central neighbourhood.
Rather than seeing people’s misconceptions of Lebanese food as a problem, Hamze views it as a chance to reconnect Hong Kong diners with Lebanese fare.
“I don’t think there are challenges, but opportunities,” he says. “Hong Kong is known as the pioneer in the food and beverage industry, and Hongkongers are eager to experience something new, so we see that as a great opportunity to introduce Lebanese culture and cuisine.”