Traveling Through with David Prior · Thursday, July 2, 2026
During his visit to Beirut, Andy Baraghani explored the Armenian neighborhood of Bourj Hammoud and was struck by the similarities between Armenian and Persian cuisines. He noted the delicate flavors, mildness, and use of sweet elements in both, contrasting them with the typical heat found in some other cuisines.
“I remember him telling me like, oh, you need to go to berjh Haamoud, and I was like, you know, and it wasn't far from Tailan, and I went there and it was Armenian neighbor in Beirut, and I just had Armenian food and I ate so much.”
“And it really that food actually reminded me of Persian food in a way because there is a kind of delicateness and a mildness. Persian food generally really doesn't have a lot of heat or spice to it, like you love your saffron tumeric, certain warm spices, but there's no like fiery heat to it.”
“And they love their kind of sweet flavors too, so you'll see like fruit in a lot of kind of stews, and same with Ourmeni and cuisine.”