Tag Archives | armenia

#TogetherAsOne Alex Demirdjian Racing at Spa Francorchamps for Lebanon and Armenia

By Rami on July 29, 2017 in Automotive, Racing

After racing for Lebanon at Monza, and racing for Armenia at Paul Ricard, Alex Demirdjian and his team are racing this time at the Circuit Spa Francochamps in Belgium in the name of both countries raising the slogan #Driveforlife.

This stage of the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup in Belgium is Total 24 Hours of Spa, and Alex along with his team will be revving the Ferrari 488’s engine for an ultimate test of endurance in the Pro-Am category race. So let’s wish them a good luck and hope for a good result!

I have already uploaded a video of Alex making a full lap around the circuit last night, and you can also follow the race live today on www.blancpain-gt-series.com/live.

Update:

Alex and the team scored a new milestone with a third-place finish in Spa Francorchamps’ 24-hour race! It wasn’t all easy for them though as they received three penalties throughout the race but still managed to make it.

They originally took off from the 7th position but thanks to their successful strategy and the alternation of drivers especially during the last four hours of the race, Dermidjian and the two other drivers managed to finish on the podium and eventually raise the Lebanese and Armenian flags together.

Onno Restaurant – Bourj Hammoud

By Rami on May 23, 2013 in Reviews

Back when I posted about Varouj, several people recommended that I go try Onno, another Armenian restaurant in Bourj Hammoud, and I totally regret not doing so until lately as I found it really fantastic!

The restaurant is located right underneath the bridge that connects Achrafieh to Dekweneh facing Life Center, and it is quite small and cozy with a few tables that fit around 20 people I guess. So don’t go there expecting something fancy, as the focus there is the food, which is cooked by the family who owns the place.

We ordered the following: Basterma with quail egg, two pieces of soubereg, cherry kebab, batata harra, mouhammara, soujouk, and two soft drinks.

The portions were pretty generous and tasted quite good as well, I especially loved the cherry kebab and basterma since it was the first time for me to try it with quail eggs. And the best part had to be the bill, which came at 55,000 L.L for everything we ordered,which is less than half what you would pay at other places like Mayrig or Mayas, for much more authentic Armenian food in my opinion.

Needless to say, Onno is totally recommended, and I’m planning to go again soon to try the other stuff they have like manti, quails, and frog legs. Check below what Alain Bourdain had to say about it in his travel and food show No Reservations back in 2011.

Update:

For those who are interested, Onno’s phone number is 03 801 476.

Varouj Restaurant – Bourj Hammoud

By Rami on April 26, 2012 in Reviews

Varouj is probably one of the best places I’ve lately discovered in Beirut. It’s a small restaurant hidden in Bourj Hammoud’s maze of streets and serves some really good traditional Armenian food.

The minute you step inside the place and get greeted by the owner who’s a relatively old man, you’ll be surprised by his character as he acts more like a dictator running his restaurant! But he’s not rude though.

There’s no menu for ordering there and the old man will just ignore you if you ask for it. Shortly after you get seated he’ll just come to your table and quickly list to you the available hot and cold dishes. We ordered Hommos, Fattoush, batata Harra, Mouhammara, Sou Boreg, Soujouk, Chicken Wings, Manti, and soft drinks, and although we tried to tell him which plates to bring first and which to delay a bit, he again ignored our request and decided to bring them as he pleases but didn’t disappoint us since he was serving us 2 dishes at a time that go really well together.

The food was so delicious that we wiped clean the dishes we ordered, all of them, and the old man was smiling every time he notices we finished a plate till the last bit.

Price wise, I have absolutely no idea how the pricing works there! We were not given a bill when we asked for it, he just immediately answered us “90,000 L.L”. That’s it all the 8 plates we ordered for exactly 90,000L.L, which is way cheaper that other Armenian restaurants like Mayass or Mayrig.

Varouj is TOTALLY recommended as the food is heavenly good, especially the Manti and chicken wings, next time I’m planning to try their little birds, frogs, and chicken liver. If you’re tempted to try it make sure you reserve beforehand as it only has 4 tables and always seems to be busy, their phone number is 03-882933.

~~I’m sorry I was unable to locate Varouj on Google Maps to show you where it is, so I appreciate if anyone can provide me with the coordinates to post a map of it.~~ Here’s a map showing where Varouj is. Thanks to Roupen.

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