EP Business in Hospitality Issue 49 - April 2014

BUSINESS
“The stores are
colourful, the food
is healthy, the staff
are inviting”
to most foreigners.
“I am a great supporter of my culture’s
food and I want to make it accessible to
the cosmopolitan market rather than just
to the Middle East.”
Tony took a hands-on approach to
both the creation of the menus and
designing the aesthetic appeal of
Comptoir Libanais.
“Comptoir has been successful
through various detailed elements I
picked up from other successful high
street concepts. The stores are colourful,
the food is healthy, the staff are inviting
– they are places where you can imagine
anyone from London’s cosmopolitan
clientele. I waited for there to be an
element of demand before expanding
and over the years we have become
quite recognised. This is exciting for
me because it changes the perception
that others have of Lebanese cuisine.”
While certainly making the food more
available on the British high street, Tony
has incorporated other elements to help
educate and promote the culture to
others. The Comptoir chain is also known
for combining a store in a restaurant
by adding a wall or a section of Middle
“One has
to be able
to adapt to
different
situations
which I
Eastern goods available for purchase.
“By making it easy for people to buy
the ingredients they may feel are difficult
or too exotic to find like pomegranate
molasses, or spices like sumac or zaatar,
it makes the food more accessible.
They can begin to identify the flavours
they like the most from my cuisine
and incorporate these tastes at home.
Along with the addition of the ‘souk’
or marketplace in the restaurant, once
people began buying the items the next
demand we found was for a recipe book.
We published the Comptoir Libanais
cookbook in 2013 with the purpose of
simplifying and demonstrating to our
customers that what we were doing at the
restaurant could be replicated at home.”
The restaurant concept has proved so
popular that Tony has been approached
by foreign operators offering to take the
chain and concept abroad.
“As with any restaurant operator
with their own concept, I always want
to make sure that I can replicate the
high quality of food and service that I
provide at Comptoir. I’m not ruling out
international outlets, however I am more
interested in expanding in the UK. A
lot of the enquiries I’ve received to take
Comptoir abroad have been to Middle
Eastern and North African locations like
Dubai, Marrakesh and even Beirut, but
also New York City, Paris, Los Angeles,
Tel Aviv and many more! While I’m
flattered, the people that I want to make
this food accessible to are found here.”
With a strong restaurant brand,
a successful portfolio of fine-dining
Middle Eastern establishments and
a recipe book, does Tony feel he has
fulfilled his mission?
“I’ve truly enjoyed this journey and
watching the variety of customers that
we see pass through Comptoir makes
me feel I’m getting closer to my goal.
After the success of our first book, we
have another being published this year
called Comptoir Libanais Express. Our
readers asked for a selection of fast and
simple recipes which became the focus
of the new book.” Recently Tony has also
appeared on BBC Food & Drink. “Once
again, it’s waiting for the demand to
come to us and I think that being
on national television promoting
our cuisine is a huge step in the
right direction.”
EP | April 14 | 27