By DPA
Beirut : The month of Ramadan in Lebanon means a time of religious reflection, family gatherings and, above all, a booming trade for sidewalk cafes with fewer customers for pubs.
Beirut’s main restaurants have started preparing cafe spaces within their premises to attract Ramadan customers rather than losing business during the month.
“We changed the setting of our outside garden to mark the Ramadan month and stopped serving non-alcoholic drinks to ensure that Ramadan customers will head our way,” said Saad Haidar, an owner of a pub-restaurant in the outskirts of downtown Beirut.
The area around Monot, a street located in the outskirts of the capital’s downtown district and full of pubs, looks deserted during Ramadan while it is usually buzzing with Arab tourists and Lebanese who come to the area to enjoy a drink and listen to music.
“All the Arab tourists who came to Lebanon this summer left Beirut two days before Ramadan. As for the Lebanese, only Christian clients will come and this is not enough for our business,” said a bartender in the area.
“Lifestyles in Lebanon change drastically during this holy month,” he added.
Although Ramadan means less business for Monot street, areas such as the capital’s seaside corniche usually witness a boom in business.
“During this month people replace sushi, French food and wine with traditional Ramadan food and spend the time after they break their fast by watching the sunset in cafes, drinking tea, juices and eating deserts,” said a waiter at a seaside Ramadan cafe.
Customers enjoy “lively chats in which, of course, the famous hubble bubble (hookah pipe) is served”, the waiter said.
According to Haidar, customers start gathering after iftar (the breaking of the fast) with the numbers growing and dwindling until some 25 percent remain until the 4 a.m. closing time. This routine continues every day throughout the Ramadan month, not just over the weekend.
“We hope business will improve in the month of Ramadan. After iftar, the cafe is bustling with crowds, in contrast to the early lunch hours,” he said.
“For us bar owners, things are different during Ramdan. We witness a decline of 70 percent in business during this holy month,” said a waiter at the famous Sky Bar in the Biel district.
“Sixty to 65 percent of our customers before Ramadan were Muslims,” said the waiter who did not wish to be named. “They still pass by from time to time, but they drink orange juice or something non-alcoholic and they don’t stay long.”
Regular customers still party at the club, “but they are almost all Christians and a small crowd”, he added.
But the waiter said after Ramadan passes, “business will be booming again, because there’s Christmas and New Year’s approaching”.