School children in Cardiff are to be given a unique insight into the culture of Lebanon in a new initiative launched by a local restaurateur.

The scheme called ‘Lebanon Goes Live’ - is the brainchild of Nawfal Kelaby - who founded Mezza Luna restaurant in City Road Cardiff in 2006 – and now aims to create better cultural understanding through food.
To launch the initiative, the restaurant will be visiting Stacey Primary School in Adamsdown where Nawful will personally demonstrate the art of Lebanese cooking to thirty, year-four school children.  A large emphasis will be placed on educating pupils about healthy eating as well as the culture of Lebanon.

Nawfal Kelaby, who came to Cardiff from Iraq in 1984 said: “I am passionate about helping people discover the diversity of Middle Eastern cooking and life, and what better than to inspire school children at an early age.  We have found more and more people are interested in our cooking which is not only exciting in terms of flavour but can be very healthy through our use of grills and salads.”

Inspired by a traditional annual festival held in Lebanon, the Lebanon Goes Live, is part of the ‘City of the Sun’ celebration being mounted by Mezza Luna. The school children will be experiencing a dish from a special Festival menu and will be asked to create a name for the new dish.

Headteacher of Stacey Primary School, Mr Steffan Wright said: “We feel this is a novel way of introducing children to a different culture by showing them first hand how Lebanese dishes are prepared.  We look forward to taking an active role in promoting healthy eating whilst at the same time celebrating other people’s traditional food and cultures.”

The food being created at Stacey Road will consist of flat bread with grilled chicken marinated in garlic, lemon juice, and paprika accompanied by a special pickle, tomatoes, lettuce and topped off with fresh parsley.