What's Always on the Table: Signature Dishes You Shouldn't Miss at Arze Suggested meta description: From beiruty-style rice to kibbeh nayeh, discover the signature Lebanese dishes that keep guests coming back to Arze in Barcelona.
Every kitchen has dishes it's known for — the ones regulars order without opening the menu, the ones a first-time guest gets pointed toward before anything else. At Arze, a Lebanese restaurant in Barcelona's Ciutat Vella, those dishes span the full range of a traditional Lebanese table: mezze to start, something grilled or slow-cooked at the center, and a sweet, sticky ending. Here's what to know before you sit down.
A Lebanese meal traditionally opens with mezze — a spread of small dishes meant to be shared and picked at slowly while conversation gets going. At Arze, this means hommos, made simply with tahini, lemon, and olive oil; mutabbal, smoky roasted eggplant blended with tahini and yogurt; and falafel, fried to order and served with hommos rather than alone. For something a little different, wark enab — vine leaves stuffed with rice, onion, mint, and tomato, then cooked with oil and lemon — offers a cooler, brighter counterpoint to the richer dips.
Guests who want a heartier starting point often order the fatet hommos, a warm dish of chickpeas layered with tahini sauce, yogurt, toasted coconut bread, and toasted almonds — closer to a small meal than a dip, and one of the more distinctive items on the menu.
Ask which dish sends people back to Arze, and a few names come up consistently. Kebbe — croquettes of cracked wheat filled with roasted beef, onion, and pine nuts, served with hommos — is a classic of Lebanese home cooking that Arze prepares in the traditional style. Kafta, seasoned minced beef grilled and served with basmati rice, almonds, and mohammara (a red pepper and walnut spread), is another dish that draws repeat orders.
For guests looking for something bolder, kibbeh nayeh is worth trying at least once: a Lebanese take on steak tartare, made from finely minced raw beef, served with tomato, cucumber, onion, and green pepper, and finished with walnuts, fresh mint, and a selection of spices to season it to taste at the table.
Arze's kitchen highlights a handful of dishes as house recommendations, and they're worth trying specifically because they showcase the Beiruty style of cooking — rice dishes built around saffron, basmati rice, almonds, and a careful balance of spices. Arroz con Pollo Beiruty and its beef counterpart, Arroz con Ternera Beiruty, both feature this style: tender meat cooked with green and red peppers, onion, and saffron-scented basmati rice.
For guests looking for a fully vegetable-based main, the Vegetariana Libanesa brings together carrot, red and green pepper, pumpkin, zucchini, turnip, and falafel over basmati rice with a tahini sauce — a dish substantial enough that it doesn't feel like an afterthought on a menu built around meat.
For groups who want to go bigger, Arze's brasa (grill) section includes options built for sharing — pinchos of kafta, lamb, and chicken, served with grilled vegetables and pita. The Graellada Mixta Arze, a mixed grill combining all three, is designed specifically for a table that wants to taste everything at once rather than commit to a single protein.
Lebanese desserts lean on nuts, honey, rose water, and orange blossom rather than heavy cream or chocolate, and Arze's dessert selection reflects that. Baklawa Libanés — layered pastry with almonds, hazelnuts, cashews, and walnuts — is the familiar entry point, while dishes like kenefe bel geben (a warm cheese pastry with toasted angel hair, seasonal strawberries, and honey) or halawa bl jibn (a semolina-based sweet filled with cheese and rose water) offer something less commonly found outside a genuinely Lebanese kitchen.
The full menu is available to browse before you visit, but the best way to understand why these dishes have become the ones people return for is to actually sit down and share a table of them. Arze is open daily from 12:00 to 23:30 at Carrer del Doctor Dou, 10, in Ciutat Vella, a short walk from Plaça de Catalunya.
Reserve your table by phone at +34 930 087 913, via WhatsApp, or through TheFork.