Maher Chebaro This is Me

 Web References

1. 1. What's Up Lebanon

   www.whatsuplebanon.com/whatsup - [Cached]

   Published on: 2/17/2002   Last Visited: 2/17/2002

   Maher Chebaro- Otium: "The Love of ingredients and their freshness along with teamwork and communication harmonize to beautify the restaurant business."
   
   Maher Chebaro is the operator of Otium, located in a small street in Clemenceau. This restaurant-bar is distinguished, first and foremost by its architectural style, and by the purity, the authenticity and finesse that emerge from its locale.
   
   Chebaro's journey into the world of tastes and aromas began in the United States –Chicago- where he acquired a rich experience in restaurant management. Teaming up with some friends, he opened three outlets there: "Boulevard Café", "Tribal Grill", and "Soup". He started off as chef, and moved on to become an operator. However, for many years, he contemplated opening up a restaurant in Lebanon. With this mind, Chebaro came back to his home country and opened the Otium restaurant-pub with a friend, Ahmad Husseini.
   ...
   According to Chebaro, the restaurant business in Lebanon is starting to witness a favorable shakeup.
   
   At the culinary level, The Otium epitomizes freshness and innovation. The selection of ingredients is closely monitored to make sure that the most luscious products are served to guests. In other words, one should love this job, but more importantly one should love the ingredients.
   
   As for the profile of a good chef, David unveils it saying: "You have to capture what the ingredients convey, in order to know how they should be displayed". The key, as Maher affirms, is: "You should come from a familial and educational background that made you love gastronomy".
   
   Today, the Otium owes its success to its founders' optimistic outlook at life and his noteworthy achievement.

2. 2. Trying to put the hum back in Hamra

   www.loubnan.org/NEWS/news40.ht - [Cached]

   Published on: 6/25/2001   Last Visited: 2/5/2002

   Citing its wide sidewalks and lack of residential areas, Maher Chebaro, managing partner of Otium in Clemenceau, argued that "Hamra Street is one of the most neglected gold mines in Beirut." "To get into Hamra Street, you have to do four or five places next to each other so you can change it," he said. "But I really think four or five places can turn it around." More widely, the Ras Beirut area also has potential, Chebaro asserted. He and his partners decided to open Otium, a high-end restaurant and bar that attracts Beirut's burgeoning yuppies, in the quiet Clemenceau neighborhood after scoping out other areas like Monnot. "I opted for lower rent and doing my own thing, than going to what's perceived as high-business areas," he said. In Ras Beirut, Chebaro contended, "I think there's really potential for strong business, for identity. Rent is still lower, and there're some really cool streets." However, he noted that the area "is still destinations, so it's even harder (to succeed) unless you have a strong identity." One of those destinations people go to just for one business instead of the area, is Street 44, a restaurant and bar just off Hamra that opened in February.
   ...
   Stetie and Chebaro both cringe at the war-time terms West and East Beirut and contend that they chose to open their spots based on the properties they found, not because they preferred west over east.
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   Chebaro argued that businesses, the government and investors need to make an effort to bring back the neighborhood. "For Hamra to become Hamra again it's really a big project," he said. Besides a simple lack of public theaters and restaurants, the Hamra area has other problems to deal with, starting with its poor lighting. And the high number of men seeking the company of women in seedy bars and the proliferation of adult theaters, making many women feel uncomfortable walking through the neighborhood at night. "I don't think it's safe to walk by yourself at night," said AUB sophomore Julie. "That's the benefit of Monnot," Chebaro said. "You go there, there are always people on the street. It's lit, it's busy."