In the cafes of the Middle East that inspired Tarboush, the drinks on the table are as likely to be juice, tea and coffee as anything else. Ours is a bring-your-own restaurant for alcohol, so the drinks we make ourselves are the non-alcoholic ones - and they deserve a proper look. This is a guide to what is on the drinks pages of our menu, and what each one is good with.
Fresh juices, made to order
When our team is asked what a new guest should not miss, fresh juice is always on the list: made to order and absolutely delicious. There are 15 juices on the menu.
- Single fruits - Orange, Apple, Mango, Pineapple and Carrot.
- Blends - Lemon And Mint, Mango And Orange, Strawberry And Lemon, Strawberry And Banana, Apple And Carrot, Orange And Pineapple and Orange And Carrot.
- Tarboush Fruit Cocktail - the house mix, for when you cannot decide.
- Cranberry and Tomato juice.
Which juice with which dish
There are no rules, but a few pairings work every time:
- Lemon and mint with the charcoal grill. Sharp, cold and herbal - it does for Lamb Shish or Mixed Grill what a squeeze of lemon does for fish.
- Mango and orange with spice. Something sweet and thick calms the chilli in Batata Harra, Hummus Beiruty or Spicy Tawouk.
- Apple and carrot with cold mezza. Light enough not to fight with hummus, moutabal and tabouleh.
- Strawberry and banana for children - closer to a smoothie, and usually finished before the food arrives.
Ayran: the traditional choice
Ayran is a salted yoghurt drink, here with dry mint and garlic. If you have not met it before it sounds unusual, but across the Middle East it is the classic drink with grilled meat: cool, slightly sour and very good next to shawarma or kofta. Worth trying once - many people never go back to cola.
Soft drinks and alcohol-free beer
The usual soft drinks are there, with J2O, still and sparkling water, and mixers such as tonic, bitter lemon and ginger ale for those bringing their own spirits. Barbican is an alcohol-free lager for anyone who wants a beer with their grill without the alcohol. For the smallest guests there is Fruit Shoot.
Milk shakes
For children - and adults who have stopped pretending - there are 12 milk shakes. The fruit ones are Banana, Strawberry and Mango; the classics are Chocolate and Vanilla; and then there is the chocolate-bar shelf: Kit Kat, Snickers, Oreo, Galaxy, Kinder Bueno, Twix and Nutella. A shake is closer to a dessert than a drink, so order it after the mezza rather than before.
Tea by the pot
A Lebanese meal traditionally ends with tea, and it is the best way to stretch out an evening. Ours comes in pots for one or for two:
- Fresh Mint - the one to order after a big mezza; it settles everything.
- Cardamom and Cinnamon - warm and sweetly spiced, good on a cold night.
- Clove and Ginger - stronger and more warming.
- Lemon and Apple - lighter and fruity.
- Moroccan Rose - fragrant and a little different.
There is English tea and green tea as well.
Arabic coffee and the rest
Arabic Coffee is small, strong and aromatic, and comes at the very end of the meal - sip it slowly. If you prefer something more familiar, there is espresso, Double Espresso, Americano, Cappuccino, Latte and Mocha, and Hot Chocolate.
And if you bring a bottle
You are welcome to bring your own wine or beer: we operate a bring your own policy for alcohol, with a corkage charge per person drinking alcohol, and we will provide the glasses. Soft drinks and mixers must be purchased from us, so please do not bring those.
All the drinks are on the menu. We are open Sunday - Thursday 12pm (noon) to 11pm, Friday - Saturday 12pm (noon) to 12am (midnight) - book a table and start with a juice.
