Lebanese Catering in Fredericksburg

Lebanese food is built for sharing. A Lebanese table starts with a spread of small dishes, moves on to grilled meats and, for a celebration, ends with lamb over spiced rice. The Aladin catering menu covers each of those stages, and every item below is priced on the catering menu.

Kibbie

Kibbie, more often spelled kibbeh, is widely called Lebanon's national dish. Ours are shells of bulgur wheat and ground beef, stuffed with spiced ground beef and roasted onion, then fried until crisp. They come with a yogurt dip and are sold by the dozen ($36 a dozen). Kibbie is filling, so one or two pieces each is plenty when it is one of several starters.

Grape leaves

Stuffed grape leaves (warak enab in Arabic) are rolled around rice, tomatoes and parsley and served cool with a yogurt dip. They are marked vegetarian, and the leaves themselves contain no dairy. Sold by the dozen: $18 a dozen.

How many grape leaves per person?

When grape leaves are one of several appetizers, plan two to three pieces per guest. For 20 guests that is four to five dozen; for 50 guests, about ten to twelve dozen. If they are the only starter, or your crowd already knows and loves them, round up.

Meat, spinach and cheese pies

Small baked pies are a fixture of Lebanese bakeries, eaten warm or at room temperature. All three are sold by the dozen:

• Meat pies: open mini pies topped with ground beef, onions and sumac ($24 a dozen).
• Spinach pies: dough shells filled with spinach, onions and sumac, marked vegetarian ($24 a dozen).
• Cheese pies: baked mini pies filled with feta, mozzarella, olive oil and Lebanese spices, marked vegetarian ($20 a dozen).

A dozen of each makes an easy mixed platter. Sumac, the tart red spice on the meat and spinach pies, is a Lebanese staple you will also taste in fattoush.

Lebanese salads

Three salads on the menu are Lebanese, and all three are marked vegan:

• Fattoush: chopped tomatoes, cucumbers and parsley with olive oil, lemon, garlic, herbs and toasted pita chips. A good all-rounder: $40 small / $60 large.
• Tabouleh: mostly parsley, with mint, bulgur and tomatoes, dressed with olive oil and lemon. Bright and herby: $60 small / $80 large.
• Lebanese salad: chopped tomatoes, cucumbers and parsley with olive oil, mint and lemon, without the bread or bulgur: $60 small / $80 large.

Fattoush and tabouleh both contain wheat, from the pita chips and the bulgur. If you have guests with allergies or who avoid gluten, call us before you order.

Hummus and baba ghannouge

Hummus is chickpeas puréed with tahini and lemon; baba ghannouge is baked eggplant puréed with tahini, lemon and garlic, smoky and a little lighter. Both are marked vegan. Order both and set them next to the bread: $40 small / $60 large for hummus, $40 small / $60 large for baba ghannouge.

Kafta

Kafta is ground beef mixed with parsley, onion and spices, pressed onto skewers and grilled. It is sold by the skewer ($7 each) and can be mixed with chicken, beef or lamb skewers. Kabobs have a 10-skewer minimum; the kabob and shawarma catering page has the full skewer list and how many to order.

Lamb leg and lamb shanks over hashwa

Hashwa means "stuffing" in Arabic. In Lebanese cooking it is the rice used to stuff poultry or to serve under roast lamb, and ours is rice cooked with spiced ground beef, nuts and raisins. It is the centerpiece rice for a celebration.

• Roasted lamb leg with hashwa: a whole marinated leg of lamb over a large tray of hashwa ($300 a large tray).
• Lamb shanks with hashwa: six roasted lamb shanks over hashwa rice ($150 a large tray).

Both are large-tray specialties. The lamb leg is the showpiece for a family dinner or a holiday table; add salads and mezze around it. Hashwa contains nuts, so let guests with allergies know.

Lebanese vs Greek food

The two cuisines share a sea, olive oil and many dishes, but they lean in different directions. Lebanese cooking reaches for parsley, mint, lemon, garlic, sumac and tahini, and loves bulgur and small shared plates. Greek cooking leans on oregano, feta, olives and yogurt sauces like tzatziki. On our menu, kibbie, tabouleh, fattoush and hashwa are Lebanese; gyro and Greek salad are Greek. For the Greek side, see Greek catering.

A Lebanese spread for 20

Beef shawarma for half the group and kafta skewers for the other half, with rice, fattoush, hummus, bread and grape leaves sized at about two pieces per guest.

Qty	Item	Price
1	Beef Shawarma, small tray	$100
10	Kafta kabob skewers	$70
1	Rice, large tray	$50
1	Fattoush Salad, large tray	$60
1	Hummus, large tray	$60
4	Grape Leaves, dozen	$72
2	Tandoori Bread, dozen	$32
	Food total	$444
	Per guest	about $22.20

Food only, at today's menu prices, before tax and delivery ($10 to $30 by distance). Trays are counted at the low end of each size's range.

Order and confirm 24 hours ahead. Pick up at the restaurant, 9901 Southpoint Parkway (open from 11 am daily), or we deliver anywhere within 50 miles of it, to offices, homes, churches and venues. Delivery is $10 for addresses within 20 miles of the restaurant, $20 for 20 to 40 miles and $30 for 40 to 50 miles. For a family dinner built around the lamb leg, drop-off is standard, and setup, wait staff and other services are available on request, priced with your quote. Request a quote or call (540) 372-7755. For family celebrations, see graduation and birthday catering.