ANGELINA COMES TO BEIRUT
The Parisian tearoom Angelina will open around the end of January in Downtown Beirut, Foch District, Saad Zaghloul Street. Founded in 1903 by the Austrian confectioner Antoine Rumpelmayer, Angelina has been a meeting place for Parisian gourmands for over a century. The interior design, conceived by the famous Belle-époque designer ÉdouardJean Niermans, mixes elegance, charm and refinement. Among its many visitors, Coco Chanel and Proust, as well as some of the world’s leading fashion designers have passed through Angelina. It remains a unique setting in which to savor the famous Chocolat Chaud “L’africain” and the unmistakable Mont-blanc, whose secret recipe is still closely guarded after one hundred years. A new Lebanese bistro concept will replace La Maison du Café, revealed Victor Kahi, general manager of MDC Franchise System SAL. “After 16 years of operation, La Maison du Café has matured enough. It was time to try to amend the concept and enlarge our business scope and market segmentation,” he said. The new brand’s name remains unsettled.
La Maison du Café’s Achrafieh, Beirut outlet was closed in September for renovation purposes. It will be the first to undergo a change. “The place will have a trendy decoration and will preserve a combination with Café Najjar,” Kahi said. It is expected to open by February 1, 2016. The location has an indoor and outdoor space totaling 100 m2 and it can seat 70 people. Investment in the outlet is around USD 300,000.
Kahi said that a majority of La Maison du Café units will be revamped into the new concept, whereas others will remain the same. “As our growth plan, we envisage an opening of a second outlet, most probably in the Dbayeh area, where the hub is, by the end of 2016.”
Kahi has also revealed plans for the region. “Our Qatari franchisee is revamping his current outlet in the Royal Plaza Mall and will open a stand-alone shop in The Pearl. Two additional outlets are projected for 2016-2017,” Kahi said. “We also have plans to enter the KSA and go as far as the US."