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Street Food · Beirut Bread Rings

Kaak (Kaak bi Simsim)

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Photo coming soon

Beirut's vendors still deliver it the old-fashioned way — dozens of sesame-crusted rings hung from a pole balanced over one shoulder or wheeled on a bicycle.

A purse-shaped, sesame-crusted bread ring is baked crisp outside and chewy within, then split open and filled to order with za'atar, cheese, or a soft cheese-and-thyme mix. Sold from carts and bicycles across Beirut.

Why it's made this way: Its portable ring shape let street vendors carry dozens at once on poles or bicycles, turning kaak into a fast, handheld meal for commuters and students on the go.

Roughly what's in it

320kcal
9gprotein
50gcarbs
10gfat
Estimated per typical street-vendor portion — not lab-tested.
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Part of World of Street Food — 3443 dishes from 118 countries. Something wrong here? Tell us in the comments below. Photo credits.