Foreword: Born out of friendship, curiosity, and a shared belief in compassion, Alternative Kitchen is reimagining vegan living in Lebanon. What if vegan food wasn’t a trend, but a return home? Through a 20-episode series filmed at Terrapods, artists and friends Samer Beyhum and Yal Solan bring plant-based cooking back to its roots — accessible, affordable, and deeply Levantine, reminding us that compassion begins at the table.
What inspired you to launch Alternative Kitchen, and how does this residency help bring your vision to life?
The idea for the Alternative Kitchen was born during the COVID-19 pandemic. Yal had gone vegan a few months before March 2020, and on the first day of the lockdown, Samer decided to do the same. The rising cost of meat and the increase in food poisoning cases, caused by the low-quality imports following the 2019 economic collapse in Lebanon, pushed him to make the shift. But this choice had deeper roots: Samer had been an environmental activist since the early 1990s, when he helped found Lebanon’s post–civil war environmental movement. Going vegan for ethical reasons had long been an aspiration of his.
Cooking had always been one of Samer’s passions, and with Yal now vegan, he wanted to learn new recipes to accommodate his best friend. Yal, impressed by his culinary creations, suggested they share this food with others to show that veganism is not only easy but also diverse, far beyond “just salads.” That’s how the seed of the Alternative Kitchen was planted.
Over the years, Samer experimented with countless recipes, even creating his own dishes such as a gourmet mushroom-based burger, vegan sujuk, vegan sushi (with both white and red vegan tuna), vegan kafta, kibbeh, and even a vegan omelet. With Yal’s encouragement, he began appearing as a guest chef at venues including Tota, Riwaq, Barzakh, and 16mm, using food as a way to introduce veganism into the mainstream and spark meaningful conversations about animal cruelty. To their surprise, even die-hard meat lovers admitted his dishes were satisfying and indistinguishable from traditional meat-based versions.
Through these experiences, Yal and Samer realized a bigger issue: many people had forgotten Lebanon’s own culinary traditions. In conversations, they often heard the claim that “veganism is a Western import.” But this isn’t true. Just two or three generations ago, meat was eaten only occasionally, while religious practices (Christian and Muslim) and practical needs had shaped a cuisine rich with naturally vegan recipes. The modern abundance of meat-heavy dishes is an illusion created by a world rife with a consumerist and profit-at-all-costs (especially the cost to animal welfare) mentality.
With this in mind, the Alternative Kitchen took shape not only as a way to introduce alternatives to meat-based foods but also as an effort to reconnect people with their own heritage and to highlight how food choices contribute to animal suffering. To push the initiative further, they applied for and received a grant from the Vegan Grants program. As part of the project, they are producing 20 instructional videos focusing on simple, homemade basics, nut milks, butters, cheeses, desserts, and more. The idea is to encourage people to make things from scratch rather than relying on expensive imported products filled with preservatives.
Thanks to Terrapods, Yal stepped into the kitchen herself to prepare for these videos, which she will host, bringing the Alternative Kitchen to life and sharing a hands-on vision of veganism with the community.
Your recipes highlight both accessibility and tradition. How do you balance affordability, local ingredients, and Levantine culinary heritage in the series?
A recurring argument we hear is that “being vegan is expensive.” At first glance, this seems true; supermarket shelves and restaurant menus often price vegan foods higher than their meat-based counterparts. But this is largely because vegan products are marketed as exotic imports rather than as everyday essentials.
Take almond milk as an example. In most supermarkets, a one-liter carton sells for $4 to $6, depending on the brand. Yet, one kilogram of raw almonds from a local shop costs about $10. It only takes 100 grams of almonds and water to make one liter of almond milk at home. This means that $10 worth of almonds can produce 10 liters of fresh almond milk. Compare that to the $40–$60 you’d spend buying the same amount pre-packaged (and let’s not forget about the preservatives in them), it becomes clear that the cost difference comes down to presentation and convenience, not the actual food.
The same applies to restaurants, where vegan meals are often framed as “exotic” or “fusion” dishes with price tags to match. But if you break down the ingredients, most of these meals can be recreated at home for a fraction of the cost, and often just a quarter of what restaurants charge, by sourcing fresh, local produce.
This marketing of vegan food as foreign or extravagant also fuels the misconception that veganism itself is a “Western import.” In reality, Lebanon’s culinary heritage is already rich with naturally vegan recipes, as well as vegan versions of meat-based dishes, rooted in both religious traditions and practical ways of life. Just two or three generations ago, meat was eaten sparingly, and plant-based meals were the norm.
The irony is that many Western visitors are astonished by the sheer variety of vegan options in traditional Lebanese cuisine and often express envy at how abundant and diverse it is compared to what they have back home. What has been repackaged today as an expensive “trend” is, in fact, part of our own history, waiting to be remembered and celebrated.
Alternative Kitchen launch party, October 2025. Photo Courtesy of adan.sm
Why is it important for you to create Arabic-first vegan resources, and what impact do you hope this has on audiences in Lebanon and across the MENA region?
There are two main reasons behind our decision to create resources in Arabic. The first is the simple fact that there is a lack of accessible vegan content in the Arabic language. Most of the recipes, articles, and educational materials available online are produced in English or other European languages, which makes them inaccessible to a large part of the Arab-speaking population. By creating resources in Arabic, we aim to bridge this gap and make veganism more approachable and practical for people in our region.
The second reason is equally important: to challenge and dispel the widespread notion that veganism is merely a Western import. This misconception erases our own rich culinary traditions, which are already filled with vegan dishes and plant-based variations of meat-based recipes. For centuries, communities across the Arab world have practiced forms of vegan eating, whether for religious, cultural, or economic reasons. By presenting veganism in Arabic and grounding it in our history, we are reclaiming it as part of our heritage rather than an external trend.
Beyond cooking, your episodes also weave in ethics, culture, and sustainability. How do you see food as a tool for wider social change?
The dining table has always been a place where people come together. It is where we share stories, ideas, and the most basic act of humanity: breaking bread. Food is one of the rare common grounds that unites us across cultures, generations, and ideologies. This is why food can and must be used as a tool for social change. By offering people alternatives to the destructive consumerist system we live in, we create space for meaningful conversations and plant the seeds of transformation.
The consumerist model presents us with an illusion of abundance, but it is an illusion that is quickly unraveling. In the 1970s, the global population stood at 4.2 billion. In just 47 years, it has nearly doubled to 8.2 billion. To feed this expanding population, humanity now slaughters over 80 billion animals every single year. These sentient beings are subjected to industrialized cruelty on a massive scale. Raised in factories, treated as commodities, and denied even the most basic dignities of life. Paul McCartney once famously said, “If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be vegetarian.” The truth behind that statement is visible in every hidden corner of industrial farming.
But this isn’t just about animal suffering. It’s about the survival of our species as well. Current agricultural systems are devouring the planet’s resources. An estimated 70% of the world’s annual freshwater consumption goes into meat production, while meat and dairy farming consume 77% of all agricultural land. And yet, despite these staggering inputs, hunger remains widespread. In less than a decade, the global population is projected to reach 9.2 billion. How will we feed everyone when so much of our land, water, and energy are locked into an unsustainable system? How are we going to face the consequences of climate change, knowing all that?
The waste alone paints a devastating picture: every year, 52.4 million tons of edible, bone-free meat are thrown away. That translates to 18 billion animals slaughtered only to end up in the garbage. Nearly a quarter of all annual meat production is lost to inefficiency and carelessness. Meanwhile, millions of people, particularly in regions like Africa, are facing famine and food insecurity. The cruelty extends beyond the animals; it reflects how cruel we are to each other as human beings.
Food is more than nourishment; it is a moral, ecological, and social choice. If we can transform what we put on the table, we can begin to transform the world around it.
Alternative Kitchen launch party, October 2025. Photo Courtesy of adan.sm
This residency is just the beginning. What’s your long-term vision for Alternative Kitchen and the communities you hope to reach?
We hope this initiative will continue to grow, reaching a wider audience and sparking greater awareness. In the short term, our aim is simple: to shift perceptions so that vegans are no longer ridiculed, dismissed, or treated with cynicism. The verbal harassment and mockery we often face is not only hurtful, it is unacceptable, especially in a country and a region whose culinary roots are deeply tied to vegan traditions. Recognizing this truth is the first step toward understanding, and understanding is the foundation of respect.
In the longer run, we aspire to something deeper. We hope that people will begin to see the many benefits of a vegan diet, not only for their health and well-being, but more importantly, for the compassion it cultivates. Imagine if choosing to treat animals with kindness led to a broader culture of empathy. If people can extend compassion to sentient beings who cannot speak for themselves, perhaps they can begin to extend that same compassion to their fellow human beings.
This is not a utopian dream but a pathway forward. A society that embraces compassion at the table is one that can grow stronger as a community, as a nation, and as a region. It begins with food, but it does not end there.
Stephani Moukhaiber
Stephani Moukhaiber is the founder and CEO of Al Rawiya, a media company amplifying voices from the Levant and its diaspora. She also leads Al Rawiya Studio, the creative and strategic arm of the company, providing branding, content, and media services to clients. In addition, she serves as the Director of Programs and Operations at the 2048 Foundation, overseeing program strategy, communications, grants management, and operational excellence. Originally, Stephani worked as an organizational development consultant specializing in workplace strategy, including roles at global tech and consulting firms.
- Stephani Moukhaiber
- Stephani Moukhaiber
- Stephani Moukhaiber
- Stephani Moukhaiber
- Stephani Moukhaiber
- Stephani Moukhaiber
- Stephani Moukhaiber
- Stephani Moukhaiber
- Stephani Moukhaiber
