Since 1990, the Lebanese Festival has aimed to educate festival-goers about traditional elements of the Lebanese culture. Held at the St. Alias Cathedral and Banquet Centre, the festival has drawn an estimated 30,000 Lebanese-culture enthusiasts in recent years. Manned entirely by volunteers, the event has generated thousands of dollars for local Ottawa charities, including the Foundation to Fight Obesity in Children and the Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation.
The Lebanese Festival offers plenty of family-friendly entertainment. The Family Midway has carnival rides and games, and the Marketplace is set up with tents displaying traditional art and crafts. Nightly, performers present Middle Eastern music for your listening and dancing pleasure. In recent years, more than 25 performers have entertained festival guests. If Lebanese dancing isn't familiar to you, the Jabalna Zaffe Dance Group gives lessons during the festival.
The Festival offers many opportunities to partake of Lebanese food and drink. The Tannis Food Tent sells hummus, falafel, tabbouleh, chicken schwarma -- a pita filled with meat, sauce and vegetables -- and other Middle-Eastern specialties. At the Market Place, you can pick up candies and saj bread, a flat bread baked on a convex griddle. For adults, the festival offers a place to smoke arguily, or hookah, as well as a beer garden.
The Lebanese Festival is held each year for five days in mid-July. Hours are usually from afternoon till late at night on Wednesday through Friday and all day from morning till night on Saturday and Sunday. Entry fees are nominal and vary on different days of the week. On Saturday and Sunday, entrance is free until late afternoon. Parking is available close to the festival, with a free shuttle to the church.
