Buns and Guns!

[justaguy]

HammAR it not what your thinking.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080703/lf ... omyweapons
BEIRUT (AFP) - Behind a barricade of sandbags, Ali devours a "Magnum 357" as his friend Hussein tucks into a giant "B52".

Welcome to "Buns and Guns" restaurant in the heartland of south Beirut controlled by Lebanon's Shiite militant movement Hezbollah.

Lebanon's political crisis, Hezbollah's war with Israel in 2006 and worsening tensions have become a source of inspiration for restaurants in a country marked by violence.

"A sandwich can kill you," reads a slogan on the wall of Buns and Guns, where the decor evokes a barracks decorated with a veritable cache of weaponry -- in plastic -- and photos of Israel's main battle tank, the Markava.

Even the ceiling and shutters have the look of military trellis-work.

An "offensive" menu, which includes "chicken camouflage", "Dragunov (sniper rifle) steak" and roast "M16", is offered to clients who need little explanation of the military terms.

"The servings are huge and that could kill you, good though they are," says Youssef Ibrahim, the 27-year-old owner of the restaurant.

"I wanted to offer a new concept of a restaurant, and the tense situation in Lebanon was partly what inspired me."

The only reference to Hezbollah, which claimed victory in a devastating 34-day war against Israel two summers ago, is an "RPG" (rocket-propelled-grenade) chicken, offered in "Resistant Bread".

"It is resistant -- against hunger, as there is so much of it," commented one customer.

Dressed in military fatigues and wearing a helmet, chef Amer cuts and fries pieces of chicken, as drops of sweat pour from his brow.

"It's really hot near the oven -- worse than being in a trench," he says.

"Watch out, that's going to explode," he comments, handing a customer a "Cannon 155" -- a hamburger with a "calibre" of 155 grams of meat.

Hussein, aged 15 and who was born after Lebanon's 1975-1990 civil war, says he is crazy about the food in Buns and Guns, even though in fact it scarcely differs from that served up in any other Lebanese fast-food outlet.

"My friends and I love weapons -- though not to kill each other," he says, speaking through a mouthful of "grenade" potato-chips.

"Lots of youngsters come here, but our message is not to teach them violence but rather to familiarise them with these weapons so they know the dangers," comments Youssef.

Aware that some potential clients would hesitate to enter the Shiite suburb, especially after clashes in May in which 65 people were killed, Youssef says he wants to open "another branch in Beirut and one in a Gulf country."

The short-term solution is a delivery service which, the menu boasts, "is faster than a bullet."

The concept of such restaurants is not unique in Beirut.

The capital's ultra-sophisticated Talleyrand restaurant has sprinkled its menu with terms drawn from the Lebanese political scene.

Frequented by the political class, the restaurant offers the Western-backed ruling coalition a "green lentil majority salad" grappling with a pro-Syrian and -Iranian "opposition of warm tart Tatin and vanilla ice cream."

Hezbollah -- both a political movement and armed force -- shows up with its "chicken commando," in alliance with Christian leader General Michel Aoun, to form an "entente of green pepper sauce and fricassee of mushrooms."

As for neighbouring Syria, which dominated Lebanon for nearly three decades, it is still accused by the majority of exercising "crab supervision in salad" or at least "orange interference and tarragon on salmon on a board."

The restaurant has nearly 50 such specialities, designed "to make the menu more amusing," says restaurant co-owner Beshara Hadji-Thomas.

[chunkstyle]

Here I was hoping for a different kind of "Buns and Guns"...

[chunkstyle]

Or this one: (NSFW)

<REMOVED LINK> - Sigh, OK....

Plan "B" is belt-fed!

[BRIT_in_the_weeds]

Finger off the bang swithch please darlin'

[nyffman]

Or this one: (NSFW)

<REMOVED LINK> - Sigh, OK....

Plan "B" is belt-fed!

Ha! I saw it before it was removed. Does that mean I have to unsee it now too?

[ttousi]

Or this one: (NSFW)

<REMOVED LINK> - Sigh, OK....

Plan "B" is belt-fed!

Ha! I saw it before it was removed. Does that mean I have to unsee it now too?

no ...........it means your link gets removed

[nyffman]

no ...........it means your link gets removed

I suppose you're going to send Jesse Jackson to do the job.