Taita’s House – Authentic Lebanese food in Thornbury

12 May Taita’s House – Authentic Lebanese food in Thornbury

This weekend I was so sure that suburbia is not for me. On Friday night, I wanted to get out and explore the local nightlife, and it all felt so far away. And while that may be true, once the distance has been traversed, Thornbury feels like quite a vibrant neighbourhood in places. This is especially true on a sunny Sunday, which is also Mother’s Day.

We went to Taita’s House for lunch today. Taita is Lebanese for Grandmother, and the concept is that it is Lebanese food the way Grandma would make it.

The restaurant is a comfortable, yet humble space on St George’s Road, with a lovely sunny courtyard under a pergola at the back of the restaurant. The menu is filled with lots of authentic Lebanese dishes. My companion thought the food was not that great, but I loved it. We shared a grilled chicken plate, which was served with rice, fatoush and garlic dip. I think it was the salad that had me swooning. It was so fresh and zesty, and the garlic dip was a rich, flavoursome accompaniment to the chicken skewers. I enjoyed every mouthful of the meal. We ate it with a side of stuffed grape leaves, and some hummus dip. We also had a pot of lemon and mint tea. Yummmmmm.

Other places in Thornbury

After lunch, we went for a walk along High Street and found that it was quite vibrant. Thornbury has quite a few interesting-looking food and beverage establishments. As well as some inviting shops, and a fantastic food market called Psarakos Market. This amazing collection of market shops is open six days a week. And it is possible to pick up pretty much everything you need for your weekly shop. They have an artisan bakery, alcohol shop, butcher, fish shop and a huge fruit and vegetable shop, as well as a grocery store for everything pantry, deli and grocery.

If you are ever in Thornbury I would recommend Moor’s Head, which has the most delicious Middle Eastern pizza, but I would steer clear of Greek Street Food. While Le Cafe Flo has some nice vibes surrounded by trees on High Street, in the true French tradition it can feel like you need to ask for some beans with the butter (or cream!)

House-sitting life

It is definitely fun to explore some other places in Melbourne, and now that I have got into the swing of getting to different places for work while house-sitting I am wondering if I might do it some more to explore different parts of Melbourne.

But yeah, Collingwood has spoilt me in terms of walkability. I am not sure about suburbia in comparison. Maybe if I stayed here for long enough the desire to get out and be social and adventurous would overcome the inertia I have felt about the vast distances.

On sunny mornings, getting out and walking the doggos is pretty lovely! I guess I just feel like everything that makes my life rich, meaningful and vibrant feels so far away in Thornbury. That would also probably be the case if I did more house-sitting in Melbourne this year. Interesting choices.