DAHIYEH (Dispatches) – Ahmad Wehbe didn’t expect his restaurant, Fries Lab, to survive the Zionist regime’s war on Lebanon.
The restaurant in Haret Hreik, Dahiyeh – a neighborhood heavily targeted during the war –  was hit by an Israeli strike in late November.
“I woke up to a call from a friend in Qatar,” Wehbe, 28, told Al Jazeera. “He said my restaurant was on a map of targeted buildings published by the Israeli army. I rushed to check.”
When he arrived, all that was left of his tiny, open-kitchen burger joint was a pile of rubble.
“I was sad but not devastated,” he said. “As long as my family and loved ones were safe, I knew I had to move on. I couldn’t dwell on something I expected to happen.”
Haret Hreik’s main street still sports bright, colorful signs and exteriors of popular restaurants like Falafel Khalifeh and Al Agha.
As daylight fades, the restaurants’ vibrant neon lights take over, masking the scenes of destruction all around.
Not all of them survived – Wehbe is among many restaurant owners who lost businesses as the Zionist regime destroyed whole swaths of Dahiyeh, although he was a bit more fortunate.
As soon as a ceasefire deal was announced on November 27, people returned to their Dahiyeh homes, salvaged what they could, and those who could afford repairs reopened their businesses.
Wehbe’s restaurant was a complete loss, but his delivery-only kitchen remained intact, allowing him to keep the business running.
Food is a passion for Wehbe, who has been blogging about his love of food on Instagram for a few years, but he still works at a media analysis company.
“I didn’t study at culinary school, but I have a passion for food. I love street food and understand the analogies and combinations of flavors,” he said.
Fries Lab’s delivery branch is on a corner near the destroyed location, sitting, intact, next to a badly damaged building bearing the scars of Israeli strikes.
Seven delivery drivers wait outside, taking orders in rapid succession as staff work inside at full speed, preparing multiple orders of fries and burgers layered with colorful sauces.
Their signature chicken wraps overflow with mozzarella, fried chicken, and homemade condiments, all in generous portions.
Despite the kitchen rush, everyone had their role – grill station, fry station, assembly, quality control – the space’s quiet only disrupted by delivery drivers asking when their orders would be ready.
Outside, one batch of delivery drivers departs as another arrives.
“We’re busier now than before the war,” Wehbe said. “I opened a temporary kitchen in Hamra during the war, but the orders there didn’t compare to the orders to Dahiyeh.”