The place is small, unwelcoming, and the staff doesn't smile, but they do have nice ice cream. Fruit or Kashta, the ice cream is rich, flavorful, feels natural and isn't too sweet.
Up in Achkout, Keserwan, a few meters from the Achkout main roundabout is an ice cream shop. A small shop called Awad and known all around the country for having a premium quality ice cream which has to be considered in Lebanon's Top10 list of the best ice cream parlors. I've been here five times already but always found it closed, until today...
It was 11:30, we arrived on a Saturday morning when the shop was still opening. Not too clean and not welcoming, the first impression was not the finest. Anyway, we were here for the ice cream. The Ice Cream is very good.
A large biscuit, the Lebanese style, one that's rectangular, is for LBP3,000 or LBP3,500 depending on the flavor. The cone is loaded to top with a selection of your choice. I ordered one mix of fruits and another of Kashta, simply Kashta and crushed pistachio.
You'll enjoy the choices, clementine, prickly pears, avocado, bananas, melon, mulberry, Nescafé, figs and many others. Tasty ice cream with an inviting, natural and fresh color.
Indeed, the fruits are tasty. Intense flavors, little sugar, a firm texture and some light aromas that add fun to the experience. Kashta is the big hit, the signature, the must try.
Kashta ice cream, or clotted cream ice cream, is not gooey, not too fatty and not too milky. White in color, the kashta has a light elasticity and the crunch of those crushed pistachios. You can't but say, "Yum". Subtle flavors of milk well balanced in an ice cream that doesn't melt easily. I ordered one big biscuit to test, which I finished completely.
Best for last was when I went back home with a Kashta roll. The Kashta roll looks like a Christmas log cake, but in fact is made of a thick sheet of ice cream rolled around itself with sprinkles of pistachio to separate the layers. It looks like a Buche de Noel and tastes great. That's a tasty discovery I'll surely recommend.
Part of my new Top10 list of best ice creams you can have around Lebanon, Awad is a must try - if they happen to be open.
