The Hummus Club, Perth: Interview

So you were asking about the most delicious falafels going around? Oh, yes I do know where you can find them - The Hummus Club!

Since it's in our hood and I love, love, love street food, we decided to walk to the Mt Hawthorn Markets. We went there for one reason only - to sample the goods that The Hummus Club have to offer.

The Hummus Club is only a few months old but already has a gaggle of followers eager to try their delicious Arabic street food that consists of crispy falafel, the BEST hummus and some tasty pomegranate lemonade, among other delicacies.

The brainchild of foodie couple Ziad and Kaitlin Zammar, The Hummus Club came about through an eye opening overseas trip when they realised how important food is in shaping a community and how much joy it can bring. Using inspiration from old family recipes (Ziad’s dad owned one of the first Lebanese joints in Perth), The Hummus Club aims to have Perthians rethink the way they eat and enjoy traditional Arabic food.

I spoke to Kaitlin about their motivation behind stepping into the street food market and what made them fall in love with Arabic food.

What inspired you to start The Hummus Club?

K: Ziad is from Lebanon and has always enjoyed the tastes from his home country. He always meddled around in the kitchen trying to recreate the hummus he remembers stealing from his Tayta’s (grandmother’s) fridge when he went to visit her in Syria. I have loved Lebanese food ever since my first food experience when I was invited to Ziad’s Dad’s house for a Lebanese food feast consisting of hummus, falafel, baba ganoush, kibbeh and kofta. Wow, I was hooked.

In Arabic countries, hummus is eaten as the entire meal at any time of the day including breakfast. Here in Australia, it is predominantly eaten as a dip. We wanted to change that thought process and help people see that this delicious form of chickpeas is actually a substantial meal and tasty enough, when served in its true authentic way, to be eaten by itself as a meal.

We also wanted to provide the Australian public with a modern and inviting atmosphere when it came to our stall. Thus we try to provide a contemporary twist on the classic dishes we serve and excellent customer service and store presentation is always at the forefront.

What are your plans for the business in 2015?

K: At this stage we are just trying to spread our wings as far as possible to have more people eating and experiencing our food. We are focusing on hawkers markets around Perth where Perth foodies can experience an amazing array of international cuisines. We are also attending other great food and wine and community events around the city.

Many of our customers ask us if we have a shop or plan to open up a brick and mortar outlet. All we can say is, you’ll have to watch this space!

So where will people be able to find you for their falafel/hummus fix?

K: Monday nights we’re at Inglewood on Beaufort Night Markets from 6 – 9:30pm and Saturday nights are Maylands Markets from 5 – 9pm. We’ll be at various events throughout the summer season, such as Guildford TwilightMarkets next Friday (30^th of January) and the last Friday in February (27^th of February).