Hot food traders from London’s iconic Borough Market will be donating funds from sales of special set menus to support the people of Beirut following the recent tragic explosion in the Lebanese capital. Iraqi street food vendor Juma and Middle Eastern meze and Lebanese street food trader Arabica are the two traders leading the initiative, both of whom have personal connections to Lebanon.

Juma is creating a £35 Lebanese-Iraqi vegan set menu, which will be available Fridays and Saturdays from 28th August to the end of September. Diners will be able to add extras of meat, fish and their famous meat dumplings. 50% of the profits will go to Impact Lebanon and Cafi, an Iraqi charity. The stall will be located in the pavilion in Jubilee Place where Lebanese artists will exhibit their work.

Juma Head Chef and Founder, British-Iraqi Phil Juma said: “Baghdad and Beirut are both dealing with so much right now and I thought it would be a nice way to raise funds while creating awareness as to what is happening out there.”

Arabica will be introducing a new initiative called ‘Pass It On’. Inspired by the government’s Eat Out to Help Out scheme, every day of the week you can eat at Arabica to support disaster relief in Beirut.

A new set menu priced at £35 is available all day, Thursday-Sunday, from 20th-31st August, including a complimentary glass of Lebanese wine and dessert. £10 of each order goes to select Lebanese charities. In addition, the restaurants will be donating £2 to charity from every bottle of Lebanese wine sold between now and the end of September.

80% of funds raised from Arabica’s set menu will go to Impact Lebanon, 10% to help rebuild their friends’ café Kalei Coffee, and 10% to help rebuild Baffa House, a boutique guesthouse located in a historic building in Beirut, both badly affected by the explosion.

Darren Henaghan, Managing Director at Borough Market commented: “Our traders have always found ways to support people in need during times of crisis. For Juma and Arabica the crisis in Beirut is a personal one and so we are proud to be able to help them in finding ways to offer their support to the people in Lebanon.”

The majority of Borough Market traders have now returned to the Market, which remains open for business from Monday to Saturday with social distancing measures in place. The produce Market now extends into the ‘Green Market’ area and many of the Borough Market Kitchen traders have returned with hot food – some also offering al fresco dining experiences in the evening.

Visitors will find a changing line up of food on offer and can find a list of traders online at boroughmarket.org.uk