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Who owns hummus?
Greece is to feta as Lebanon is to hummus.
Not so fast, says Uzi Ginati, an Israeli hummus gourmand, who has run a popular restaurant in Netanya for the past 21 years that only serves hummus.
The Association of Lebanese Industrialists is seeking protected status in Europe for the chickpea paste. Members were upset that some hummus sold in Europe is called “Israeli.”
Just as Greeks have the sole rights to the name feta cheese in the European market, Lebanese hope to own the name, hummus.
But the dip, eaten for breakfast, lunch or dinner, is a staple across the Middle East, including Israel, where nearly half the Jewish population traces its lineage to hummus-eating Arab countries.
“I would say it’s not necessarily Arab, but it’s Middle Eastern,” said Ginati, as he took a break from stirring a giant bowl of hummus with a large wooden spoon in his cramped restaurant that spills onto the sidewalk.
Ginati, whose parents came from Iraq, grew up eating hummus. He eats a bowl everyday, which he attributes to his youthful looks. He is 53, with few wrinkles.
His hummus recently won top prize out of 240 hummus places in central Israel. His recipe is a secret, he says, but he uses all fresh ingredients, including fresh lemon and garlic.
“I make hummus from my heart,” Ginati told me the other day. “I make one thing, but I make it well. If you come in 20 years, it will be the same.”
One bowl will set you back 26 shekels, or $7. Bread, for dipping, comes free on the side.
He said he counts Arabs as regular customers. “They’re supposed to be the best in hummus-making,” he said. “But, it’s not true.”
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