Popular CT bistro helps promote its town 'across the country'

Noujaim’s Bistro in Winsted is already on Connecticut’s map for having the best Mediterranean cuisine in the state and its owner, George Noujaim, is known as an “angel” for feeding the needy during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now Noujaim has put Winsted/Winchester on the spotlight with a 5,000-square-foot food production facility for expanding sales of his cuisine to supermarkets and other restaurants.

“Through George’s offerings, he will help promote our little town across the country, and get our name out there through his product,” said Winchester Mayor Todd Arcelaschi. “George is an asset to Winchester.”

Winsted is a city in the town of Winchester.

Noujaim, a self taught chef who watched his mother in the kitchen and seeks to “emulate” her Lebanese cooking, went into the catering business in 1988 in Massachusetts.

In 2006 he opened a deli/catering business in Torrington, but his food was so popular that he outgrew the space.

In 2016 he moved to 436 Main St. in Winsted, opening his bistro and selling his food for takeout and catering, as well as to supermarkets and restaurants.

Lindsay Bukowinski / Hartford Courant

Homemade hummus and falafel from the new location Noujaim's Mediterranean Foods.

George Noujaim at his restaurant Noujaim’s Bistro in Winsted on Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023. (Aaron Flaum/Hartford Courant)

George Noujaim holds two bottles from his winery St. Michael Winery in Lebanon of wine from at his restaurant Noujaim’s Bistro in Winsted on Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023. (Aaron Flaum/Hartford Courant)

Chicken Salad and Quinoa Salad that is made at Noujaim’s Mediterranean Bistro in Winsted on Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023. (Aaron Flaum/Hartford Courant)

George Noujaim shows the equipment he uses to make hummus at Noujaim’s Mediterranean Bistro in Winsted on Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023. (Aaron Flaum/Hartford Courant)

George Noujaim in front of Noujaim’s Mediterranean Bistro in Winsted on Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023. (Aaron Flaum/Hartford Courant)

That space too became cramped because he was doing it all out of the same kitchen.

During the pandemic he had the chance to lease the building next to him at 430 Main St., once a department store and more recently an antique store. He has since bought the building.

He refurbished the 5,000-square-foot building and made it a “factory” for his wholesale division so the business could expand it’s Mediterranean food production.

He opened the food production facility in October of 2022.

He sells products to outlets in New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts and hopes to expand that reach to all 50 states.

“The factory opened the opportunity for me to expand,” he said. “To share the love of my food with a wider audience.”

Food is his “passion,” Noujaim said.

“I always wanted to emulate my mother’s cooking,” Noujaim said. “When I cook I wanted to have the same flavor as my mother. The smell, the flavor, the taste, the elegance of her cooking.”

Noujaim, who grew up in Lebanon and moved to the United States in 1983, said, “I only use the best ingredients. There are no shortcuts.”

Noujaim said he uses the finest and freshest ingredients, “The reason I do it is because I love it.”

“I get satisfaction when people are excited about the food,” he said. “That’s what drives me. I love seeing people happy. I’m not here just to make money.”

His bistro has been No. 1 on numerous favorite restaurant lists and reservations are suggested because they fill up fast on the three days they are open for dinner: Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

The bistro seats 65 inside and 35 outside.

He counts consumer advocate and former presidential candidate Ralph Nader among his customers and friends, having helped Nader with a Lebanese cookbook.

Not only does Noujaim put love in his cooking, he does all the cooking himself with the help of a “great crew,” he said.

Noujaim also spreads love in the community, said Deirdre Houlihan DiCara, executive director of FISH/Friends in Service to Humanity of Northwestern Connecticut, Inc.

In the darkest days of the pandemic when food shortages were severe, Noujaim was among those who regularly stepped in to make meals for shelter residents and others in need.

She calls him one of her “angels” or “heroes.”

“He has a heart of gold. Very generous, very kind,” she said. “George was always front and center.”

DiCara said Noujaim has become quite the “entrepreneur” with his expansion and Arcelaschi. agrees.

The mayor said Main Street has had many issues through the years of having unoccupied store fronts uninterested landlords and buildings in disrepair.

“George took a chance on our downtown when he first opened his restaurant and since then George has taken great pride in Winchester and it clearly shows through his actions and work he has done on his property and his willingness to expand in Winchester,” Arcelaschi said.

“George is a driving factor on why these last few years many more businesses are willing to give Winsted another look and open a business on Main Street. Businesses see that Noujaim’s is successful and expanding so they take a shot on Winchester.”

Although the bistro is open three days a week, Noujaim works seven days to keep his personal touch in the production facility.

His hummus is known as “the best hummus ever,” he said.

Noujaim said he invested in a custom built machine that makes big batches the same as small batches to maintain texture, consistency and flavor.

The types of hummus he produces include: roasted red pepper, cumin and zaatar sauce, beet, original, roasted garlic and turmeric.

The day after the pandemic was announced, Noujaim created an affordable family-style meal menu.

“It was wildly popular,” he said.

Noujaim said he considers himself “very lucky to be able to provide food,” for the homeless and others in need during the pandemic. He said he also received much support from others to be able to do that, some folks offering to contribute their stimulus money.