Daniel B.
Yelp
You can count the time from when I first heard about Lebon Sweets, to the time I showed up there for Kanafa, in minutes.
Thankfully my wife had left some lights on in her car overnight, and I needed the assistance of AAA. It turns out that the fellow who helped replace my batter was from Lebanon, and naturally we started talking about food. As good as Yelp may be, I had to ask him where he thought the best Kanafa in the region could be found.
Lebon Sweets got his full throated approval. It wasn't even close.
We shared similar thoughts that some famous regional bakeries which specialize in baklava, make lackluster Kanafa. The same holds true in reverse. Those shops that make great Kanafa may not be where you want to go for baklava.
So I came here on a mission. Technically, I was told to visit the location in Dearborn Heights, but this one was closer to my other outing that day, so I found myself in this strip mall bakery that did not look like much.
It was also clear that the thing to get here, was the cheese dome, aka the Kanafa Sandwich, aka Kanafa in Kaak, aka carbs stuffed with fat and doused in sugar. Like everyone else here says, it was super delicious.
So why only the four stars?
Well, I am quite sensitive to smells, especially smells of strong industrial cleaning agents. I keenly understand the importance of a bakery to be clean. All that sugar can attract critters, and nobody wants any critters with their sweets. That said, sadly the smell of the cleaning agent was so intense, even when I went back to the car to eat my treasure, the sesame roll was redolent of cleaner.
Obviously that detracted from the experience.
That said, I am absolutely going to try the Dearborn Heights location in the hopes that they use a different cleaner... or at least use it at a more dilute strength, so that I may fully enjoy this decadent treat.
Also, I have to admit to a modest preference for Kanafa where the syrup is scented with rosewater. This version had a more straight up sugar syrup. Perhaps that is more true-to-form of Lebanese Kanafa. I have no idea. I am still learning about the regional differences of this delightful dessert.
It's hard work, but I think I am up for the challenge!