Devotees of Lebanese pastry aren't strangers to . This Western Sydney institution has developed a reputation for its world-class Lebanese sweets and cakes, and if you’ve visited before, you’ll understand why.
The business is run by a father-and-son team: Milad and Charbel Abla. Together, they lead a passionate team that produce over 200 incredible Lebanese delicacies, which are distributed worldwide via their Granville store and offsite manufacturing kitchen.
Owner Milad Abla migrated to Australia from South Lebanon when he was 18, after fleeing the . He completed a degree in civil engineering and worked as an engineer for the next decade before pursuing his love of flavours.
“My dad was always passionate about food and on the side, while studying at university, he worked in kitchens to make a bit of pocket money,” his son Charbel says. “Then once he’d saved enough, he decided to do something of his own and opened up a Lebanese sweet store.”
For more than 35 years, has established a reputation for its range of traditional Lebanese pastries, hand-decorated chocolates, cakes, biscuits, gelato, sugar-coated nuts, nougat and more. The freshly made sweets can be purchased by the gram and are popularly bought in pre-packaged 500g or 1kg boxes.
The father-and-son team behind Abla's Pastries: Milad and Charbel Abla. Source: Abla's Pastries
“Our recipes and the ingredients that we use have always been original,” Charbel says. “The Lebanese chef that originally worked with us to create the recipes has retired, but his son has continued on, so we carry on the traditions.”
Eight varieties of baklava – displayed in Abla’s Pastries gleaming glass counters – come in shapes such as pyramids, bird’s nests, fingers, diamonds, rounds and cigars. They are made from scratch using the shop's very own filo pastry, which is rolled out, loaded with pistachios, cashews, almonds, or walnuts, and then lathered with sugar syrup.
“Quality is something that we pride ourselves on,” Charbel says. “We’re successful because of our consistency and doing the small things right, day in, day out, time after time.”
Abla's Pastries offers eight types of baklava in different shapes. Source: Abla's Pastries
Milad and Charbel also credit much of the shops’ success to their loyal customers. “Without them, we wouldn't be special. Their consistent support, and them coming back and buying our product has made us who we are today.”
When Abla’s Pastries opened in the mid-1980s, the Lebanese community took notice. And people from other cultural backgrounds eventually did, too, travelling there to bulk-buy sweets – particularly during Easter, Ramadan, Christmas, Diwali and other festive periods.
The Lebanese chef that originally worked with us to create the recipes has retired, but his son has continued on, so we carry on the traditions.
“With time, the store evolved, and our reputation grew, and our clientele diversified to a whole range of other people and nationalities rather than just the Lebanese community,” Charbel says.
Abla’s Pastries is now an international name, and it does wholesale business to large supermarkets and retail stores across the globe. Early starts and late finishes paired with hard work and dedication keep the Granville store operating 365 days a year, from 8am to 12am.
“We love what we do not for the financial reward, but the reward of seeing the customer satisfaction and continuing on that legacy,” Charbel says.
Milad still owns and operates the business full-time with his family, with Charbel as the store manager.
A selection of biscuits from Abla's Pastries. Source: Abla's Pastries
“It’s very hard to come across a sort of relationship that me and my father have,” Charbel says. “We’re not just father and son. We’re best friends, we work together, and we are together in every aspect in life,”
Charbel hopes to continue his father’s legacy long into the future and share a bite of his culture with more of Australia’s diverse community – one baklava at a time.
48-52 Railway Parade, Granville, (02) 9637 8092
Daily 8 am – midnight
