Hamra Street - Economy

Economy

It hosts a large number of western chains (including Radio Shack, Gloria Jean's, Caribou Coffee, Costa Coffee and Starbucks), as well as many local shops and restaurants. The appropriately named Cafe Hamra is restaurant celebrating the historic street with an old street graffiti decor and a variety of international and Lebanese food as well as hooka smoking. Cafe Younes is another popular cafe that was first opened in 1935 and is run by a small family and is run by Amin Younes, the grandson of the founder of the same name. It is also known for its tourist appeal and variety of hotels. Its main landmark is the Crowne Plaza. The street buzzes with life during the summer when many tourists, especially from the Persian Gulf area, flock to Lebanon.

Before the Lebanese civil war, Hamra Street was known as Beirut's "Champs Elysées" as it was frequented by tourists all year round. Beirut's Piccadilly Theatre was one of the major theaters in the Middle East. Hamra Street is a first-rate commercial district which proudly displays the latest fads in fashion. It also hosts a good number of hotels, furnished apartments and coffee shops that cater to visitors and students from the nearby American University of Beirut, Lebanese American University and Haigazian University.

Hamra no longer functions as the cosmopolitan bastion of sectarian Lebanon. The Lebanese civil war and the ensuing government regulation that enforced rent control on all of the buildings removed the neighborhood's elite, pre-war cachet. However, the neighborhood remains trendy and profitable because of:

1. the historical significance of the neighborhood;
2. the attraction of "authentic" Beirut to foreign tourists, particularly those from the Persian Gulf;
3. the historic Hamra red light / supernightclub district, and the present acceptability of opening pubs, bars, and public cafes that serve alcohol in the district;
4. the current locations of the Lebanese Central Bank (Banque Du Liban), many private banks, multiple major newspapers (As-Safir, the wartime and pre-war headquarters of An-Nahar, and the near neighbors Al-Akhbar and Al-Mustaqbal), and many Lebanese government ministries (including the Ministries of Interior, Information, Tourism, and Economy and Trade), which have existed in Hamra since before the civil war;
5. the close proximity and economic focal points of four of Lebanon's most significant universities: the American University of Beirut, the Lebanese American University, and Haigazian University..
6. the booming commercial scene in Hamra St. that is a combination of retail shops, cafes, and restaurants.

Although it has yet to revive fully its pre-war legacy, Hamra Street has undergone many renovations and is still regarded by many as the heart of the city.