Cafés in Jabal al-Weibdeh

Rumi and the Kulliyat al-Sharia strip

Rumi Cafe stands on the corner of Kulliyat al-Sharia and Jarir streets, across from Patisserie Fayruz, with white tile, natural wood, floor-to-ceiling windows and a large patio.³ In 2019 it served illy espresso, cold brew and a long list of teas from early morning until late at night, and seats were hard to find on summer evenings.³ It has Wi-Fi, outdoor tables and a bakery counter.

Evenings are when the hill fills: people walk with friends and family, and the cafés take in the crowd leaving work.⁴ Kan, at the far end of the street, also has Wi-Fi and outdoor seating.

Darat al-Funun and the National Gallery

Darat al-Funun, the Khalid Shoman Foundation's arts center, grew out of a 1988 initiative for Arab artists and opened its main building in 1993.⁵ It now spreads over six renovated buildings and warehouses overlooking downtown, and its garden holds the remains of a sixth-century Byzantine church built over a Roman temple.⁵ The Blue House was restored in 1994 partly to give the garden a café.⁵

The Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts, founded in 1980, occupies two buildings in the district and holds more than 2,000 works by over 800 artists.⁶ Its café balcony looks over the sculpture park and has room for laptop work.⁴

Side streets: Al-Ba'ouniyah, Al-Rabad and Al-Farazdaq

Nest Specialty Coffee is at No. 6 Al-Ba'ouniyah Street, where Dimitri's also kept a café in 2019.³ Fan wa Chai (فن وشاي, 'art and tea') is on Al-Rabad Street, Korba at No. 14 Al-Farazdaq Street, Raw Smith at No. 7 Hussein al-Tarawneh Street, and مقهى عمون (Ammon Café) at No. 16 Muhib al-Din al-Khatib Street. Manara (منارة) opens Monday to Saturday, 09:00–23:00.

The streets are narrow because they are old, and the Friends of Luweibdeh association, founded in 2005, works to keep the hill's architecture intact.¹ The French Cultural Center and the Italian and Pakistani embassies are here too.¹

Getting to Weibdeh

By car, the hill is reached from Prince Muhammad Street and King Hussein Street.¹ On foot from Al-Balad, the Kalha stairs climb straight up into the neighborhood.⁷