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George Noujaim in the wine room of Noujaim’s Mediterranean Bistro.

Goat cheese spinach pies, made in George Noujaim’s wholesale manufacturing facility adjacent to his Winsted bistro.

A vat of 600 pounds of chickpeas and other ingredients for hummus at Noujaim’s Mediterranean Bistro in Winsted.

George Noujaim shows his potted herbs outside his restaurant, Noujaim’s Mediterranean Bistro in Winsted.

George Noujaim poses beside his new catering van.

WINSTED — George Noujaim likes to treat people the way he would like to be treated, and said he carries that philosophy over into his restaurant, catering and wholesale food businesses.

Noujaim, owner of Noujaim’s Mediterranean Bistro, specializes in authentic Lebanese foods, many made with a variety of herbs grown onsite at 436 Main St.

“I just have a love for food,” he said. “I immigrated here (from Lebanon) in 1983. I’ve always wanted to work with food.” He worked in a bakery in Stockbridge, Mass., then at a prestigious restaurant in South Lee, Mass. He opened a deli in South Egremont, Mass., and a retail wine outlet.

“I loved the wine business, but somehow I was always connected to the food business. Because of my South Egremont store, people kept following me wherever I went, looking for my product,” he said.

He moved to Torrington in 2006 and opened a deli and takeout spot on lower Winsted Road. It eventually moved to Burrville, where he turned it into a sit-down restaurant. When he took over the chef duties “business went through the roof,” he said, and he needed a place with a bigger kitchen.

“We landed here (Winsted) in the spring of 2016,” he said. “It has been remarkable. I quit the wine business and decided to focus on this 100 percent.”

Noujaim is known for making his own hummus in his wholesale manufacturing building adjacent to the bistro. He pointed out a stainless-steel vat that he said holds 600 pounds of chickpeas and other ingredients for hummus. “The machine is going to grind it all up. It pumps it from here to the other (vat),” he said.

The wholesale manufacturing facility is new, only a couple of months old, he said. Eight employees create hummus, goat cheese spinach pies and other authentic Mediterranean products to service 15 Connecticut customers and 10 more in the Berkshires, all for their private labels.

Noujaim also has a reputation for helping the community, according to Deirdre Houlihan DiCara, executive director of Friends in Service to Humanity — FISH — a shelter and food pantry in Torrington.

“George is my hero,” DiCara said. “Throughout the pandemic, he has supplied meals when we had a shortage of meats and other items for feeding our folks within the shelter. And he also worked with a program with Denise Butwill (of Litchfield) on Feed Your Neighbor NWCT.” That organization’s Facebook page states its mission is “supporting local non-profit organizations dedicated to feeding families and individuals facing food insecurity during the pandemic.”

DiCara said, “George is just the best. People always love his food, and he’s a pandemic hero for me for sure.”

Noujaim said, “I don’t know how to say no, and I won’t say no.” He said he has also given his time, energy and products to the Northwest Connecticut Chamber of Commerce, the Warner Theatre, Chorus Angelicus and other nonprofits. When COVID-19 struck, Winsted’s leaders asked him to help feed families because the soup kitchen was forced to close.

“I agreed, and we fed about 60 people a week,” he said. Volunteers would pick up prepared meals and deliver them to churches and other locations, he said.

“I called Deirdre and said, ‘Don’t you worry about food supplies. If you need anything, I’ll help you, I’ll supply you.’ I tried to do meals for (FISH) every Wednesday and Thursday” during the pandemic, he said.

“A love to give has been the rock of my life, the success of my life,” he said.

The Wall Street Journal got wind of Noujaim’s outreach efforts and featured him in a podcast in June 2022. On that segment, Noujaim described a family meal he created, a low-cost meal that served four or five people.

Partly because of that effort, individuals began giving back to Noujaim.

“They started coming in, buying the meals from me, and throwing extra dollars at me,” he said. “I don’t like taking money from people, so what I did was take their names down and I called Deirdre and said, ‘This is in the name of this person,’ and ‘This is in the name of that person.’”

The more the community gave to Noujaim, the more he gave right back to the community. “People started calling me and saying, ‘Here is $150. Send food to this place,’ or ‘Send food to that place.’”

He said that during the height of the pandemic, a man called him and offered part of his stimulus check. “He said, ‘You deserve it more than I do.’ So I did five meals in his name.”

Noujaim’s menu features small plates, soups, salads, entrees, and a variety of wines, beers and non-alcoholic beverages. His falafel plate features crushed chickpeas, coriander and cumin served with tahini, vegetables and pita. He offers chicken or lamb kabob, as well as a kabob platter of chicken, lamb, steak, sauces and more.

“One of the things that made us successful here is the Lebanese Feast,” he said. “This is something we are trying to trademark.” Available for groups of 10 or more for $40 per person, it includes at least seven courses over a span of two to four hours, he said. At least 16 different foods make up the feast, including hummus, falafel, eggplant chimichurri, garlic shrimp, seafood with pasta, grilled meats and more.

But don’t show up with a gang and expect to order it on the spot. For the Lebanese Feast, 24 hours’ notice is required.

A new addition to his catering business is a van that he said is ready to hit the road this month. Pictured on the side of the van is a variety of his food items, accented with the tagline, “Catering to your taste for something delicious!”

Noujaim’s Mediterranean Bistro is open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 5-9 p.m. For reservations and more information, go to www.noujaimsbistro.com or call 860-379-0559.