Jabal Al-Weibdeh, Amman's best Kept Secret

Amman’s Jabal Al-Weibdeh neighborhood is beyond doubt one of the most lively and bustling night spots in the Jordanian capital. In fact, I would say it has left other more boisterous regional capitals in its dust and undeserving of their reputations as far I’m concerned. Mask on and sanitizer in hand, I walked nightly through its quaint village-size streets. Uphill and down again, all streets lead to Paris Square, the center of this neighborhood. The cool Amman air invites revelers to come out, large family groups, groups of friends, young and old, fill the streets, the point is you rarely see anyone walking alone. Al-Weibdeh’s broken and disjointed sidewalks means taking it slow is advisable and keeping an eye on where your next step is going is equally so. But this only means you spend more time navigating your way around, enough time to check out all around you and there is a lot going on to see and take in.

I’ve been to night spots in cities all over the world and it’s difficult to compare if not impossible let alone foolish. Every city has its own unique flavor. They call Al-Weibdeh a hipster area, I don’t know what that means nor do I care. If it means it’s a place that emerged organically without previous planning and design, if it means it’s cool cafes and eateries are locally owned businesses intermingled with even older more quaint stores that have existed forever, and if it means that it has a worn and disheveled look rather than an overly polished and pristine one, then yes, certainly that fits. But that’s the charm of the neighborhood, one of the oldest in Amman. 

Almost every street branching from Paris Square is lined with restaurants of every kind imaginable offering a selection of international cuisines to chose from. Street side cafés of every description can be found as well and the familiar sweet aroma of Shisha smoke wafting along the breeze inviting people to come in. I have personally given up Shisha since Covid began, but I have to say, walking through Al-Weibdeh I was tempted to order one, but I resisted.

 

Annunciation of Mary Church, Al Weibdeh

In the early morning, Al-Weibdeh is a very different story, quiet and peaceful and not a car on the road and apart for the odd jogger you have the pavement and the street to yourself. Much of Al-Weibdeh is two or three story residential buildings, there’s a school and college and well as a hospital and medical center and at least one embassy. Away from Paris Square and the streets that branch off from it, it’s just a typical quiet middle class neighborhood. The bustle of activity at the center hasn’t spoilt the neighborhood, with the exception of weekend and holiday road traffic which at peak hours can grate on the nerves, but its not too bad. Jordanian drivers are far more patient and law abiding than their Lebanese counterparts!

 

There are so many cafes and eateries to choose from you are literally spoilt for choice, Rumi or Red, Kepi or Zokak or Old Town Cafe, Chocoholic or Dimitri’s Coffee and for a snack Madz Dog or Crazy Potato or a local falafel joint or maybe pizza or pasta at Oliva. If you’re looking for some culture, you can visit Jordan Heritage Restaurant which serves a delicious local beverage that I love, tea with sage. They also have a small museum you could check out.

 

But more interesting of all for a cat lover like myself, Amman’s cool and self-assured cats fill this neighborhood. They are everywhere. You pass them by and they rarely flinch, they just sit on a low wall and purr away or look at you with squinting eyes barely acknowledging your existence, which I think is just marvelous. Any town that loves cats it tops in my book. Thank you Amman for a beautiful experience.