Jason Tarraf Shalala’s parents came to Australia from Lebanon decades ago and his dad was working as a stonemason but a serious accident to his leg ended his career.

Desperate to make “ends meet”, his dad opened up a bakery 17 years ago called Mt Lewis Pizzeria in the suburb of Bankstown.

“They were actually losing money for two years and if you are going bad for a year you think they would close it,” he said.

“Mum was working for a different restaurant just to keep things going for two years.”

The couple’s signature dish was manoush – a Lebanese style of pizza – and they found modest success but Mr Tarraf Shalala realised more could be done to build up the restaurant’s brand.

He quit his job two years ago and joined the business.

“I saw the branding was not on point, yet the food is amazing and I didn’t want it to die,” he explained.

“I took the hard decision to leave my job and take charge as I know the product is there it just has to be branded correctly to the modern day world.”

The 26-year-old turned to TikTok to showcase the food and vibrant culture and he is known as the The Manoush Man on the social media site.

A recent video got more than 200,000 views of him cooking and he said one viral video on the platform can have a “snowball” effect.

“Honestly TikTok is a massive opportunity. It has quick reach and all you need is for a viral video to blow up the business, you don’t need to have a lot of followers,” he said.

“It allows you to show the raw side of your business which lets customers see behind closed doors … and to get a sneak peek and feel like a friend. Instagram allows you to show the final product but TikTok allows you to show how we make it.”

He has also collaborated with well-known TikTokers, including Veronica B and Jake B Fisher.

Mr Tarraf Shalala said he understood moving into social media would make the business “sustainable” in the future, with young people increasingly turning to the internet to find out where to eat.

The strategy seems to be paying off as last April Mt Lewis Pizzeria took over the shop next door to add extra seating, while Mr Tarraf Shalala is also eyeing off expansion plans.

“In the past 12 or 13 years there was steady growth but we would have stayed making that amount of money. When we did this with social media it was a clear difference of about 250 per cent growth in one year and this year we are on track to double that,” he added.

“Recently I was in Melbourne trying to figure out where to open a store in the CBD. To have a store all around Australia would be really good.”

Meanwhile, his favourite dish is a Lebanese pizza with a sausage style product called sujuk that comes with cheese and tomato.

The Sydneysider is keen to continue sharing his culture.

“My parents created Mt Lewis Pizzeria for our community – those, like them, who migrated to Australia with barely any money to create a better life for themselves and their families – giving them a healthier, affordable food option, which also reconnected them to their home,” he said.