Within the area of simply six days, Imad Alarnab misplaced his livelihood and residential in a sequence of bomb assaults in Damascus, Syria. It set in movement an escape for all times and liberty that ultimately introduced Imad, his spouse Betul, and their three daughters to the UK.
He says, “I at all times miss Syria, however not the Syria that exists now. Not even the Syria that existed once we lived there. It wasn’t the identical Syria I’d grown up in, with the very face of the cities altering.
“Earlier than the bombings, I had three eating places, 5 juice bars and 4 espresso outlets. However, you don’t have the luxurious of stopping to consider all of it. When the bomb went off in our daughter’s bed room, we ran for our lives. I wasn’t occupied with what I used to be dropping or abandoning, as a result of it was life or dying.”
After settling in London, Imad labored as a automotive washer and pop-up caterer, earlier than making a raffle throughout the pandemic and establishing his restaurant, Imad’s Syrian Kitchen.
“It was a hit from the beginning, however I consider that to be as a result of I like London a lot, and London loves me again.”
Imad serves a ‘London model’ of conventional Syrian meals, with trendy twists on long-held recipes, however as a result of a scarcity of workers, he needed to shut the restaurant on Sundays and Mondays.
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“Being away from the restaurant for 2 days per week was an excessive amount of for me, so one Monday a month, we held ‘Imad and Mates’ charity nights, donating any income.”
It was throughout an occasion for Select Love – a charity serving to refugees and displaced individuals – that Imad related with Dima Aktaa, a fellow Syrian refugee who misplaced her leg in a bombing at 18.
“Once I met Dima for the primary time I assumed she was superb. She had nice vitality and character. She was so constructive and it made me really feel not solely pleased with her and all that she’s carried out, however made me love life much more than I already did.”
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The pair grew to become agency mates, with Dima, now 28, connecting with Betul and Imad’s three daughters, Dana, 19, Iana, 16, and Mariam, 11.
“Each time Dima got here again to eat with us, she stated, ‘wow, that is nice, however my mom does it in a different way’. That will begin a dialog and many laughter, as I needed Dima to confess my meals was higher. I’m nonetheless ready to listen to these magic phrases!
“I used to be super-lucky because the starting of my life to be surrounded by superb girls. My mom first, who taught me to cook dinner and communicate English, then my spouse who has been the love of my life for over 20 years, and our three daughters who make me so proud day by day. And now Dima, who brings a lot gentle and positivity, has added to that.”
Although Dima and Imad share trauma from Syria, they don’t typically discuss concerning the incidents that set them on a path to fulfill in London. “We solely speak about how we will make issues higher. We don’t dwell on the previous, and solely take into consideration how our tales and communities can proceed to be constructed on hope, love, and constructive issues.”
Dima Aktaa, 28, misplaced her left leg in 2012 when a bomb exploded in her flat’s balcony in Idlib, west Syria.
She says, “It wasn’t straightforward, having my life flip upside-down like that. I used to be bodily energetic, making ready to go to uni and simply 18. However, after getting out of hospital and seeing my previous flat blown to items, I felt so grateful that my household and I all made it out alive. That bomb had value me my leg, however being unhappy or crying about it wasn’t going to make my leg develop again.
“When my mum, older brother, youthful sister and I arrived within the UK, we didn’t know something about the place we’d stay or how our lives would look, however we simply knew it will be safer than Syria.
“After studying English and persevering with my research, I met Imad via mutual contacts and we got here collectively to boost cash for Select Love.
“It’s unusual to suppose {that a} charity night time in a London restaurant introduced us collectively and now, we’re extra like household than mates. I communicate to Imad like my brother, and we simply perceive one another.
“Between my coaching and learning, it’s been exhausting to make mates, however coming along with Imad over meals has helped me regain that sense of neighborhood that I cherished a lot in Syria.”
Make Imad’s Syrian fish and chips.
This characteristic initially appeared in BBC Good Meals journal, February 2023.
