Situated in Kingsley Court, Carnaby Street, the restaurant is in the heart of vibrant London, where counter-culture has been the rage for decades. His unvarnished descriptions of the immigrant experience ('We were cold, exhausted, afraid of what came next')--are movingly rendered and segue smoothly into recipes where generosity is the watchword .

The first book, Shelf Love appeared last year and encouraged readers to use up ingredients lurking in the back of their cupboards. How he didn’t want to carry a knife and appear dangerous so he broke the vegetables up with his hands, and how a local Calais resident had been annoyed with them fishing close by, until one day Imad offered him some of the dish he had made with the fish, and from then on, he allowed Imad and his friends to charge their phones at his house. Lewisham is the London Borough of Culture 2022 and has a proud history of supporting refugees and migrants. In running towards the bomb – he was attempting to find the taxi where he expected to find his slaughtered family – he raised the suspicion of the security forces who arrested him on suspicion of being the bomber. There are a lot of very nice photographs of the completed recipes, and also some of the preparations and intermediary stages, where extra help might be needed.I remembered some of Imad’s words from another article saying “In Syria we don’t ask ‘what do you want to eat? Process to a thick soup in a blender, adding more water if needed, then add the remaining safflower. Instructions are clear and thoughtful throughout, but it's the author's personal experiences that make this heartfelt cookbook shine.

Also really great to read the personal stories from Imad himself - gives the book more charm and personality and shows us how inspiring Imad really is. Where once he served food to diners in his three restaurants plus juice bars and cafes in Damascus, he now does so in London.The Migration Museum explores how the movement of people to and from Britain across the ages has made us who we are – as individuals and as a nation. Imad’s Syrian Kitchen is a bustling, riotous tour through 90 traditional and adapted Syrian dishes that can be made in the comfort of your own home. Before the war in Syria, Imad had multiple restaurants in Damascus, but when these were destroyed, he had to leave his home and travel as a refugee to London. Imad now runs an acclaimed restaurant in London, which was named GQ's 'Best Breakthrough Restaurant 2022'.

We sit down with acclaimed chef Daniel Humm, of Eleven Madison Park in New York, to hear more about his new food-and-art book, ‘Eat More Plants’, released with publishing icon Gerhard Steidl. Imad tells in his introduction that he always took his life for granted – as we all tend to do – until it was taken from him. VERDICT: Recipes that spotlight particular ingredients with vibrant tastes anchor this deeply personal refugee story and will remind readers of the power that food has to bring people together and help them heal.But that is his reality, the light and the dark sitting incredibly close, and one that thankfully most of us will never have to endure. Important: Your debit or credit card will NOT be charged when you start your free trial or if you cancel during the trial period. The 103 third parties who use cookies on this service do so for their purposes of displaying and measuring personalized ads, generating audience insights, and developing and improving products.

He burst onto the London restaurant scene four years ago with a series of charity events which became hugely popular.The only complaint I have, is that when water needs to be added (to lentils, bulgar wheat etc) we are directed to add enough to come so many centimetres above the dried food. To serve, ladle into bowls and top with cream or mozzarella and chives, and serve with toasted pitta bread. Imad will introduce us to the delicious flavours and techniques of the Syrian kitchen - showing you just how easy this wonderful cuisine can be. Imad's Syrian Kitchen is a bustling tour through 90 traditional and adapted Syrian dishes that can be made in the comfort of your own home. Like many refugees, he worked a variety of jobs before he began cooking pop-up dinners for UNICEF, catering, and ultimately opening a restaurant and reuniting with his family.