Ghofran Hamza, a Syrian refugee who arrived in Aberystwyth, Wales, in 2018, was among 15 immigrant chefs to feature in our January 2022 celebration of global restaurants bringing flavour to Britain’s towns and cities. “I had people calling and messaging from all over England and Wales wanting a table,” says Hamza, 24, of the reaction to appearing on Saturday’s cover with her favourite dish, vine leaves, from the menu at Arabic Flavour. When we spoke she, like all the chefs featured, was facing down the double threat to hospitality left over from Brexit and the pandemic. In the 18 months since, she has brought her Greek partner, George, into the business and embarked on a lengthy refurbishment to the high street premises, expanding their menu to incorporate the food of his heritage alongside hers, with both cooking for guests.
Hamza – who had relied on food parcels when she fled Syria as a teenager for Lebanon before being offered a home in Britain – has doubled her table covers from 18 to 36 and upgraded her kitchen, leading to a packed reopening in May. She has continued studying for a degree in international politics and Spanish while running the restaurant, moving her studies online to afford her business expansion.
“There were times when I could have given up,” she says. “I have put so much into this. It has not been easy, but I am very, very proud of myself and everyone who stood by my side.”
Last year Hamza told me how she began cooking with her mother and brother to raise money for other refugee families in the town. A restaurant was never part of the plan, but after spotting a local premises with the promise of low rent, she saw an opportunity to create a future, despite people warning it would be too much for a young woman so soon after she had arrived in the country.
Her new menu and decor – midnight blue and sandstone, inspired by the Middle East and the Mediterranean – has created a buzz around town: “As we took the covers off the windows after the refurbishment, I loved seeing people taking a look inside. There was so much interest after I appeared in the magazine and there’s been a real buzz, once again, as we prepared to relaunch. To see the restaurant full, with people enjoying the atmosphere and our food, has been a wonderful feeling. I have put everything into my business. It’s been a big hit.”
