Kendal’s People’s Café has celebrated the start of Spring with a seven course Syrian lunch prepared by a refugee.
Walaa Mohammed Saeed Sonbol – who has made a new life in the town after she moved away from war-torn Syria 12 years ago – cooked for 30 people and introduced them to traditional Syrian cuisine.
The popular café aims to tackle food insecurity and bring the community together and asks people to only pay what they can afford for their food.
It is a waste to wellbeing volunteer-led, social project at the heart of Kendal’s Food Community and is organised by charity South Lakes Action on Climate Change.
Stacy Hurley, from the Waste into Wellbeing project, said that Walaa was taught to cook by her mum, grandma and grandad.
She said: “It developed her love of cooking and sharing food with others. Walaa’s dream is to open a restaurant for locals, to improve her English and meet others. Cooking for our Spring celebration lunch gave her an opportunity to see just how much others enjoyed her food.
“The event had a lovely buzz, with lots of fabulous feedback and excited talk about the food.”
Dishes served by Walaa included Ganoush, Chicken Mandi and Pudding Rice Dessert.
One diner posted on Facebook and said: “Thank you so much Walaa, we loved your wonderful creations. The salads were fantastic, we loved the colours, flavours and herbs. It was such a pleasure to be able to feel so welcome and try such a wide range of dishes.”
The Waste into Wellbeing project also aims to get people together to celebrate Kendal’s strong and diverse community and recognise the importance food plays in this.
Stacy said: “It’s all about bringing people together around good food, reducing food waste and getting us cooking more. And that’s why we’re launching a series of FREE community and family cook-alongs.
“In partnership with Action for Children, the family sessions are a chance to cook alongside your children, learn new recipes together and share your creations during our sit down lunch.
“The first event is on Tuesday 11 April between 10am to 12.30pm at Kendal Parish Hall. The first community cook-along for adults will focus on low carbon eating, making super tasty plant based burgers, on 18 April at 10am to 12.30pm at Kendal Parish Hall.”
