Jon K wrote:Great idea and a terrific choice for the first stop on this culinary tour of immigrant run restaurants.
Richard S. wrote:I interviewed one of the people behind Proof on Main for a Business First story in 2006, before they opened (not a local, he was based in New York). He told me that back in the days of Grisanti's, they liked to hire Iranian students as waiters because help create an exotic atmosphere in the restaurant. After the fall of the Shah in the 1970s, many were either stuck here or elected to stay. Several parlayed that Grisanti's experience into restaurants of their own. Don't know how accurate that is, but it sounds plausible.
Iranians, in fact, occupy a surprisingly dominant position in Louisville’s restaurant business, and therein lies a story that goes all the way back to the 1980s, the Ayatollah and the hostage crisis.
Back in those days, Ghavami recalled, Louisville boasted a large and vibrant community of hundreds of Iranian college students, many of whom had come here to attend the University of Louisville and a few to Bellarmine. This Tehran-Louisville connection occurred for a surprisingly prosaic reason: Private firms in Iran’s capital handled college and visa paperwork for students who wanted to come to the U.S., and U of L, just going into a growth spurt, was particularly welcoming to foreign students. Majid and scores of his contemporaries descended on Louisville with delight, speaking little English but eager to discover the joys of bluegrass and Kentucky Fried Chicken.
A few years later, Iran’s revolution toppled the Shah. About half of the Iranian students rushed home to join in the battle, Majid said. He was learning about the philosophy of “a just war” in classes at Bellarmine, and Iran’s internal strife didn’t seem to pass the test. “My parents did not want me there, and I really, personally, did not believe in getting in a war.” He and many of his comrades stayed in Louisville and have been here ever since.
Most of them majored in engineering, medical science and business; Majid graduated in business and qualified as a CPA. But he, like a lot of his peers, ended up in the restaurant business instead. It happened simply, he explains: Away from home and family, they had to work for a living, and restaurant jobs are ideal for college students. The Iranians, tall dark and exotically foreign, were naturals at Italian restaurants, and many of them gravitated to Casa Grisanti, then one of the city’s top tables. Majid worked there and at Mamma Grisanti's and later at Vincenzo’s, rising from waiter to captain; took a break to work in accounting for a few years, then opened Saffron’s on East Market Street in 2001.
A few months later, 9/11 happened, and in the minds of some people, “Iran” became a dirty word.
“I looked at my large windows and worried that they would be shattered,” Majid recalled. “But instead, I got nice notes from people. They sent me flowers. Sure, you find pockets of ignorance anywhere you go, but Louisville? Louisville is unique when it comes to that. I have been here since the hostage crisis, and I have never experienced anything negative. Louisville doesn’t take it personally. They don’t hold it against you personally.”
RonnieD
Foodie
1931
Thu Aug 23, 2007 12:09 pm
The rolling acres of Henry County
Robin Garr wrote:Jon K wrote:Great idea and a terrific choice for the first stop on this culinary tour of immigrant run restaurants.
Thanks, Jon! Just for the record, though, last week was the first.
I must be working too hard!
Mayan Cafe conquers boundaries with a world of good flavor
gregg.kramer wrote:They're across the street from work. Sounds like a good excuse to go back again.
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