Meet Malakeh Jazmati, the Syrian refugee who cooked for Angela Merkel

Syrian chef Malakeh Jazmati went from fleeing her war-torn country, to cooking for Angela Merkel. How did she go from being a part of political protests against Assad, to opening a restaurant in Germany?

Why Malakeh Jazmati had to flee Syria

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Malakeh, who grew up in Damascus, had to leave her country because of the deteriorating political climate in the country. She participated in protests against dictator Bashar Al Assad, who was the president of Syria from 2000 to 2024. In addition to that, the civil war in Syria made her move to Jordan.

Today, despite the Assad regime being overthrown, Malakeh is in two minds about going back: "I have two children. They didn't know anything about Syria. They know, for sure, the history. They know what has happened before in Syria, but they didn't live there. So they don't have any memories connecting them for this land. For that, I cannot be selfish and only think about myself, because I feel I want to come back."

Malakeh’s inspiring journey as a chef

Image credit: AFP

Malakeh didn’t receive formal training in the culinary arts. In fact, she studied political science and literature in college.

But, she grew up cooking Syrian food with her mother and grandmother. So, when she got an opportunity to host a cooking show in Jordan, she took it up. Her show, Maliket al-Tabkh, or ‘Queen of Cooking’ made her famous.

A few years later, she and her husband sought asylum in Germany. After moving there, they made a life for themselves there by starting their own catering business, Levante Gourmet.

Today, Malakeh has her own restaurant in Berlin, called Malakeh. She also has a cookbook by the same name.

In fact, two years after coming to Germany, she served food to the then-German Chancellor, Angela Merkel.

Not just that, Malakeh’s restaurant has also seen visits from celebrities like Sir Clive Owen.

How Malakeh spreads love with her food

Malakeh’s story isn’t just that of an immigrant who started several successful businesses against difficult odds. It’s a lesson in how much refugees contribute to the countries they move to, and how that builds tolerance and acceptance in society.

After all, food has a way of bringing people together. It’s an integral part of the culture. Language cannot be learnt or understood easily. Rituals and cultural traditions can be difficult to integrate. But food is something that teaches you a lot about a culture with just a taste. The popularity of Korean food in India is proof.

So, the fact that Malakeh’s menu features Syrian dishes, helps people learn about Syria, and love Syrian food without ever visiting the country. On her menu, you’ll find the eggplant and tomato-rich Fattet Makdous, the yoghurt and lamb stew, Shakrieh, and kebabs with spices from Aleppo, all of them a love-letter to her roots.

How Malakeh dealt with living in Europe as an immigrant

Malakeh, like many immigrants, has had her fair share of struggles living in Germany as an immigrant. Even though she has two sons who were born in Germany and can speak German, she hasn't had time to learn the language, because she, like many immigrants, has had to juggle a lot to make it in a foreign country. She told AFP: “It's not easy to live outside your homeland."

Still, Malakeh is open to German culture: "I have German friends. I pay my taxes. I try to speak in German. I'm open for the culture stuff here in Germany. I also try a lot of German food, especially Käsespätzle [a German traditional dish]. And my children, they consider themselves like German-Syrians."

But given the waves of anti-refugee racism sweeping several parts of Europe, including Germany, the jury’s out on how accepting people are. Despite Angela Merkel’s pro-refugee stance being a thing of the past under Friedrich Herz’s new regime, Malakeh is hopeful: "I think "wir schaffen das (I think we can do this)," echoing Angela Merkel’s statement that became a symbol of her refugee policy.