Studying food and cooking culture, Tony Tahhan Style

Originally published on Baladna English Newspaper on 6th of April 2011.

Roaming around Tony Tahhan’s site makes you feel hungry, informed and delighted all at the same time. The Syrian-American blogger in the latest face of the world of cooking and his work in the kitchen brings a new meaning to the art of food. He is witty, smart and has a larger-than-life personality that makes his blogs both interesting and funny. When he blogs about food, he adds his own toppings of photos and personal stories that make each and every meal unique in its own way.

“I was born in Venezuela in 1986 to a Middle Eastern family from Aleppo, Syria,” the young cook says in an interview with Baladna English. “Even though my brothers and I were second generation Syrians, we were expected to speak strictly in Arabic at home.  It was for our own good; a way to keep our Syrian heritage alive, our parents told us. We ate Middle Eastern food, attended Syrian weddings and listened to Arabic music in the car.”

When Tony was four, his family moved to the United States and a new challenge was asked of the young Syrian. “The food I brought to lunch was always a mystery to my friends.  They had their peanut butter and jelly; I had my hummus.  This was before hummus became a big sensation,” he says, laughing.

The kid from Aleppo grew up with an obsession with food. “Most photos of me growing up involve me eating something; my mom is a great cook who learned how to cook traditional ‘Halabiye’ dishes from her mother and mother-in-law.  We had a rule in our house; anyone who helped prepare the meal didn’t have to do dishes, so this was also a major incentive for me.”

When he was a teenager, Tony picked up some weekend shifts at a local patisserie. That was his first exposure to a professional kitchen. Although his job was at the counter of the shop, he often found himself sneaking into the kitchen to watch where “the magic happened.”

Before moving to New York to pursue degrees in Math, Economics and Spanish Literature, the young man had already managed to start his own business of selling home-made chocolate.

Even in college, the freshman needed to cook. “While I was in college, it came from a desire to feel close to home.  I cooked meals mom used to make, and invited my Arab and non-Arab friends.  The atmosphere was great,” he explains.

“The more I cooked in college, the more I began to feel connected to my Syrian heritage–more so than when I was little,” he says, while gazing down the memory line. “I finally appreciated my parents for having spoken to us in Arabic.  Suddenly the Syrian weddings and the old school Arabic songs made sense.  My dad had promised I would understand one day, and I did.”

Back in November 2007, Tony decided to turn his obsession into an actual research. He started applying for scholarships to study food in Italy and Syria. “I wanted a personal platform to share pictures, stories, and recipes from my trip,” he points out, talking about his beloved blog. “In one of those miraculous moments where everything fell into place, a friend of a friend offered to build the site for me.  He had a fully functioning website in about a week and handed me the keys to my brand new blog. She was beautiful,” he says smiling.

For the first few months, Tony was just writing. He wasn’t sure if anyone was reading other than his relatives or friends. Then, suddenly, he discovered that his site was being read by people he didn’t have immediate contact with; that was the point he started believing in his blog.

“My inspiration to blog comes from different places,” the cook says with an absent-minded smile. “Most of the time it comes from the latest delicious meal I’ve tasted. I will either blog about it, or take a picture while I’m eating and tweet about it–sometimes even both.”

The green-eyed cook believes that when he writes on his blog, he feels like he is hosting a dinner party. “It’s an intimate space for me to sit down with friends from around the internet, open a bottle of wine, and talk about food and culture,” he says. He starts each blog post with a story and adds pictures to them, and then includes a recipe at the end of each post.

As with any good dinner party, discussions take place.  Readers comment and share their thoughts.  The ability to comment is one of the things Tony enjoys most about the blogging platform.  Unlike traditional cookbooks, a blog offers a dynamic and participatory digital space where readers become part of the conversation.

On a post Tony wrote about his aunt Juju’s great Chicken Noodles and Rice soup, someone under the name Samir commented saying: “Thank you for sharing Juju’s great recipe. We make the soup the same way but have never toasted the noodles! Will definitely try.” On the other hand, Zeki commented pointing out that “I want to make this,” but then added a silly question: “You use salt and black pepper too right?”

Joey also commented on the same recipe and said: “This looks like it can cure everything; from a bad day to a broken heart! Love this type of soup.”

Tony refuses to answer a question about the dish that is the most important dish he ever cooked. “I don’t like this question,” he says, “it’s almost impossible to answer.  A lot of dishes are important to me.”

However, he adds that the special ones are probably the ones he cooks for friends and family. “I love the expression on people’s faces when you cook for them.  I like to think that a part of me goes into every dish I make.” He points out: “When people eat my food I wait to get their reaction.  It’s a moment of instant gratification–you can see that from the smile on their face.  There aren’t many things in life that offer such immediate feedback.”

Tony is working on a big update of his blog at the moment. He calls himself a ‘web geek’ and he is planning on creating an online database archive of his recipes that would make them more easily accessible.

“With regards to my taste for food, I would love to travel around the Mediterranean,” he says, seeing his future ahead of him. “Not only do I want to taste the flavors of this region, but I think it is important to submerge myself in the culture.  This is the best way to experience a country’s cuisine.”

To visit Tony Tahhan’s blog; go to the following link: http://www.antoniotahhan.com/blog/