I woke this morning to Sam Sifton’s review of Tanoreen, the newly expanded Middle Eastern restaurant in Bay Ridge. I was happy to see that Sam captured the essence of owner, Rawia Bishara, when he described her as celestial.
Rawia Bishara is one of the nicest people I have ever met in the restaurant business. The story of when I met her in 2004 when I was photographing the old restaurant for Eric Asimov’s $25 and under is one I tell over and over.
The weather was terrible and I was due at Tanoreen at 7 pm to photograph. The traffic was horrific and I circled the restaurant at least 5 times looking for parking in the double parked nightmare that is Bay Ridge. Finally, I put my car on a hydrant and ran in to apologize and alert the restaurant that I would be in as soon as I could land my car somewhere. I was met by Ms. Bishara who opened a basement door while speaking with me, yelled down the stairs and asked me for my keys. A young worker came up from the basement, took some instructions and my keys and Ms. Bishara beamed at me and said, “go to work, we’ll take care of your car.” I was stressed and frustrated and just her tone and presence put me at ease.
Ms. Bishara has a motherly way about her that makes you feel comfortable and endeared to her almost immediately. Her customers are greeted as if they are coming home. I sat with her briefly before I left because I found her charming and fascinating. She is the kind of person you wish good things for because it is so evident how much she gives of herself every day. I wish her the best and was glad that Sam got over to Tanoreen.
Here is a shot of the kitchen at the old Tanoreen, not published with the original story, from my outtakes.
Nice piece! Andrew Scrivani rocks.