Chiche! is a restaurant bringing Lebanese food to Luxembourg, but even more importantly, it’s a place that fosters community, inclusion and employment for people forced to flee.
Svitlana (left), a refugee from Ukraine, works alongside her colleagues in the kitchen of Chiche! © UNHCR/Frederik Bordon
By Benjamin Mason and Frederik Bordon in Brussels
Beneath an ordinary-looking apartment block in the Limpertsberg quarter of Luxembourg City, an extraordinary restaurant is preparing for service. From the eclectic mix of antique armchairs and up-cycled decor to the contemporary globe-lanterns above the bar, it’s clear that Chiche! is a place where worlds, people and cultures come together.
Perched on a second-hand settee, long-time staff member Ihab reflects on the diversity which keeps Chiche! in business.
“Actually it’s a social project. In Chiche! you get refugees from many countries, from many mentalities, from many cultures.”
Now totaling three restaurants with around forty-five staff, Chiche! is helping refugees and migrants in Luxembourg build better futures. While serving up fantastic food, the project provides a foothold for people from all around the world, facilitating access to employment, education and integration.
The origins of Chiche! date back to 2017, when Luxembourger Marianne Donven co-founded the business with and to support refugees and migrants through employment.
“Employment is the most important thing for people arriving in Luxembourg to integrate,” Marianne explains.
Ihab, a refugee from Syria, was volunteering in Luxembourg for the Red Cross as an Arabic-English interpreter when he met Marianne and joined Chiche! as part of its initial three-person kitchen team.
From its humble beginnings, Chiche!’s mission has always been ambitious and clear: to connect, employ and support people forced to flee.
Since opening its doors, Chiche! has proved an undeniable success on all fronts. In addition to a sizeable flagship branch, two more Chiches! have opened –in Esch-sur-Alzette, the second largest city in Luxembourg, and Leudelange, a town in the south-west of the country. The three restaurants employ forty-five people between them.
Today, Chiche!’s growing multicultural workforce reflects the diversity of the country its staff have migrated to or found refuge in. As Ihab remarks:
“Nationalities, we have so many. We have Iraqis, Syrians, Afghans. We have [people] from Africa – Eritrea, Ethiopia, Tunisia. We have people from Morocco. We have people from Philippines.”
Beyond accessing employment, the Chiche! staff are using their experience to further integrate by getting to know their local customers.
“You can meet Luxembourg people here. So it’s a good chance even to improve your language.”
Chiche! has also received rave reviews from its customers:
“Kudos to the owners/managers for their social and business goals. Bravo to the teams for their delicious and friendly results.”
Indeed, nearly as diverse as Chiche!’s workforce is the clientele brought in by the amazing aromas drifting through the restaurant’s open door. Locals and expats, students and workers, citizens and Government Ministers alike gather together to support the project. UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi also paid a visit in November last year to get to know the people behind the project and of course sample the delicious food.
Dishes on the menu of Chiche! © UNHCR/Frederik Bordon
In the kitchen at Chiche! © UNHCR/Frederik Bordon
While the restaurants are thriving, the owners and staff are far from resting on their laurels. In addition to expanding, they’ve also opened their doors to refugees from Ukraine following the escalation of the international armed conflict.
Ukrainian dishes including borscht and vareniki are now a staple on the menu, alongside the falafel and chiche taouk. In the kitchen, Svitlana busies herself preparing these new favourites.
Svitlana fled from Odessa earlier this year to Luxembourg. She was put in contact with Chiche! through a network of refugees from Ukraine and her home-cooked food quickly won over the team and customers.
Chiche! has given Svitlana not only a secure income, but a sense of purpose and community.
“My colleagues in here help me, they try to teach me languages and to communicate with me.”
Despite some of the challenges that refugees face, Luxembourg and its people have given her safety and a new home.
“I feel very good… Compared to the situation in Ukraine, I am completely safe… The city of Odessa is a city of a lot of mixed foreigners… there is this mixing in Luxembourg too… the country is beautiful, people are very nice and responsive.”
Networks and initiatives with refugees at the helm empower and enable them to take a more active role in their new countries. They facilitate integration, leading to a sense of belonging and safety. The support of locals like Marianne and Chiche!’s many customers, alongside good ties with Luxembourg’s society, reinforce these feelings and positive outcomes.
As Ihab explains, “Because of Chiche! you get this contract, you get a chance to integrate in this country, and I believe to help your family as well”
Chiche! has brought refugees like Ihab and Svitlana and locals together around great food. They’ve shared their passion and their home recipes, and together with new friends, they are building better futures in Luxembourg.
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