Josh Bird's final for Pratt's Table Top class

1. Syria
Josh Bird

2. Table of Contents
Introduction to Syria
Syrian Food and Culture
Syrian Dinning Etiquette
Syrian Collage
The Cafe
Tableware Sketches
Tableware Design

3. Introduction to Syria
If you look under Turkey you will find its neighbor, Syria.
Syria is 71,500 sq miles large and located at the north-
ern point of the Suadi Arabian Peninsula. The country
borders the Mediterranean Sea, Iraq to the East, Leb-
anon and Israel to the West, Jordan to the south, and
Turkey to the north.

4. Syria currently has two flags
due to the ongoing civil war
that started in 2011.
The Syrian Arab Republic uses
red, white, and black horizon-
tal bars.
The Syrian National Coalition
and Syrian Interim Govern-
ment flag uses green, white,
and black bars. This was
adopted from the first Syrian
independence flag from 1932.

5. Syria is the geographic home of an ancient and richly diverse civilization, dating back thou-
sands of years. Its two largest cities, Damascus and Aleppo, date to pre-Biblical times. Their
carved-stone block architectural wonders include Mosques and Churches built more than a
thousand years ago. But modern Syria’s boundaries were arbitrarily drawn on a map by Brit-
ish and French colonialists in 1920. Syria did not become independent until 1946. The country
has been ruled by a string of military dictators. Air Force General Hafez al-Assad seized pow-
er in 1970 and ruled the country for the next thirty years. His son Bashir al-Assad took control
of the regime in 2000.

6. When popular revolts swept the Arab world in 2011, toppling similar military regimes in Egypt,
Tunisia and Libya, many journalists reported that the Assad regime in Damascus would
suffer the same fate. This did not happen. Instead, a brutal and bloody civil war has raged
since 2011, and some Western reporters and United Nations reports suggest that more than
500,000 Syrians have been killed. The Assad regime has survived, and at least one regular
American reporter, Charles Glass, argues today that the war is far from over. Syria’s Sunni
Muslims may be a majority, but the country’s Shi’ite Muslims, Druze, and Christian sects have
divided the political landscape. The civil war seems locked in a bloody stalemate.
Astonishingly, the café culture in the Old City of Damascus, has survived the civil war.
Patrons smoke tobacco from hookah water pipes and dine on fried minced lamb kebabs with
green salad—and order endless tiny cups of strong Turkish-style coffee, served from long-
nosed brass coffee pots.[ii] Life goes on in the midst of war.

7. Syrian Food and Culture
Modern Syrian cuisine heavily incorporates eggplant, zucchini,
garlic, sesame seeds, rice, chickpeas, fava beans, lentils, cab-
bage, cauliflower, vine leaves, cucumbers, tomatoes, olive oil,
lemon juice, mint, pistachios, honey, and other fruits and nuts.
For meat Syrians mostly eat lamb, mutton, and chicken.
These ingredients are used to make the staple meals for Syri-
ans such as; hummus, falafel, tabbouleh, shawarma, and baba
ghanoush.
The Syrian diet can be classified as Levantine throughout histo-
ry, however after the French colonized the country more chees-
es were added to their meals.

8. Syrian Dinning Etiquette
Traditional Syrian dinning culture is very conservative. In strict-
er religious households men are not supposed to eat with wom-
en unless they are related or married. However, this custom is
often relaxed for Syrians today.
Some restaurants have silver ware, and some don’t. If they
don’t the custom is to eat with your right hand, while never
letting your left hand to touch any of the food. It is respectful to
try a little bit of every dish, and expect to be offered more, and
accept.
Every meal is accompanied by coffee. The first thing you re-
ceive when welcomed at a Syrian home is a shot of coffee, at a
restaurant you usually receive a slightly larger cup of coffee that
is offered with plenty of sugar. Tea and mint lemonade is also a
popular alternative.

9. Syrian Collage

10. Syrian Hummus Cafe
In the warmer weather the air moves in through the arches that
partition the Syrian Hummus Cafe from the sidewalk bustling
with people. In central Williamsburg on the corner of Grand St.
and Driggs Ave you can smell the paprika, sumac, and peppers
circulate and mix into the busy streets. There is no single door.
You can enter from any of the arches and can immediately sit at
one of the small table up front or sit next to someone on plush
cushions that are on the floor. There is a height appropriate ta-
ble to go with the cushions made out of a deep dark hardwood.
After sitting down, you can see the intricate geometric trim-
mings the line every edge on the walls. The trimmings are not
too bright, they seem to melt into the walls. The floors are tiled
with thousands of tiny tiles that make up a flowing Arabic script.
Each tile reflects a little bit of warm light that bleeds through
strings of beads that arch from the ceiling. The strings of bead
are mostly pearl white with patterns of light green and blue run-
ning through.
The menu features a dozen specialty hummuses, babaga-
noushes, and Lebnah balls. There are pita breads infused with
delicate balances of nuts. There is manoushi bread almost like
tiny pizzas. You can smell the freshest tabbouleh that sits on
the table next to you. The table to your other side is filled with
an assortment of dishes that appear to be floating with three ar-
eas carved out for a couple hummuses and pita bread. When
you eat you notice how easy it is to scoop out every last bit of
hummus from the dish.
It’s too easy to enter the Syrian Hummus Cafe and far too hard
to leave after you are filled with the creamiest, most tasty hum-
mus you have ever had.

11. Spreads and Appetizers
Tabbouleh
Roasted chickpea hummus
Fattet Hummus
Baba Ganoush
Lebneh
Stuffed Grape Leaves
Olives
Fresh Vegetable salad
Halawet el Jibn (cheese)
Makdous
Main Dishes
Freekeh with chicken
Skewers of lamb
Fried Kibbeh
Kibbeh Sajiyeh
Makdous
Desserts
Baklava
Tamari Ka’ak (banana crepe)
Coffee and Teas
Black Tea
Zouhourat
Shay
Kahwa murrah (traditional coffee)
Muggeli
Kammun
Syrian Hummus Cafe

12. Coffee Cup Design
Coffee is served first, with as much sugar as you want. There
are two types of Syrian coffee, the larger one that is shown
above is kahwa. The more traditional coffee is called kahwa
murrah, which is a smaller shot type of coffee that is very bitter.
The coffee in general is similar to the Turkish style of coffee.

13. Personal Plate With Fig
After receiving coffee a small fig jam plate is served that is used
as the diner’s main dish. Syria is famous for its abundance of
figs and the particularly large cut version of fig jam.

14. Hummus
Hummus is a staple for Syrians and is served with most meals.
The Syrian version has a few more spices than your average
hummus. Pine nuts are often sprinkled on top.

15. Tabbouleh
Tabbouleh is a popular vegetarian salad dish made from toma-
toes, finely chopped parsley, mint, bulgur, and onion, and sea-
soned with olive oil, lemon juice, and salt. Some variations add
garlic or lettuce, or use couscous instead of bulgur. It is original-
ly from the Syrian mountains.

16. Kibbeh
Kibbeh is a staple for Syrians and is found everywhere, from
restaurants, to street vendors, to the home. It is made from
ground lamb usually with a dough on the outside made from
burgul, corn meal, onions, and Syrian spices.

17. Baba Ganoush
Baba Ganoush is made from eggplants,tomato, olive oil, bell
pepper, and parsley leaves. The Syrian style has no tahini and
is more smoky than normal. It is often served with hummus
and eaten with pita bread.

18. Facade And Plan Layout

19. Sketches For Tableware

20. 3D Sketches

21. Coffee Cup Design

22. Personal Plate Design

23. Hummus Platter Design

24. Tabouleh Bowl Design

25. Kibbeh Plate Design

26. Spoon Design

27. Full Set