When Comal Heritage Food Incubator closed this past February, not only did the Denver culinary community lose a great restaurant, but an important institution as well. The eatery’s mission was to build up and support immigrant women who wanted to work in or own a restaurant.
Luckily, Comal isn’t the only place building up underserved communities. Where one great spot falls, more pop up. Now the Denver metro area has a handful of service-forward restaurants where immigrants can eat food remnant of their homeland, and thrive in the service industry. In this three-part series we dive into the groups making waves. We first went to Mango House in Aurora, and now we look at Sawa Mediterranean Restaurant & Buffet in Denver.
Sawa Mediterranean Restaurant & Buffet
Just as the term “Mediterranean food” encompasses a broad range of cuisines, so does the buffet table at Sawa Mediterranean Restaurant & Buffet. Owner Sara Hamid is from Sudan, so naturally there’s a solid North African representation among the dozen or so options available on any given day.
But more than a dozen immigrant women who contribute to the menu hail from such locations as Syria, Lebanon, Morocco, Pakistan, Libya, Ethiopia, and other countries, all of whom play a role in the many options available at this University of Denver spot.
After all, “sawa” is the Arabic word for “together,” and for $25 the all-you-can-eat buffet allows you to try a bit of everything to experiment and learn about each. Plus, Hamid has made the cuisine diet-friendly with plenty of gluten-free, vegan, and vegetarian options. Recently, the restaurant began featuring a single cuisine on Sundays, with the plan to change the regional focus every two weeks.
Starting Sawa in Denver
While many immigrants turn to food businesses out of a lack of other options, Hamid did so by choice. She came to the U.S. from Sudan in 2009 with a bachelors degree in food science and experience working at the Coca Cola company. She picked up a second degree in human nutrition and dietetics from MSU Denver. While working as a diabetes educator, she felt the urge to do more hands-on cooking…