Sarban de Toekomst opens new restaurant in The Hague
27 april 2023
Sarban de Toekomst opens new restaurant and helps even more refugees
With its popular restaurants, Sarban de Toekomst creates opportunities for young refugees in the Netherlands. After Tilburg, Den Bosch and Utrecht, a new branch of the Afghan family restaurant Sarban opened in April 2023 at Frederikstraat 34 in The Hague.
The family business
In late 1996, the Alizadah family arrived in the Netherlands after fleeing the war in Afghanistan. In 2010, the family starts the restaurant Sarban in Tilburg. It is the first Afghan restaurant in the southern Netherlands. In March 2013, Sarban expands to Den Bosch, and since May 2017 they also welcome guests in Utrecht. For years, Sarban has been in the top three best restaurants according to Tripadvisor. Sarban de Toekomst also has two Silk Road restaurants in Tilburg and Utrecht (2021), catering company Saaz (2015) and the company Afghan Food Productions (AFP), through which they supply semi-finished products (processed raw materials yet to be processed into a finished product) used in restaurants.
Providing opportunities for refugees
At Sarban de Toekomst, young refugees receive support and learn theoretical and personal skills so that they become self-reliant. In the various restaurants, participants can get paid work or gain apprenticeship experience. In Tilburg, the apprenticeship program is linked to the MBO diploma Horeca BBL. Participants can also undergo internal training to become entrepreneurs. In The Hague, for example, Ferogh Sidiqui and Rafiuallah Ahmadi are currently being trained as entrepreneurs. They have been working at Sarban for several years and for them it is time for the next step. And participants can volunteer with social organizations and receive coaching and Dutch lessons.
Hundreds of refugees helped
Sarban de Toekomst has made a huge impact with its restaurants since its inception with support from the DOEN Foundation. In recent years, they have trained five entrepreneurs and mentored and provided sustainable employment to 400 people from refugee backgrounds. With the new restaurant, Sarban continues their social mission.
Stichting DOEN
Our partner DOEN Foundation supports Sarban de Toekomst through the VriendenLoterij Fund. This article previously appeared on their website.