For this assignment, we had to photograph a story- in one day. I chose the Albanian family who runs the restaurant Felini in downtown Columbia. Let me know what you think.
Alex Baumhardt serves Saganaki to a couple eating dinner at Felini in downtown Columbia. Felini is a Greek and Italian cuisine restaurant run by the Canhasi family. Saganaki, or ‘flaming cheese’ is one of the many traditional Greek dishes they offer. After the cheese is breaded and fried, it is doused with a mixture of Everclear and Brandy, set on fire for presentation, and finished with a yell of: “Opa!”
Leonora Canhasi prepares Spanakopata, a spinach-filled pastry in the kitchen of Felini. Leonora is one in the family of twelve Albanian refugees who escaped Kosovo in 1999. During the Kosovo War, NATO bombed their city and the family was trapped in their home for 19 days. Then, while they were eating lunch, cries came that the town next to them had been completely destroyed. The family fled with only small possessions in their hands. They traveled to the US, and were matched with a sponsor in Mexico, Missouri. One of the few possessions from Kosovo is a wedding portrait of Leonora and her sister, dressed in gold-threaded dresses. After fleeing, they were left with almost nothing.
Ilir Canhasi pours broth over lamb shanks. The shanks cook for one hour and then slow marinade cook for three. According to Ilir, “the kitchen is the heart of the restaurant. It sets the beat because you have to time the food perfectly.” Ilir and his family owned a restaurant in Kosovo named Felini after the Italian director of “La Dolce Vita.”
Grape leaves surround beef and rice as Leonora compiles the Greek Combo Special. Coming to the United States was starting over for the Canhasis. They got jobs in a factory in Mexico, Missouri working 84 hours a week. “We all worked and saved to rent an apartment and buy one Dodge Spirit, dreaming of rebuilding Felini,” said Ilir. After four years of hardship, the family saved enough to buy the restaurant without loans. Ilir, Leonora and her husband Bekim are the primary cooks at Felini, with cousins and nephews filling in as servers. Ilir has taught his two children to cook traditional Albanian and Greek dishes as well as speak Albanian. “They will grow up American, but it is important for them to know about our language and our old home.”
Ten years have gone by in America, with six of them wrapped in the dream of Felini. Some of the family still lives and works in Mexico, searching for satisfaction after the destruction of their home and former life. Felini, like many other businesses, has had to adjust their hours to comply with the economic recession. At the end of the day, Ilir counts the day’s wages, only totaling $300.
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