São Paulo – Xmune Isper was 12 years old. Olinda Isper was nine. The year was 1970 and they, in the company of their mother and three brothers, arrived in Brazil from Lebanon, hoping to create a new life. On the ship, their Lebanese mother, recently widowed, was working on her dream of a family restaurant. She already had a job for each of her children. One would work at the cashier, another in the kitchen and so forth. Xmune and Olinda did not know it, but it would be them, little girls at the time, who would realize their mother’s dream.
It took a long time, but came true. Each of the male brothers headed on his own route, their mother passed away and, in 1999, the two sisters opened Tenda do Nilo (Tent of the Nile), a restaurant with little physical space, but with great taste in its kibbehs, safihas, desserts and Arab dishes. The snacks and meals offered by the restaurant, in the city of São Paulo, are usually included in the gastronomy rankings of the city.
In an interview to ANBA, Olinda listed some of the foods that have already been awarded or were classified as best in gastronomic lists: kibbehs, safihas, falafel, raw kibbeh, ribs and wheat and desert Mil e Uma Noites (the Thousand and One Nights). To make the mouth water, it is worth recalling that the rib dish includes shredded cattle ribs, kibbeh flour and chickpeas. Desert The Thousand and One Nights is made out of semolina, made out of cream and pistachio nuts. The Tenda do Nilo safiha, different from others sold in the city of São Paulo, has thin pastry.
At the restaurant, it is Olinda who is responsible for administration and hospitality. She is the owner, but makes a point of talking to each of her customers and asking if the food was good. Xmune, whose name is often pronounced Simone, is in charge of the kitchen. She arrives at Tenda do Nilo at around 9:30 am and only leaves at around 3:30 pm. All the snacks and meals include Xmune’s touch. She learnt how to cook with her mother, who, from an early age, noticed her talent for cuisine. Mona, Xmune’s youngest daughter, helps at the restaurant.
Olinda explains that the family settled down in São Paulo and made many friends, among them Arab descendants and Brazilians. The Isper family used to receive many friends at home and it was they who convinced the two sisters to pluck up the courage to open Tenda do Nilo. The food follows traditional Arab recipes, but, according to Olinda, it was the demanding taste of her mother that added a special touch to the dishes. The same may be said about the care involved in the production.
Xmune and Olinda were born in Lebanon, but are Brazilian. That may be explained by the trips to and from the East and West taken by their families. The first members of the family to get to Brazil were their grandparents, who travelled from Syria to Manaus. Their father, José Isper, was born in Brazil. But he lived in Syria for part of his life. The last time he went to the region, at the age of 33, he started working for the Brazilian embassy in Lebanon, where he remained for 20 years. In the period, at the embassy, he met his wife and had his children. But as their father was Brazilian, the kids were not considered Lebanese.
José’s death caused Xmune and Olinda’s mother to return to Brazil with her five Brazilian children. Both sisters have already travelled to Lebanon twice since they left. But Olinda says that she cannot live without Brazil. “Brazil is my oxygen,” she said. Both, however, still preserve their Arab roots. Olinda has a strong accent and tends to speak to her sister in Arabic. At the restaurant, they make a point of transferring Arab customs to clients, among them the correct way to eat the food. “Kibbehs are best to be eaten from the fingers. Syrian bread must be opened for the flavouring to be rubbed in,” she explains.
Service
Tenda do Nilo
Address: Rua Coronel Oscar Porto, 638 – Paraíso – SP
Telephone: (+55 11) 3885-0460
*Translated by Mark Ament
