A cheerful buzz filled the interior of Meymuni Cafe on Saturday afternoon, as groups of Iranians trickled in from a protest at the Federal Building down the street, proudly displaying “Free Iran” and “Make Iran great again” merch.
Laughter rippled through the 2,000-square-foot space as diners chatted over complimentary rice cookies and steaming cups of Persian chai infused with rose petals.
As owner Shaheen Ferdowsi looked around his shop, he remarked, “Everyone here is Iranian right now.”
It was one week after the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Westwood and its surrounding neighborhoods were pulsing with Iranian pride.
Before L.A.’s Persian community grew to become the largest population of Iranians outside of Iran, it was concentrated in Westwood, also known as Tehrangeles. Flanking the city-designated Persian Square at the corner of Westwood Boulevard and Wilkins Avenue is an established collection of cafes, restaurants and markets that have long served as community hubs for Persians to gather, share a meal and process global events.
In the days following Khamenei’s death, the neighborhood swelled as Iranians took to the streets to celebrate, with many hopeful it would lead to the fall of the Islamic Republic that has ruled Iran for nearly 50 years.
“Our people [would] rather to be dead than living under the Iranian government … they don’t have food, they don’t have any right to live,” said Reza Sadeghi, an Irvine resident who was dining at Shaherzad Restaurant in Westwood.
While some expressed mixed feelings about the ongoing U.S.-Israeli war with Iran that has killed over 1,300 civilians, according to Iran’s United Nations ambassador, many were happy with the U.S. military intervention.
“It’s a roller coaster of emotion,” said Terry K., an L.A. resident and guest at Meymuni Cafe, who declined to give her last name due to safety concerns. “It’s 90% happiness, but 10% is you thinking about your family that are there … but every achievement has a consequence … We accept the consequence right now and we wanted this, so we are happy about it.”
Thousands of Iranians have protested almost every weekend in Westwood and downtown L.A. since February, following a violent protest crackdown in Iran in January that killed thousands of people, with one toll estimating over 30,000 civilian deaths.
“It was a pretty unreal sight to see, as far as how many Iranians came together for something they believed very passionately about,” said Farbod “Freddy” Papen, one of the owners of Persian ice cream shop Saffron and Rose. “It was really nice for Westwood, for Persian Square to see such a turnout as far as having people from other states and countries come and be part of our little cultural hub.”
As a result, nearby Persian restaurants have seen an influx of diners as people stop for a meal after attending a protest.
Papen said his ice cream shop saw throngs of new customers on protest days, causing him to bring in more staff and increase hours. The unexpected surge in business forced him to go back and forth from his warehouse to the shop two to three times a day to restock items.
“These demonstrations and these protests the last few weeks have absolutely been the most challenging days that I’ve experienced being part of this business,” Papen said.
A kotlet sandwich has become a post-protest routine for many Iranians.
The kotlet sandwich, a popular street food with ground meat patties, tomato, herbs and sliced pickles, has become a staple for Iranians after Khamenei’s fall. Memes and videos have circulated using the kotlet as a mocking symbol of a defeated leader, alluding to the meat being crushed in the sandwich.
“This specific food has turned to a symbolic thing for people that get destroyed that aren’t good people,” Terry K. said.
Persian restaurants also provide a safe space for Iranians to connect with others within the diaspora.
Third-year UCLA student Tara Kaviani said she was dining at a Persian restaurant in Silver Lake one day after attending a protest, when two Persian women approached her to talk about Iran, which had never happened before.
“It’s just that sense of we’re all in this together,” Kaviani said.
Papen said that before the Feb. 28 air strike, it seemed like “a sense of hope was being lost” after speaking with his customers and overhearing conversations in the shop.
“And then when that air strike happened and they took out all the top leaders and stuff, the energy shifted …. People were extremely, extremely happy,” he said.
Meymuni Cafe has become a popular stop before and after protests, with Ferdowsi welcoming customers with drops of relaxing lavender oil for their hands and free snacks. Opened in 2025, the modern Persian cafe serves barbari bread and lavash wrap sandwiches, tahini-date shakes and chai lattes, plus a full slate of events aimed at uplifting the local Persian community.
“Coming here feels like they are walking into a Persian home,” Ferdowsi said. “It has a very homey, non-transactional feel.”
With the ongoing war in Iran, Ferdowsi said his mission has transitioned from elevating Persian culture to “spreading love and positive energy.”
“People just don’t want to feel alone,” he said. “I think people are here to celebrate and enjoy and be happy together … That doesn’t mean they don’t care about what’s going on in Iran. They want to express solidarity with Iran … you can only do so much if you’re sad all the time.”
Saffron and Rose, a family-owned business founded by Papen’s grandfather in Tehran and later in L.A., continues to provide a sense of community for regulars who have been coming for decades. Papen even said he’s met guests that used to visit his grandfather’s shop in Iran.
“Food is such a universal thing,” he said. “But especially this ice cream shop. I’ve definitely noticed that it brings a nostalgia, it brings a memory … you’re momentarily transported back to a time and day, a vibe that has not existed for the last 50 years.”
As many Iranians continue to push for the fall of the regime, many are still concerned for their families back home who remain under threat and do not have access to the internet for communication.
“Going out, making food together, coming here, celebrating — I value it, we all value it, we want to do it, but we want to do it when everyone else is doing it too,” Terry K. said. “I don’t want to celebrate here when my family is not celebrating back there … it hasn’t finished; we are not free yet.”
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