During Ramadan, daily fasting is an essential part of commemorating the holy month for Mohammad Menassera. It’s something that makes him slow down while managing the North Phoenix restaurant Hana House. While he’s used to a fast pace and running on little more than coffee all year round, he says that no matter how one prepares for Ramadan, “it hits you at once. You have to take a step back and appreciate things.”
Ramadan started on Wednesday, March 22 this year and runs through Thursday, April 20. During this month, Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset meaning that during daylight hours, no food or drink is consumed. It marks the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, a span in which Muslims believe the Quran was revealed to the prophet Muhammad.
“The month of Ramadan is a spiritual month,” says Usama Shami, president of the Islamic Community Center of Phoenix. He notes that it’s a month to reflect on one’s blessings, share them with others, and increase worship to become closer to God.
“Fasting itself is a spiritual experience," Shami says. "The preparation is more spiritual than physical.”
For Menassera, he says the month of fasting teaches him patience and gratitude.
“It’s a reflection of getting back to what really matters: prayer, not taking things for granted,” he says. “We’re used to instant gratification, whereas when you’re fasting you have to postpone it and be patient.”
During Ramadan, there are two meals each day: suhoor, served before dawn, and iftar, after sundown. Hana House hosts an iftar buffet during the weekends of the holy month.
The Palestinian restaurant serves varieties of seasoned rice, chicken, lamb, seafood, soups, and broths, which are more typically home-cooked meals than restaurant dishes, Menassera says. Among those are fasoolia, a white bean stew, the spiced lamb dish mansaf, and maklooba, a dish that translates to "upside down," because when the dish is flipped out of its pot, it reveals layers of meat, vegetables, and rice.
When he sees people at the restaurant breaking fast together, that moment of unison and commitment is what sustains him.
“It’s hard to explain. It makes you feel like everything is right,” he says. “It’s things like that that satisfy that gratification you postponed earlier.”
The Islamic Community Center of Phoenix hosts nightly iftars throughout the month, welcoming around 100 people each evening. They will also host suhoor meals on weekends and during the last 10 days of Ramadan.
One constant for those breaking fast, whether doing so at home, in a mosque, or at a restaurant, is dates. Breaking one’s fast with the palm fruit is a practice believed to be employed by the prophet Muhammed and the tradition continues. To ready for the month, Shami’s mosque ordered more than 600 pounds of dates from a grower in Yuma.
In Scottsdale, local market Sphinx Date Co. sees an uptick in orders leading up to and toward the end of the holy month.
Sphinx Date Co. co-owner Rebecca Seitz says that in addition to tradition, dates carry several benefits that make them the perfect first bite following a fast. The sweet fruits provide fiber and a boost of sugar.
“They do help ease digestion," Seitz says, "and prepare for whatever you’re going to eat following the fasting day."
Sphinx Date Co. sells dates online and from their Scottsdale store. Seitz says Ramadan is one of their more popular holidays for orders. She finds customers order Medjool dates in bulk for breaking fast or send gift trays to family and friends that include dates that have been dipped in chocolate, stuffed with nuts, or rolled in coconut.
While the majority of those orders are within the U.S., “We have sent dates across the world, including the Middle East and northern Africa,” Seitz says. “We’ve gotten a lot of feedback that our Arizona dates and U.S.-grown dates are some of the best in the world.”
At the Islamic Community Center, Shami says his mosque was contacted by the grower, who shared samples that he agrees are “excellent.” The dates will be on hand when people visit to pray and break fast together.
He says that the lessons from the month are ones that Muslims work to carry forward and that non-Muslims can likewise use this time to reflect and support their community.
The mosque welcomes everyone to join for meals breaking the fast or to observe the prayer, he says, adding some of his non-Muslim friends and colleagues have fasted for a day or two with him: “There are different ways of celebrating this month, even if you’re not a Muslim.”
Ramadan started on Wednesday, March 22 this year and runs through Thursday, April 20. During this month, Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset meaning that during daylight hours, no food or drink is consumed. It marks the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, a span in which Muslims believe the Quran was revealed to the prophet Muhammad.
“The month of Ramadan is a spiritual month,” says Usama Shami, president of the Islamic Community Center of Phoenix. He notes that it’s a month to reflect on one’s blessings, share them with others, and increase worship to become closer to God.
“Fasting itself is a spiritual experience," Shami says. "The preparation is more spiritual than physical.”
For Menassera, he says the month of fasting teaches him patience and gratitude.
“It’s a reflection of getting back to what really matters: prayer, not taking things for granted,” he says. “We’re used to instant gratification, whereas when you’re fasting you have to postpone it and be patient.”
During Ramadan, there are two meals each day: suhoor, served before dawn, and iftar, after sundown. Hana House hosts an iftar buffet during the weekends of the holy month.
The Palestinian restaurant serves varieties of seasoned rice, chicken, lamb, seafood, soups, and broths, which are more typically home-cooked meals than restaurant dishes, Menassera says. Among those are fasoolia, a white bean stew, the spiced lamb dish mansaf, and maklooba, a dish that translates to "upside down," because when the dish is flipped out of its pot, it reveals layers of meat, vegetables, and rice.
When he sees people at the restaurant breaking fast together, that moment of unison and commitment is what sustains him.
“It’s hard to explain. It makes you feel like everything is right,” he says. “It’s things like that that satisfy that gratification you postponed earlier.”
Hana House, run by Mohammad Menassera, offers a buffet Friday through Sunday for those breaking fast during Ramadan.
Sara Crocker
One constant for those breaking fast, whether doing so at home, in a mosque, or at a restaurant, is dates. Breaking one’s fast with the palm fruit is a practice believed to be employed by the prophet Muhammed and the tradition continues. To ready for the month, Shami’s mosque ordered more than 600 pounds of dates from a grower in Yuma.
In Scottsdale, local market Sphinx Date Co. sees an uptick in orders leading up to and toward the end of the holy month.
Sphinx Date Co. co-owner Rebecca Seitz says that in addition to tradition, dates carry several benefits that make them the perfect first bite following a fast. The sweet fruits provide fiber and a boost of sugar.
“They do help ease digestion," Seitz says, "and prepare for whatever you’re going to eat following the fasting day."
Ramadan is among Sphinx Date Co.'s more popular holidays for orders because dates are traditionally used by Muslims to break their fast.
Joanie Simon
While the majority of those orders are within the U.S., “We have sent dates across the world, including the Middle East and northern Africa,” Seitz says. “We’ve gotten a lot of feedback that our Arizona dates and U.S.-grown dates are some of the best in the world.”
At the Islamic Community Center, Shami says his mosque was contacted by the grower, who shared samples that he agrees are “excellent.” The dates will be on hand when people visit to pray and break fast together.
He says that the lessons from the month are ones that Muslims work to carry forward and that non-Muslims can likewise use this time to reflect and support their community.
The mosque welcomes everyone to join for meals breaking the fast or to observe the prayer, he says, adding some of his non-Muslim friends and colleagues have fasted for a day or two with him: “There are different ways of celebrating this month, even if you’re not a Muslim.”
