Every day, in a nondescript building in Amman, a cast of cooks, pastry makers, mothers, and grandmothers work to churn out take-away orders and meals for diners at Samawer. For many of the women, dressed in blue, this is their first job. Young and old labor side by side to lay out, cut, and fold pastries called haleva, sprinkling their table with flour as they work. Others stuff kibbeh, a traditional Arabic dish, at different stations. Samawer is known for its delicious meals, but the restaurant performing a far more…
