Persian Feast launches Haft Khaan with Rotterdam dinner

HAPPENING 25 SEP '26 | Persian Feast is launching Haft Khaan, a planned series of seven gatherings exploring Persian food and culture, with its first event in Rotterdam on Friday 25 September. Khaan-e Avval: The Arrival of Autumn combines a four-course seasonal dinner with stories about Persian autumn traditions, Mehregan, design and culture.

Seven gatherings inspired by Haft Khaan

The series is called Haft Khaan, a name with two meanings that Navazi deliberately brings together. In Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh, Haft Khaan refers to the seven trials faced by the hero Rostam. In Persian, khaan can also refer to a sofreh, the spread around which people gather to eat and share stories.

Persian Feast turns that connection into the concept for seven gatherings, each intended to explore Persian food and culture through a different theme. The first, Khaan-e Avval, meaning the first khaan, is subtitled The Arrival of Autumn and takes place on 25 September.

The evening also introduces guests to Mehregan, an old Persian autumn celebration. Rather than presenting it as a formal history lesson, Navazi plans to weave its traditions and stories into the dinner itself, using the dishes and table as starting points for conversation.

Autumn flavours at the table

The three-hour evening includes a four-course Persian autumn menu. It begins with feta and fresh herbs, followed by Ash-e Haft Ghalle, a traditional seven-grain ash, or thick Persian soup, associated with Mehregan.

The main course is Khoresht-e Beh-o Aloo, a stew made with chicken, quince and plums and served with saffron rice. Dessert continues the Persian flavour palette with saffron and rose.

Navazi does not want Khaan-e Avval to function simply as a restaurant meal. Guests will hear the stories and traditions connected with the food, while the format leaves time to sit together, meet other people and experience the dishes as part of a wider cultural setting.

Tickets cost €45 per person. The event runs from 18:00 to 21:00 on Friday 25 September 2026.

Herbs, fruit, rice and slow-cooked dishes are recurring elements in Persian cooking.

Persian food beyond familiar dishes

Navazi lives in Schiedam and started Persian Feast to introduce more people in the Rotterdam region to the breadth of Persian cooking. She feels that knowledge of the cuisine can sometimes stop at kebab and a small number of familiar dishes.

Her own cooking draws on the herbs, legumes, fruits, nuts and spices that feature throughout Persian cuisine, as well as combinations of sweet, sour and savoury flavours. Seasonality is equally important, particularly because food is closely connected with celebrations and the way people gather.

That connection is becoming central to Persian Feast. Alongside preparing and delivering homemade Persian meals during the week, Navazi is developing dinners where guests can learn more about the culture and stories surrounding what appears on their plates.

Persian creatives join the evening

Khaan-e Avval is also being developed with other young Persian creatives. Gileem, a start-up focused on Persian carpets and kilims, will introduce guests to Persian carpet culture and the role these textiles can have in Iranian homes and traditions.

A young event designer from Iran is creating the table and wider setting for the evening. Navazi sees collaborations like these as an important part of where Persian Feast is heading, bringing food together with design, art and storytelling rather than treating each element separately.

The idea is for Persian Feast to grow into a platform where creatives can contribute to a shared cultural experience. Khaan-e Avval is the first test of that broader concept, with six further gatherings planned as part of the Haft Khaan series.

Zahra Navazi prepares food for a Persian Feast gathering.

How to get there

Khaan-e Avval: The Arrival of Autumn takes place at Huiskamer de Pupillen, Pupillenstraat 107, 3023 VR Rotterdam, in Nieuwe Westen, Delfshaven. Huiskamer de Pupillen is a neighbourhood meeting space used for social, cultural and educational activities.

Date: Friday 25 September 2026
Time: 18:00–21:00
Tickets: €45 per person (Book Khaan-e Avval via Eventbrite)
Venue: Huiskamer de Pupillen, Pupillenstraat 107, Rotterdam