Former Afghan interpreter happy to be in U.S. and happy to feed you at Marble City Market
Many of us have old stories about how our families came to America, and to Knoxville. Whether it was fleeing famine, oppressive governments, or just looking for opportunity, the stories all rhyme.
While it is an old tale, it is also a new one that is being added to constantly.
Meet Mohammad Hamdard, a new member in our Knoxville family.
“I was working with the Marines in Afghanistan as an interpreter,” Hamdard explained. “A Marine named Travis Ervin helped me with everything, the paperwork, the visa, and evacuated my family from Afghanistan at the time when the county fell back into the hands of the Taliban.”
Ervin was instrumental in helping Hamdard and his family flee to the United States and getting them settled in East Tennessee. “That’s why I am here. He is like a blood brother to me,” Hamdard said.
Surrounded by an incredible variety of food options at the Marble City Market, Hamdardset up shop. With the help of Yassin Terou of Yassin’s Falafel House, and his nonprofit Seeds and Bridges, Hamdard was able to open a restaurant of his own called “Rom’s House.”
“I just wanted to share a new food and a new taste in this community,” Hamdard said.
He serves traditional Afghan food including rice, chicken, beef, Afghan french fries,and even has some vegan options.
“These are the tastes and recipes that I grew up with,” he said. Hamdard said the support and feedback he has received has been ecstatic, and that he is “so happy that I am here in the United States. I have found everything that I expected.”
Rom’s House is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and can be found at the Marble City Market at 333 W. Depot Ave. in downtown Knoxville.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Rom’s House at Marble City Market run by Afghanistan interpreter
