Syrians lined up to purchase ice cream at the Hamidiyeh Souq in Damascus, Syria's capital, on December 9, 2024. — AFP
After rushing from Lebanon to Syria to celebrate the fall of the Assad regime and making plans for his family to join him, 42-year-old Anas Idrees knew his next priority. He made his way to the historic Hamidiyeh Souk in old Damascus, eventually arriving at the famous Bakdash ice cream parlor, where he ordered a generous scoop of their signature mastic-infused Arabic gelato. Idrees had last tasted it 15 years ago, before the Syrian civil war forced him into exile.
"I swear to God, it tastes different now," he said after savoring a spoonful. "It was good before, but it's changed because now we are happy inside."
For over a century, through numerous wars, Bakdash has been serving an Arabic-style ice cream infused with Sahlab, a flour made from orchid roots. The mixture is pounded by hand with long mallets until it achieves a soft, stretchy texture. A bowl costs just $1 and is topped with pistachios. Bakdash is cherished across Syria, but many Syrians were unable to visit Damascus after former President Bashar Al Assad's crackdown on pro-democracy protests in 2011 sparked a 13-year civil war.
Following Assad's ouster after a swift rebel advance, tens of thousands of Syrians flocked to Damascus from both within the country and abroad. On Monday, hundreds gathered at Bakdash, including many fighters fresh from the battlefield who enjoyed the cool treat, sometimes with their weapons slung over their shoulders. Ahmed Aslaan, a 22-year-old fighter in green fatigues, said he hadn't seen Damascus in over a decade and that the ice cream was a symbol of his newfound freedom.
"Thank God we achieved our goal. Now we can travel across Syria in our own car," he said between bites. "We were confined to a small area before, but now we have space."
Co-owner Samir Bakdash reopened the shop the day after Assad's fall as a way to express his joy at the end of a regime that had oppressed Syrians for decades and forced him to pay bribes to keep his business running. He maintained that the recipe, created by his great-grandfather in the 1890s, had not changed. However, even regular customers noticed a difference.
"It tastes different — it's delicious and even better now," said Eman Ghazal, a business student in her 20s who has been visiting Bakdash since childhood. "It's not just the ice cream; it's life in general. It feels like the walls are smiling, and the sun has finally come out."
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