Story of The Legendary Persian American Chef Ali Salout Founder of Darya Restaurant in Orange County & Santa Monica California
Darya Restaurant is an iconic Persian Restaurant in the United States. The restaurant is famously known for their delicious top quality Persian cuisine. It is widely said that once you have a taste of their cuisine you always come back for more, becoming a regular guest. The story behind the most popular Persian Restaurant begins like this….
Ali had been blessed with twin daughters (Darya & Sadaf), these beautiful twins were behind his success story. He told us that once they were born, they became his inspiration to begin his career as a business owner in America. He began working hard towards achieving his dream of opening his own restaurant. His inspirational story begins, with his journey in the hospitality Industry in 1984, training in some of the best Persian restaurants in Los Angeles, grueling 16-hour shifts, 3 bus trips to get to his work, but he never gave up. He was young, ambitious and determined to achieve his dream of opening one of the top Persian restaurants in the US.
During his early years he worked hard and practiced improving his cooking skills until he mastered a unique way of cooking Persian dishes, on his career journey he was constantly learning from the best Persian cuisine chefs in Los Angeles. In 1985 Ali Salout decided to move to the City of Orange, CA with the goal of introducing Persian cuisine to an untapped market. Being talented, gifted and a perfectionist, Ali’s goal was to provide the highest quality Persian dishes in Orange County and introducing the ultimate Persian hospitality experience to the city.
He established his first location in the heart of Orange and named it ‘Darya’ Restaurant, which means the ‘Sea’ or the ‘Ocean’ in the Farsi language. Instantly his restaurant became a massive success, gaining popularity in Orange County. In 1998 Ali opened his second location which became an instant success in the trendy vibrant Santa Monica area, which is a well-known coastal city west of Los Angeles, home to many Hollywood celebrities.
Ali was a family person, he wanted to create a family legacy, so he asked his two daughters to join him in his successful journey by sharing his vast knowledge with them. His daughters Darya and Sadaf first began working at Darya Restaurant in Orange during their teen years, working alongside their father when they were attending high school. They later majored specifically in business studies in college to be able to continue helping their father successfully expand his restaurants.
In 2011 Ali’s daughter Sadaf opened a sister location in Encino naming it Sadaf Restaurant and several years later in 2018 she opened her second location in Thousand Oaks, both restaurants experiencing tremendous success. Currently Ali’s other daughter, Darya operates Darya Restaurant in Orange County, and manages the Santa Monica location. She also manages their social media presence. Ali and his twin daughters strive daily to provide top quality Persian dishes in a warm and welcoming environment. Darya Restaurant is known for their fresh juicy lamb, beef, chicken, and seafood kabobs, along with their fluffy Basmati rice, their variety of authentic salads and traditional Persian appetizers. The restaurants also have a full bar with an array of eclectic signature cocktails using traditional Persian ingredients like saffron, rose, and cucumbers, in a beautiful lounge setting for guests to enjoy these exotic libations.
The restaurant provides takeout, delivery, private banquet rooms, catering, and office luncheons. The twins, Darya and Sadaf continue to carry their family’s legacy of exceptional Persian food and 5-star service throughout the 4 family-owned and operated restaurants. They always welcome food enthusiasts and Persian food lovers to stop by and experience their cuisines.
Lavish life is truly honored to have this interview with you Mr. Ali Salout. Your restaurants are legendary in California, can you please tell our readers what you enjoy most about owning and operating your restaurants?
What I enjoy most is watching families, friends and people from different cultures gather around a table at my restaurants to eat and share a meal together experiencing the Persian cuisine.
What do you believe is one important factor of your long-term success ?
My belief has always been that anyone who visits my restaurants should feel like family. My guests should always feel welcome. I have instilled this belief on to my daughters as well. It is our goal to have every guest who enters our restaurants be greeted with a warm welcome and for them to experience the same feeling they get when visiting a dear family member. I want our restaurants to be a place for people to build memories and share a wonderful experience over our Persian dishes.
Ali, please tell us what you enjoy doing most in your free time, when you are not busy at the restaurant?
Good question, I enjoy many things, like watching sports and trying different cuisines, but my favorite thing to do is gather with my beautiful wife, children, and grandchildren around a table and dine for hours, as I catch up with them and their busy lives. We always make time once a week to get together and enjoy a family meal. It’s our tradition. I would love to continue sharing this experience and passing this tradition on to my grand kids so they can pass along this experience to our future family generations.
This inspirational and wonderful interview is coming to an end, any final words you would like to share with our readers and food lovers around the world?
I believe everyone appreciates different foods in their own way. To me food is love, and that’s how I show my love and admiration for people, by sharing my cuisine with them.
By Lavish Life Publication Editorial Team
