This is Conflict Café, a month-long pop-up restaurant that uses food as a vehicle for dialogue on conflict and peace building. Organized by London-based peace building charity International Alert, each week of the pop-up brings a new chef and cuisine from the many regions in which the organization works. 

“In September, Conflict Kitchen announced it would serve Palestinian food and celebrate Palestinian culture,” The Washington Post reported, “This choice — a chance to sell familiar dishes such as hummus and falafel with the lesser known, such as ­rumaniyya, maftoul and namoura — turned into more than just a menu change.”

Conflict Kitchen, the social practice eatery in Pittsburgh, has come under fire from the Israel advocacy organization B’nai B’rith International over its current programming on Palestine. 

Food diplomacy initiatives are increasingly being recognized as a successful means to open up peace dialogue as a result of our increasingly cosmopolitan palettes. Food is one of the oldest forms of exchange, with yet untapped recognition to deliver social conflict transformation. With this in mind, International Alert's Conflict Kitchen London opens up a new avenue to pursue peace dialogue by taking people on a tantalizing journey exploring new culinary experiences.