Originally from Aleppo, Syria, Mouna Elkekhia is the founder of the street food company Arnabeet, a business that extends beyond food by combining her passion for Syrian cuisine with a commitment to supporting refugees, challenging stereotypes, and building community connections.
Elkekhia arrived in London in 2001 to pursue a master’s degree in international law, intending to stay only briefly. Subsequently, she worked with Amnesty International for around eight years. During this time, the conflict in Syria began, preventing her from returning home and transforming a temporary stay into a long-term settlement.
In 2018, she established her food business, beginning with a small catering venture known as Mouna’s Kitchen, aptly named as it operated from her home kitchen. A few months later, this expanded into Arnabeet, a street food brand named after the Arabic word for cauliflower - the signature dish that marked the start of the brand’s journey.
A core part of Arnabeet’s mission is its partnership with TERN (The Entrepreneurial Refugee Network), which helps the business to directly support refugees via employment, mentorship, raising funds and raising awareness.
As highlighted in new research from TERN and Square, refugee-led businesses already contribute around £520 million to the UK economy with the potential to grow to £5.1 billion given the right tools, funding, and support.
We caught up with Elkekhia about Syrian cuisine, balancing childcare with setting up a business and the stigma that often comes with being a refuge.
Why did you want to set up a business?
I worked in different jobs at Amnesty International - most recently on the refugee rights team - but I felt like I wasn’t doing enough. During that time, the war in Syria began, displacing millions of people and suddenly bringing Syria into the news. What followed were widespread negative views of Syrian refugees. There was this inhumanity about it; people had forgotten that these refugees are people who have been forced to leave their home.
Why a catering company?
I had become a refugee myself and I felt so homesick. The kitchen had always been a happy place for my family, and cooking became my way to stay connected to those memories.
It’s about people and about changing perceptions of what being a refugee means
What is the food offering like?
I try to create food that you won’t find in other Syrian restaurants. I don’t make falafel - everyone knows falafel - but there are so many other flavours and dishes that people rarely get to experience. Our signature dish, Arnabeet, is crispy cauliflower with tahini, parsley, and pomegranate seeds. We started with it because it’s simple, unique, and celebrates an underappreciated vegetable - and it remains a top seller. Another favourite is Fatteh, a traditional comfort dish whose name in Arabic means ‘to break apart’. Layers of crispy pitta, tahini-garlic yoghurt, and toppings like aubergine, slow-cooked lamb in tangy tomato sauce, or spiced chicken make it unusual but addictive.
What are some of the key characteristics of Syrian food?
Syrian food has strong, natural flavours and is often healthy, with a lot of dishes based on vegetables. It’s about how the flavours come together and how beautifully the food is presented. Our starters and salads are mostly vegetarian, with meat appearing predominantly in the mains. Each region has its own specialities. Aleppo, my hometown, is known for traditional dishes, but its location and borders also bring strong Turkish and Persian influences.
What challenges did you experience?
The most challenging part was leaving the security of a stable job. I was lucky to have a safety net after my previous job, but for many refugees starting out, that doesn’t exist. There were also practical challenges such as navigating legal requirements, health and safety inspections, loans, and figuring out how to value my products. The shift from cooking out of generosity to making a living from it was difficult, both financially and culturally.
The kitchen had always been a happy place for my family, and cooking became my way to stay connected to those memories
What are the key philosophies behind your business?
Someone at the market once said that “Arnabeet makes the heart beat,” and that’s always reflected our approach. It’s about people and about changing perceptions of what being a refugee means. While refugees have been viewed as a burden, this new research shows quite the opposite.
Tell me a bit about your experience as a refugee entrepreneur?
My experience was easier than for many refugees because I’d been in the country for a while, I speak the language, and I had a better understanding of how the system works. Many are still navigating housing and social care. What was difficult for me, though, was not having family here and my husband, being French, didn’t either. When we had our daughters, balancing childcare with setting up our business was a real struggle.
Why did you partner with TERN?
With my previous work, I was interacting with the refugee community and could see how difficult it was for refugee entrepreneurs to start a business. I wanted to support other refugees setting up food businesses. TERN aligned with my mission and aided my aim to bring on people interested in gaining practical experience they could use one day to set up their own business.
Tell us about working with TERN
I first met TERN in 2019 by chance - one of their partners ordered food from us for a lunch. We quickly realised that what I was doing with my business aligned with their mission to support refugees so in early 2020 we began working together. I hadn’t participated in their programmes because I’d already set up my business, but through meetings with them, we identified gaps, and they gave me the opportunity to secure my first market spot, which is usually very difficult. They also regularly checked in as the business grew, supporting me as I went from working one day a week to seven, building a team and refining a niche cuisine that people weren’t familiar with.
How are you finding business now?
It’s tough. We have a great Central London location and are still growing, but expanding further is challenging. Costs are rising fast; cauliflower now costs two or three times what it used to, and we absorb many of these increases, leaving margins very tight. With rising business rates and no VAT support, it’s a constant struggle.