Where have all the Persians gone?

After my first experience at Lavash on 9th and Irving, I was hooked.

Persian food filled with saffron and marinated dates, mmmmm. So many flavors in combinations I had never tasted, and all of it divine. For desert we tried the pistachio rose ice cream, and felt so full we skipped the bus and walked home.

Along the walk we decided the ice cream was our new favorite, replacing the Mission to Marzipan by Ben and Jerry. We had to get more.

A quick search on Yelp told us about all the different Persian markets in the city and had rants and raves for each one.

One response for Saladini's market in the mission specifically said Persian ice cream, and so we headed out on Sunday.

We walked down Valencia, where markets and shops were thriving. I didn't remember these expensive boutiques, but I appreciated the wares and continued on. Each store had a unique something or other, fitting into our pop culture but I was there for sliced mangoes dipped in chile and lime. Something more like my grandmother's Rosarrito beach house with exotic smells and streets alive with music.

Walking down two blocks to the actual mission street, I found the flavor. Finally we had arrived at the cross streets, but the market front was closed. They had shut down recently, because there was little traffic on the end of mission street.

We bought some fresh fruit and continued to the next address, one store wasn't going to stand in our way.

We trekked into the neighboring districts but couldn't find the next address either. The store we found didn't even have a sign, and looked like it had been shut down for ages. Another disappointment.

Third time was the charm, another bus another destination.

But the more we tried the less we got. The third location was just as deserted as the first two. Our quest for Persian ice cream had come to a halt.

The final destination was back to our 9th and Irving location, Lavash offered us an order to go.

But where is this rich culture disappearing to? And could yours be next?