The Way We Cook, The Way We Live

oin Aliye Aydin and Ryan Smolar for an intimate afternoon in Aliye’s charming Rose Park cottage—an invitation to savor, share tea, and discover what can unfold when people gather around food with curiosity and care.

Aliye brings bold and fresh flavors, dishes that nourish and heal, and a love of exploring and honoring the stories and cultures of food. Ryan brings a long-running interest in how food shapes human connection, creativity, and the way we move through life.

Together, they’ll host a session built around a simple but revealing idea: the way we cook often reflects the way we live. Our habits in the kitchen—hesitation, control, curiosity, avoidance, generosity, fear of mess—often echo far beyond food itself.

Over tea, guests will talk about their relationships to food: what comforts them, what intimidates them, what they avoid, and what they’re curious to try. From there, the group will cook something together—nothing stiff or performative, just enough to find a rhythm, loosen up, and experience the joy, connection, and curiosity that opens up when people make food side by side.

Expect thoughtful conversation, good smells, a warm home, and a chance to connect through food in a more personal way.

This gathering brings together Aliye’s long experience helping households connect with delicious, healing meals and Ryan’s global approach to food, human connection, and the wisdom that emerges when people cook together.

Sponsored by the Office of LA County Supervisor Janice Hahn

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Host or Publisher Long Beach Fresh