Chef Hoss Zare in San Francisco

Americans loved the flavors, and Iranians felt an emotional connection — it was a taste from home, but fresh, modern and interpreted with high-end ingredients and plating panache. The food world noticed, too. When New York’s James Beard House asked Zare to cook a Persian New Year feast in 2009, Zare said, “It was a highlight of my career. No-Rouz is peace and renewal. We celebrate Mother Nature and find hope and a new start after a harsh winter. It’s not religious. It’s human.”