Well, you'll find plenty of it here. A glorified glossary of all things Persepolitan. And lots of stuff which we didn't know where else to shove.

As a taster, here's...

Nowrooz

Nowrooz, or the Persian New Year, falls this year on March 20th at 5.32pm. This is also, of course, the time of the spring equinox, the first day of spring. The timing is crucial - it is worked out according to the lunar calendar.

This year will be 1389 - the years are counted from the date of Mohammed’s flight from Mecca to Medina. However, just as with Christmas, Nowrooz is quintessentially a pagan festival. It has its origins in the way back in the mists of time, when the generally practised religion in Iran was Zoroastrianism, and there are strong elements of superstition woven into the customs surrounding it. On the eve of the last Wednesday of the year, for example, Iranians the world over light fires which they then jump over, addressing the flames as they go, shedding their bad deeds/luck and taking strength from the fire, purging themselves for another year.

Iranians decorate for the New Year - they prepare a special spread of items representing the regrowth and prosperity that they hope will come. There is the ‘HAFTSIN’ - the seven ‘S’s - seven items beginning with the letter S - you may choose from: SIB (apple), SIR (garlic), SAMENOU (a sweet paste), SOMBOL (hyacinth), SUMAK (a spice), SENJED (the fruit of the oleander), SIRKEH (vinegar), SABZEH (herbs), and SEKEH (a coin). The ‘sabzeh” is grown from wheat or bean sprouts a couple of weeks before the actual day. They will also have live (gold)fish to represent new life and loadsa sweeties (to bring sweetness into their lives)The NOWROOZ table will be set with painted eggs, mirrors, candles, and a copy of the Koran. It is awfully pretty.

On the actual day it is important to start the New Year as you hope to go on - pink and scrubbed, in new clothes, relaxed and happy, with a clear conscience and surrounded by your very nearest and dearest. As the clock strikes you hug and congratulate everyone, and then eat some of the vast number of sweetmeats in front of you. Gifts and money are given, especially to children, money being distributed by the elders from the pages of the Koran. In Iran there is then a period of great festivity - businesses and schools close for two weeks, and the time is spent visiting friends and feasting.

Finally, on the thirteenth day after the New Year, the sabzeh (which should now have grown quite high) is tied by the members of the family, as each one recites their wishes for the coming year, and then tossed into moving water. Oh, and (in case you were worried) the goldfish are released into ponds or proper aquariums. That’s it. Have a good one.

A Guide to the Strangely Two Dimensional World of Middle Eastern Bread

Firstly let's get one thing straight - if you want Hovis, sliced, or baguettes, or a crusty cob...you're in the wrong shop.

Middle Eastern bread is flat. Mostly very flat, although some of it is allowed a little frivolous leavening. Every village, every household almost, has a secret traditional bread recipe - there are squillions of varieties of naan (as we say in the trade). And it is eaten with nearly every meal.

They are less prone to going mouldy than they are to drying out, so once you have opened your bread, keep it well wrapped up. All flat breads freeze beautifully.

This is just a wee listy-poos of the ones we sell at Persepolis...

Lavash: the most popular form of Iranian bread - usually very big and oblong. Tastes and looks like cardboard to the uninitiated. This is versatile stuff tho' as it may be eaten cold or toasted (don't overdo it on the toasting front as it turns to a crisp very quickly). And it is great for ripping, dipping, wrapping, dunking and fixing the wobble on the table. We have several varieties:

Hand-crafted tanoor bread (usually in a big pile at the front): we don't have this all the time as the baker is very lazy, so buy it when you see it. Usually around £2.49

Machine made lavash: smaller sheets, and cheaper: we have two sorts again, a plain one and one with saffron. £1.19/£1.39

Taftoon: slightly thicker than lavash, and usually amoeba-shaped. You need to warm this bread through - really lovely with dips and cheeses, and it also makes a good pizza base. £1.19 a pack.

Barberi: the thickest of the lot (although still a bare half inch thick). Persian ciabatta, for want of a better description. Spongy when cold, perfect when warm. Lovely bread for soups and winter suppers. The (female) shopkeepers favourite. Usually around £1.59. This baker is also very unreliable, so we can't guarantee always to have it in stock.

Noon Sangak: Persian stone-baked wholemeal bread. Yummy, but a bitch to keep fresh. So we don't - you will usually find it in the freezer. We fly ours in from Iran. From £1.99 according to pack size.

Khobez: Arabic round bread. Hollow inside like pitta, but bigger. And round. Not very nice cold - jolly nice hot. There are two sizes and we do sometimes get the wholemeal in as well when we think there are enough customers for it. Try splitting it and roasting a whole chicken inside. 59p/79p at the time of scribbling.

Pitta Bread: you don't really need us to tell you about this, or how useful it is. No freezer should be without a packet of this skulking therein - from unexpected parties to lazy suppers it's a dream. Fry it to switch continents and make great nachos. 30p a pack or 4 for a £1. Silly money.