How are US sanctions affecting Iran? This Dubai hotel has the answer

The restaurant occupies the first floor of an old building in Deira, Dubai's original commercial center and for decades the heart of the Iranian business community

Anyone wanting to gauge Donald Trump’s success in isolating Iran would do well to study the menu at Maryam Sharifi’s restaurant in Dubai.

Iranian businessmen are leaving the city as links with the Islamic Republic are slowly severed, and in July, she began offering pasta and biryani alongside Persian favorites like kebabs and saffron rice to attract a broader clientele. “We had to train our cook to make different dishes,” said Sharifi, an Iranian who moved to Dubai 12 years ago.

The Homa Iranian eatery’s changing fortunes highlight the U.A.E’s crucial role in enforcing US sanctions on Iran, a historic trade partner