Nestled on a quiet residential street in Culver City, Jackson Market and Deli serves more than just food. Even in the middle of a Monday afternoon, customers can be seen greeting the owners on their way in with a touching familiarity — friends rather than patrons. 

Owners Fawaz Istwani and Nick Conner have created a space that supports relief efforts in Palestine through fundraising and events, and offers their neighbors a place for community.

The market first opened in 1925 as a convenience-type store offering gas station snacks and limited goods. Though the market is now a breath of fresh air amid the bustle of Los Angeles, it was initially shaped by an unwelcoming environment and a focus on profits.

Istwani first encountered Jackson Market and Deli in 2000, after leaving Santa Barbara where his parents owned a market and was frustrated that he could not find a job. 

“I wanted to work; the guy was gonna sell,” Istwani said. “It wasn’t doing well, [it was a] dumpy store. I mean, it was linoleum floors. There [was] nothing like this.”

Cigarettes and lottery tickets were a staple of the initial market, but in the following 26 years, Istwani and Conner turned toward sandwiches. Ultimately, the enterprise transformed into a permanent fixture within the local community. More than just a restaurant, the ethos of Jackson Market centers on giving back and offering a place for everyone.

“We keep improving the space, and that’s really well received,” Conner said. “We try to do a lot to support local schools. … We do a really healthy discount for all the city workers and police [and] the fire department. [We] do fundraisers for the schools [and] basketball team, and it’s a community store.”

For Istwani, the store was never about making the most amount of money; it’s meant to be a place where customers should feel like guests in a home. 

“The more [we] kept putting back into the property, rather than just taking the profit … in the long term, [that] builds up a lot of goodwill, a lot of repeat customers,” Conner said. “We watch kids grow up, and in some cases, that makes me feel old, but at the same time, it’s really cool, because you just see how it keeps circulating.”

In 2023, the market’s focus shifted slightly when Istwani realized the potential the business had in raising awareness about the war in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis affecting Palestinians. 

Istwani, whose family was originally from Palestine, said he saw how selective news coverage was and he felt there was a general lack of knowledge regarding the region’s history — especially after the start of the Israel-Hamas war — which meant that many of his neighbors and peers had no framework to understand the current war. 

“A lot of people don’t even know what Palestine is,” Istwani said. “I had to talk. I had to tell people the story, because kids are dying.”

Since then, Jackson Market has hosted fundraisers for relief in Palestine and Sudan and documentary screenings of films like “No Other Land” (2024) and “Palestine 1920: The Other Side of the Palestinian Story” (2022). They’ve even held dialogues with organizations like Human Library, a Denmark-based nonprofit organization that helps provide a forum for difficult conversations. In September 2024, the market announced that 24% of its proceeds that year would be donated to mutual aid efforts in Gaza. 

The market also played a role in a 2023 resolution approved by the Culver City Council, “condemning the recent attacks on Israel and standing in solidarity with Israel and its people.” The resolution, passed two weeks after the Oct. 7 attack, made two mentions of Palestinian casualties, but for Istwani and Conner, it was still skewed.

“They’ve been killing Palestinians and now, after Oct. 7, why don’t we protect both?” Istwani said. “We were very angry. How can our city automatically pass it?”

Only three people spoke in support of the resolution, according to Istwani, one of them being a prior patron of Jackson Market, who no longer comes due to the Palestinian flag in the market’s back patio.

“He used to be one of our best customers,” Istwani said. 

Alongside organizations such as Jewish Voice for Peace and Not in My Name, the market brought over 400 people to the Culver City Council to petition a resolution calling for a ceasefire in the region. However, the council still would not adopt the ceasefire resolution. 

For the most part, Jackson Market’s political advocacy has received positive responses from customers, according to Istwani. Their involvement has garnered the attention of patrons from well outside of Culver City, with visitors traveling from Orange County, West L.A. and the like coming to eat. 

“The ambience is definitely one of the biggest [draws],” said Alice Medrano, an L.A.-based artist. “I did notice that the workers are wearing ‘Free Palestine’ shirts, and I definitely like that aspect of it as well. … I’d like to see [political engagement] from more businesses and more people, just in general.” 

For Khalid Doufesh, a Westchester resident, part of the draw of coming back to Jackson Market is that it is Palestinian-owned.  

“[I’m] just supporting my people,” Doufesh said. 

Heritage is a key aspect of Istwani’s work and political involvement. 

“[Palestine] was there for thousands of years,” Istwani said. “My name goes back 1,000 years. My last name Istwani means ‘circle.’ We used to sit in a circle and make peace among our tribe. I exist. You check my DNA, I go back to that land.”

But the restaurant has also faced backlash. Most weeks, they are audited based on false complaints about rats or their appliances, according to the owners. 

“We’ve had attacks on us,” Istwani said. “They called the health department on us. They called the city on us … because we’re pro-Palestine.”

Despite the controversy now surrounding the restaurant, owners Istwani and Conner feel proud of the work they have done. 

“Part of what I didn’t realize is how it creates a space for people right here to come together that are affected by these things,” Conner said. “It takes a lot to do it. You don’t find places like this too often, because you have to leverage a lot, be willing to sacrifice a lot just in case, but we’ve been really blessed.”