Serj Tankian Eats His Last Meal

Episode Overview

Serj Tankian joins a Mythical Kitchen host for a three-course “last meal.” Armenian and Middle Eastern food prompt a wide-ranging conversation about music, family, activism, grief, and mortality.

First Course: Chi Kofte

The meal begins with chi kofte, which reminds Serj of the special raw-beef dish his mother made on Saturdays when he was growing up in Lebanon. He talks about moving from vegetarianism to pescatarianism and, recently, back to eating meat.

The host also thanks him for making chives sound like a normal pizza topping through a System of a Down lyric. Serj admits he has no idea why he put them in the song.

Food, Family, and Activism

A story about Anthony Bourdain sets the tone for the episode’s deeper discussions. Serj once emailed Bourdain to ask why he hadn’t visited Armenia. Bourdain replied within minutes, and the two eventually traveled there together. Serj recalls how food opened the door to conversations about culture and geopolitics.

He reflects on borders as human-made constructs, his promise to help raise awareness of the Armenian Genocide, and how his family’s history shaped him.

Over tabbouleh, eetch, and manti, Serj discusses the push and pull between activism and music in System of a Down, arguing that tension can make a band’s work more compelling. He praises music’s power to expose listeners to new ideas, while worrying that streaming has weakened the shared musical discovery once provided by radio and record stores.

Serj also recounts learning that Turkish intelligence had tracked him after he advocated for recognition of the Armenian Genocide. He says the danger and anger sometimes fueled his performances. When it comes to telling the truth, he says he can’t imagine publicly saying something he doesn’t believe.

Banana Terracotta Pie and Art

The show’s strangest dish is a banana terracotta pie, inspired by an intentionally absurd lyric. Serj says people often try to find a hidden metaphor in it, but he enjoys connecting things that have no obvious relationship. The host jokingly suggests the pie could become an art piece.

Their conversation turns to how humor and silliness can make serious messages more powerful. Serj also describes a project pairing music with his paintings so audiences can experience visual art through multiple senses.

Loss and Creativity

The most emotional section centers on loss. Serj talks about friends who died by suicide, including his friend Paul and musician Chris Cornell, and says the reasons can remain impossible to understand. He urges people to reach out when a friend seems hopeless.

At the same time, he pushes back against the idea that great art must come from misery. Creativity, he says, can simply be something you practice and love.

Final Course: Armenian Cheese Pastry and Coffee

Over Armenian cheese pastry and coffee, Serj remembers being a child during the Lebanese Civil War and sheltering from bombs. He reflects on the trauma children face in conflict zones and describes the elation of Armenia’s peaceful Velvet Revolution.

His children give him hope. He also points to small acts of kindness—and a fan-funded effort that raised meals for underserved children—as meaningful ways to make change.

Asked what happens after death, Serj mentions near-death experiences but says he isn’t afraid to die. What he fears is leaving his children without a father.

Lightning Round and Coffee-Cup Reading

In the lightning round, Serj:

• Picks his wife as his ideal last-meal companion.
• Names Tom Waits as a dream collaborator.
• Says he regrets selling his software company.
• Jokes that he’d like professional mourners at his funeral.
• Says happiness is a choice.

The episode closes with coffee-cup fortune reading. Serj’s cup supposedly predicts “four more” System of a Down albums in the 2030s, while he reads a family-and-book scene in the host’s coffee grounds.

Personalities Appearing

• Serj Tankian
• The Mythical Kitchen host
• Nicole, credited with making the banana terracotta pie