Chef Tareq Taha
Combining Tradition and Modernity
I was born and raised in Jerusalem in a house where preparing food is an expression of love. I’m the son of a dedicated mother whose food is nothing less than divine and a father who’s a second-generation hummus maker.
Growing up, I never thought of cooking as a future profession. I always wanted to be a designer or an artist. After finishing high school, a coincidence led me to Bethlehem University, and in 2010 I graduated with a degree in hotel management. During my studies, I remember how I fell in love with cooking and pastry arts, and from that moment I decided to take this to the next level. I started following my dream to become a professional chef. I applied to Notre Dame of Jerusalem Center culinary school to get professional training. I started my first job in pastry then moved to the kitchen and worked as a cook for a few years followed by professional cooking and pastry courses in Jerusalem and France. A series of random experiences from teaching to consulting to menu development helped me develop my skills. At the age of 28, I got my first job as a head chef.
Throughout my career, I have had the opportunity to work alongside some respected chefs such as Ibrahim Abu Seir, Johnny Goric, and Joseph Asfour. My passion for cooking has mixed with my pastry skills, and I’ve developed a style of cooking that combines tradition and modernity, highlighting vegetarian and vegan Palestinian dishes. One of my signature dishes is fried kubbeh topped with lemon caviar; another is crispy tabbouleh served over puffed rice paper.
This year I participated as a contestant in Top Chef, one of the biggest cooking shows in the Arab World, and I took third place.
My dream as a chef is to put modern Palestinian cuisine on the culinary world map. On a personal level, I dream to travel the world.
