1. Zebra Mildliner Highlighters.
Pairs well with a lengthy to-do list and our ILLY Cappuccino
2. Appointed Notebook
Pairs well with a pen, all of your big big ideas and our Savory Thing Box
3. Ceremony Coffee
Pairs well with our flaky, sweet and crunchy Baklava Croissant
4. Candlefish Candle
Pairs well with our bright, fresh and energized Burrata + Arugula Salad
5. Elowen Swivel Desk Chair
Pairs well with our Spanish inspired and colorful Catalan Tapas Grazing Box
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Makes: 1.5 cups | 6 servings
For More Information contact us today!
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How did you learn to cook?
I actually did not attend culinary school…I apprenticed with 2 amazing Chefs: Joel Findlay of 302 West in Geneva Illinois and Francoise Sanchez of Emilio’s Granada.
You start prepping in the kitchen in the wee hours of the morning, what helps you kick-start your day?
To kickstart my day: I like to drink water, take my Fish oil pills and do a little stretching. Coffee or Tea Coffee definitely, I am Ethiopian at the end of the day. Ethiopia is where coffee is from.
Where are you from?
I was originally born in Ethiopia. My father was the Chief Communications Officer for the Peacekeeping missions in the United Nations, so I was a diplomat’s daughter. I grew up in Ethiopia, Egypt, Pakistan, Cyprus, Syria and Iran.
Five ingredients you can’t live without?
Garlic, Salt, Pepper, Berbere, Ginger
Savory or sweet?
Savory
What is your favorite thing to cook v. dining out?
My favorite thing to cook is grilled seafood on a summer day. But when I’m eating out it’s Kitfo: Ethiopian Steak Tartare made tableside.
The Chef you admire the most?
Paul Khan from the now closed Blackbird restaurant in Chicago.
Describe your cooking style in three words.
Healthy, Global, Bold
Have you ever opened a restaurant?
Yes! I was hired by Chef Maher to go to Lebanon Beirut to open Otium as its Executive Chef. We were to stay there 6 months. But, I stayed 6 years.
I continued to open restaurants from ground up: designing kitchens, choosing equipment, hiring staff, setting up purveyors. Though I spoke Arabic, this was definitely a challenge as at this time the restaurant industry was not established. I usually worked with small farms and fishermen that visited me every morning: I would then create my menu for the evening. Items like chocolate were flown in twice a week from France as were the wines.
In the 6 years I lived and worked in Beirut Lebanon I opened: