Wednesday, November 17 at 12 pm ET
Free with suggested $10 donation

Join Mike Solomonov and Hélène Jawhara Piñer for a conversation on Sephardic history and culinary traditions as the two master chefs celebrate the release of the second edition of Jawhara-Piñer’s book, SEPHARDI. As Chef Solomonov said in his review, “Sephardi is truly the only cookbook of its kind…Mazel Bueno to Sephardi!”

About the Chefs

Hélène Jawhara Piñer is a PhD in Medieval History and the History of Food. She was awarded the American Sephardi Federation’s Broome and Allen Fellowship in 2018 in recognition of her impressive academic accomplishments and service of the Sephardic community. Her research interests are the medieval culinary history of Spain through inter and multiculturalism with a special focus on the Jewish culinary heritage written in Arabic. From Barcelona, Santa Barbara, Bar-Ilan University in Israel and beyond, Piñer has given lectures on subjects such as Reflections on the Jewish heritage according to the Kitab al-tabih, “Jewish cuisine in old cookbooks of the Iberian Peninsula”, “Jews and Muslims at the Table” and much more.

Michael Solomonov is a beloved champion of Israel’s extraordinarily diverse and vibrant culinary landscape.  He is co-owner of CookNSolo Restaurants with hospitality entrepreneur, Steve Cook.  Together they own Philadelphia’s Zahav, the trailblazing restaurant where Solomonov is Chef, which has put the rich melting pot of Israeli cuisine at the forefront of dining in America today.  Solomonov is the co-author of three cookbooks, and the recipient of the following James Beard awards: 2011 “Best Chef, Mid-Atlantic”, 2016 “Best International Cookbook” and “Book of the Year” for his and business partner/co-author Steve Cook’s best-selling cookbook, Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking, and the 2017 “Outstanding Chef.”  In 2018, Zahav was recognized by Food & Wine Magazine as one of “The 40 Most Important Restaurants of the Past 40 Years” and in May of 2019, Zahav was awarded “Outstanding Restaurant” by the James Beard Foundation, making Zahav the first Israeli-American restaurant to be awarded this great honor. In addition to his work at Zahav, Chef Solomonov co-owns Philadelphia’s Federal Donuts, Dizengoff, Abe Fisher, and Goldie. In July of 2019, Solomonov brought another major slice of Israeli food culture to Philadelphia with K’Far, an Israeli bakery & café named for his hometown just outside of Tel Aviv. In November of 2019, Solomonov opened Merkaz, an Israeli pita sandwich shop, and in February of 2020 opened Laser Wolf, an Israeli skewer house.  Outside of the restaurants, you can often find Mike with Steve at Pho 75, working out the kinks in their Israeli village, or with family.

Purchase the Books

Interested in purchasing a copy of the book for yourself or as a gift? Visit our online Museum Store and order your copies of books by Jawhara-Piñer and Solomonov today.