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A recent petition signed by nearly 900 food professionals calling for a cease-fire raises, once again, questions of contested cuisines.
Theirs was an unlikely friendship.
Reem Kassis, who was born in Jerusalem and lives in Philadelphia, left high-paying work as a management consultant to write cookbooks. She is Palestinian, and her book “The Palestinian Table,” which she published in 2017, broke open a new national conversation about both the cuisine and the appropriation of its recipes.
Michael Solomonov, a chef who was born near Tel Aviv, was cooking Italian food in Philadelphia when a sniper killed his 21-year-old brother, an Israeli soldier who was patrolling on Yom Kippur. Mr. Solomonov, who is Jewish, dedicated himself to Israeli cuisine and opened Zahav in Philadelphia in 2008. The restaurant brought both him and Israeli food to national prominence, and he has since opened more than 20 restaurants.
Ms. Kassis nervously sent him a copy of her book. It shifted his perspective. The two became close friends, cooking together at his restaurant and in each other’s homes. They appeared together in magazine articles about cooking for the holidays and at events examining the role of food in national identity.
But now, they aren’t speaking.
“If anything,” Ms. Kassis said, “my experience of late has confirmed for me that food diplomacy does not work and that you cannot solve problems like the Israeli occupation of Palestine over the proverbial plate of hummus. Anyone who claims that is deflecting from the real work that needs to be done, first of a cease-fire, but in general, freedom for and equal rights for all Palestinians.”
Mr. Solomonov’s restaurant and a handful of others that offer Israeli cuisine have been targeted for a boycott by a group calling itself the Philly Palestine Coalition, a new organization whose only public profile is on Instagram. (Ms. Kassis is not affiliated with the group.) He is not speaking publicly about the issue.
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