October 7th Survivor Opens 'Taboonia' Restaurant in Chelsea for Healing

From Trauma to Table: A Survivor's Story

• 🎯 Raif Rashed, a survivor of the October 7th terror attack at the Nova Music Festival, has opened a restaurant named Taboonia in Chelsea, Manhattan.
• 💡 Rashed, an engineer by training, views opening the restaurant as a crucial part of his healing process from the traumatic events.

The Taboonia Experience

• 🥘 Taboonia, named after the Middle Eastern taboon oven, offers authentic food, with the zatar and olive oil highlighted as particularly amazing.
• 💬 Rashed, who speaks Arabic, Hebrew, and English, aims to foster peace through food, inviting people to discuss cuisine rather than politics.
• 🌍 The restaurant embraces diversity, with Rashed having a Lebanese partner, a Syrian employee, and customers from all faiths and backgrounds.

Building Bridges Through Cuisine

• 🤝 Rashed believes in the universal language of food and its power to connect people, stating, "why not all the world like that?"
• 🚧 While awaiting city permission to use the taboon oven and obtain kosher designation, Rashed continues to build bridges one dish at a time.