The childhood of a chef: Omar Dhiab, a sure talent

When, at the age of 14, Omar Dhiab announced to his parents that he wanted to become a chef, they were astonished: “I had never spent time in the kitchen or touched a pan in my life! They were convinced that I wouldn’t last very long…”

History would quickly prove them wrong, as young Omar went on to have a flawless academic career, followed by successful experiences in some very fine establishments (including a very formative apprenticeship at the Train Bleu, and various positions in several Michelin-starred restaurants, including the Pavillon Ledoyen and the Shangri-La). From a very young age, Omar always loved eating.

As a child, when he heard his father, a chef in brasseries in the Paris suburbs, come home late after work, he slipped out of bed to spend some time with him: “He would bring his lunch box home from work, and I would come and dig in.” Although at that time, Omar was not (yet) making a splash behind the stove, he was already spending a lot of time in restaurants. His parents were divorced, and on weekends, he and his brother often joined their
father at his workplace: “I really liked this very lively bistro atmosphere, with the white paper tablecloths and serrated knives.”

Family Feasts

Due to lack of time, with a full-time job as a manager in mass distribution, Omar Dhiab’s mother “cooks little, but very well”. It is also his incredible recipe for orange blossom semolina cake that the chef serves as a delicacy in his restaurant, and which he reveals in our pages. “I wanted to stand out by offering something rustic, while sharing a part of my intimacy. It’s a way of telling who I am.”

When it comes to Sunday get-togethers, it’s his aunt, a true cordon bleu, who treats the whole family (about fifteen people in total). “Her chicken meatballs are extraordinary, I called her to give me her tips,” he admits with a smile. “She serves them with couscous, but you can also eat them on their own. They’re magical.” The last Proust madeleine that the chef wanted to share in our pages: Egyptian salad. “It’s a dish that you find in all the restaurants in Cairo, and which is prepared in advance. The ingredients are seasoned with chili and spices… And to accompany it, you can drink this vegetable juice disgorged in salt and lemon, we call it a glass of whisky. My father often made it at home.” A cocktail that also works to toast all the future successes of this inspiring chef.

Bio express

1988 Born in Vitry-sur-Seine.
2006 CAP cuisine in Paris.
2019 Chef at the Michelin-starred restaurant Loiseau Rive Gauche.
2022 Opening of the Omar Dhiab Restaurant, which obtained its first star a few months later.

Omar Dhiab Restaurant
23 rue Hérold
Paris 1st
(01 42 33 52 47)

https://omardhiab.com/