Ragab Rashwan

Comments Off | June 2, 2013

Cuisine: Egyptian

Ragab was born in a village in southern Egypt on the Nile River. He grew up intimately connected with the food he ate, planting, tending and harvesting more than a dozen crops on his family farm. He appreciated the full, complex flavors of homegrown delicacies so much that he earned a reputation for mischief, sneaking into his uncles’ gardens to swipe prize watermelon or cucumber.

As a young man, Ragab traveled to Cairo, a city of millions. After working in restaurants, bakeries, and five star hotels, he eventually set up his own coffee shop downtown. Missing connection to food and communal eating in this vast metropolis, Ragab began cooking large meals on a burner in his coffee shop and sharing them with the other shopkeepers on the block, especially on Fridays and holidays. He recreated many simple but authentic flavors learned from his mother and aunts that were nowhere to be found in Cairo.

After moving to the U.S. in 2010, Ragab’s dream to run a food establishment led him to create the Falafel Factory food truck last year. At Newark-based Falafel Factory, he grinds the falafel batter daily using copious amounts of fresh green herbs and spices, just as he would if he was still in his village in Egypt. Ragab hopes to one day acquire a bricks and mortar restaurant and expand the menu even more.