Is Saffron Serving up a Side of Propaganda? [UPDATE, 8/8/12]
![pf button both Is Saffron Serving up a Side of Propaganda? [UPDATE, 8/8/12]](http://cdn.printfriendly.com/pf-button-both.gif "Is Saffron Serving up a Side of Propaganda? [UPDATE, 8/8/12]")
UPDATE: 8/8/2012, 9:38PM:
So it looks like Chef Wadi has caused quite a commotion with his map omitting Israel.
Here’s the play-by-play so far:
Chef Wadi of Saffron posts a map on his Facebook account that omits the country of Israel. After receiving many likes from his minions, Wadi comments that the map “is the way it should be.”
Uber-Chef, Minneapolis resident, and Big Jew Andrew Zimmern calls out Wadi on Twitter and asks for an explanation.
TCJewfolk.com picks up the story and receives dozens of comments – many from Pro-Palestinian/Anti-Israeli anonymous trolls.
Chef Stewart Woodman of Heidi’s and Birdhouse calls out Wadi on his blog and starts a comment thread discussion with him.
Jon Tevlin writes about the hoopla in the Star Tribune and mentions the article in TCJewfolk – increasing our traffic to Long Island Expressway standards.
Woodman and Wadi agree through blog comments to sit down over delicious things on September 24th to discuss the controversy.
I start my campaign to be invited to the aforementioned dinner.
Aly Raisman wins another gold medal for tumbling to Havah Negilah. She proceeds to give Jacques Rogge and the corrupt International Olympic Committee a big Jewish middle finger. American Jews rejoice and the leaflet of Famous Jewish Sports Legends increases by one.
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UPDATE, 8/3/2012, 1:30pm:
According to City Pages, Chef Wadi claims the map was something he posted on his personal Facebook page, which had nothing to do with his restaurant, Saffron, the Twitter handle he used to respond.
He further explained, “Of course I don’t deny the existence of israel, i’m merely showing the existence of palestine on the world map.”
This begs the question: he is the owner and chef of the restaurant, so how do we separate his personal opinions from his business?
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ORIGINAL POST
Only a few weeks ago, I went to Saffron Restaurant in Minneapolis with my wife and a few friends. It has been extremely well reviewed and I’ve only heard great things from people I know.
Beforehand, I looked at the menu and noticed that the heavy Palestinian influence. So right on the street, outside of Saffron, I pulled up this clip from the Palestinian Chicken episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm:
Funny, right?
Well, the meal was pretty damn good. And I really liked the place.
But yesterday, our own Andrew Zimmern posted something on Twitter that is truly disturbing. He actually re-tweeted something from Saffron’s Chef Wadi. It was a map of the Middle East with an obvious omission.
![zim3 Is Saffron Serving up a Side of Propaganda? [UPDATE, 8/8/12]](http://tcjewfolk.com/wp-content/uploads//2012/08/zim3.jpg "Chef AZ")
Click this link to see the image larger -http://instagram.com/p/N1OQYBIK5s/
Andrew Zimmern @andrewzimmern tweets: Sameh Wadi … Your joking right? Are you saying Israel doesn’t exist? Or shouldn’t? http://twitpic.com/aemyr7
And then AZ followed that up with this: @saffronmpls Care to explain your comment at top? Do you deny existence of Israel? Or just want it to go a http://instagr.am/p/N1OQYBIK5s/
The clip above is a little less funny to me now. I surely gave Wadi the benefit of the doubt that he could just own and run a great restaurant without throwing politics into the tagine.
No response from Wadi yet, but he better watch out. Zimmern’s influence goes far beyond the Twin Cities. In the meantime, no Saffron for me. What about you?
Filed Under: Noshin'
“Chef Wadi’s heritage is Palestinian.”
Hmm. Something wrong here.
Chef Wadi’s heritage is Arab.”
There. Fixed.
Doesn’t sound right.
“It is a sad day in America when Jews have the temerity to criticize a business owner, who works hard to build a thriving establishment like Saffron, when he erases a sovereign nation from the map.
He is a Arab American who uses not only his culinary training but his cultural training to become a successful chef. We see it in his food when he pays tribute to his Arab upbringing.
He should not be condemned for his support for the non-existence of the homeland of the Jews – he should be applauded! Because without a voice we are all merely sheep following the masses. We would have to allow the Jews to be in possession of al-Quds, which, as we all know, if an Islamic waqf, irrespective of Surah 5:21 in which Allah ordained the Israelites to take possession of the Holy Land.
If people don’t like his food then don’t go there, but don’t choose not to patronize his establishment because he doesn’t believe that Jews should have a right of self-determination, living as a free people in their own country. Shame on all those who sit back and allow al-Yahood to assert their rights.”
There. Fixed.
Please people stop using the word ‘antisemitism’ to describe anti-Jewish sentiments! Technically only Arabs and Sephardi Jews are Semitic! Another thing, it’s your prerogative to boycott a great restaurant with outstanding food and service because the word “Palestine” bothers you, but I wonder how you’d feel if the world boycotted Coca Cola, Starbucks and all Pro-zionist corporations based on bigotry!
Mina wrote:
“…I wonder how you’d feel if the world boycotted Coca Cola, Starbucks and all Pro-zionist corporations based on bigotry!”
Go ahead. While you’re at it, stop using all modern operating systems to post to Jewish websites and start using command line Unix. Oh wait – that was also created by the kuffar.
Oh, forget it.
Please note that Israel is NOT omitted in this map. It is represented by the circled number 2 in the same way that Lebanon is represented by the number 3 and all of the Balkans are circled numbers as well. Somewhere out of frame on the map/globe is a key that lists Lebanon, Israel, and all of the other countries that were marked by number due to a lack of space.
Reminder to self: Palestine has not existed as a geo-political entity since 1948 and has never been an independent, self-governing country.
And it takes up less space to indicate the sovereign nation of Israel (six letters) than a non-existent Palestine (nine letters).
Would it make you happy if I just called Wadi’s words and actions Anti-Jewish? OK then, Wadi’s words and actions appear to be Anti-Jewish. Feel better?
The word Palestine doesn’t bother me (and some of the other commentors) – it’s the explicit implication that Israel should not exist.
Let’s go back to calling it just plain ol’ Judenhass. That will preclude any of their arguments about the definition of semitic.
Today’s one-liner: Arab Islamists want to designate themselves with a name given by the pagan Romans.
Go figure.
Mina says:
August 19, 2012 at 10:11 PM
“Please people stop using the word ‘antisemitism’ to describe anti-Jewish sentiments! Technically only Arabs and Sephardi Jews are Semitic! ”
Oh boy. Here we go again with the Khazar theories!!! At least this time an allowance is made for Sephardim.
I am from Belarus, and carry a Familial Mediterranean Fever gene marker. My buddy, also from Belarus, with a last name “Kaganer”, carries a Cohen gene.
Is this semitic enough for you???
Near as I can tell, my ancestors came from Spain around the time of expulsions in 1492, via Netherlands, Germany, Poland and Lithuania before landing in Belarus.
Ashkenazi Jews are not blood descendants of Khazars, who were turkic people, and who did not migrate to Western Russia after the destruction of their Khazanat.