chef Omar anani and the Saffron Community Kitchen

Chef Omar Anani is a Palestinian-Egyptian American restaurateur. He is the chef-owner of the James Beard-nominated Saffron De Twah, an award-winning modern Moroccan bistro on the eastside of Detroit. He is a two-time finalist for the James Beard Award for Best Chef - Great Lakes, with nominations in 2022 and 2023. His food truck, The Twisted Mitten, was the first halal food truck in Michigan and has been recognized as one of the best food trucks in the country by USA Today and the Food Network. In 2023, Chef Omar became a Chopped champion after competing on Chopped: All-American Showdown representing the North.

Chef Omar's culinary background includes a degree in culinary arts and experience at fine dining establishments including Michael Symon's Roast and in kitchens across the globe. His food trucks and brick-and-mortar restaurants have featured cuisine from multiple cultures, fusing flavors and textures from all around the world, and include the Fat Panda Kitchen truck, Jekyll and Slide burger joint, and Grill Billies, the first halal barbecue joint in the United States. 

In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Chef Omar launched the Saffron Community Kitchen initiative to provide meal relief to Detroiters in need. For his efforts, he was recognized by Hour Detroit magazine as one of ten "Hour Detroiters" who are enriching life across the region and was featured by the Detroit Free Press as a "Food Fighter." Saffron Community Kitchen has provided over a hundred thousand meals for Detroiters in need since 2020.

In 2022, Chef Omar became a member of the Chef Corps at World Central Kitchen. The Chef Corps is a global network of prominent culinary leaders who champion World Central Kitchen’s work providing fresh meals following crises.