The time-honored tradition of bread-baking has been challenged by the ease of processed foods, and the art of baking is not what it once was. In Saudi Arabia, where chain restaurants and fast-food are growing in popularity, few have spoken out on behalf of the value of fresh foods and baked goods before they disappear. One exception is visiting chef, Badr Fayez, who has single-handedly been setting new standards of excellence in Saudi Arabia’s food and beverage industry. Just as Portland chefs have done in the U.S., Fayez is working to redefine food culture in his own country by emphasizing the importance of sustainable and ethical ingredients.
“It doesn’t matter what the flour is like, it is how you work with it that matters,” Fayez says. Applying his mentality in the kitchen to society, visiting Chef Badr Fayez will sit alongside Tabor Bread’s owner Tissa Stein, freelance food writer Heather Arndt Anderson, and People’s Food Co-op’s Sofie Sherman-Burton to compare and contrast the Saudi and American experiences on how to work with communities to inspire a cultural shift about the art of cooking with fresh ingredients, and the place of bread in our diets.