Assaf Granit runs more than 30 restaurants across seven countries, holds a Michelin star in Paris, and serves as EL AL's executive chef.
Assaf Granit is a Jerusalem-born chef who owns and operates more than 30 restaurants across seven countries, including Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Paris, London, Berlin, and St. Barts. His Paris restaurant Shabour has held a Michelin star since January 2021, retaining it for five consecutive years as of 2025. Granit also serves as executive chef for EL AL Airlines, overseeing menus served on the airline's flights.
Who Is Assaf Granit?
Assaf Granit was born in the Rasco neighborhood of Jerusalem in 1978. His defining career moment came at age 28 while working at Masarik, a restaurant in Jerusalem's German Colony, when he was unexpectedly asked to prepare a salad for a customer after the regular cook stepped away.
Granit opened his first restaurant, Machneyuda, in Jerusalem in 2009 alongside chef Uri Navon. The restaurant became known for seasonal, market-driven menus reflecting Jerusalem's diverse culinary influences, and it served as the foundation for Granit's later international expansion.
How Did Assaf Granit Build a 30-Restaurant Group?
Granit's international expansion began in 2014 with The Palomar in London's Soho district, his first venture outside Israel. He followed with Berta in Berlin, drawing on his family's Polish and German heritage, and Balagan in Paris in 2017.
Granit opened Shabour in Paris in 2019, a 22-seat restaurant blending seasonal French ingredients with Jerusalem-style seasoning. The restaurant received a Michelin star in January 2021, becoming the first Michelin star awarded to an Israeli restaurant in France, and has retained the star every year since. Granit shares ownership of Shabour with chefs Uri Navon, Dan Yosha, and Tomer Lanzman.
Why Does Granit Also Work for EL AL Airlines?
Granit leads the culinary program for EL AL Airlines as head chef, a role in which he is responsible for designing the menus served on the airline's flights. The partnership extends Granit's restaurant-honed style to a mass-market setting far removed from his 22-seat Paris flagship.
Granit has also become a television presence in Israel, hosting the Israeli version of Kitchen Nightmares, and he appeared as a guest judge on Top Chef France, the first time in the show's 14-year run that an Israeli chef received the invitation. His path to international recognition parallels the trajectory of Raz Shabtai's Michelin-starred Mutra in Miami, another Israeli-born chef who built a following before formal recognition arrived.
What Is Next for Granit's Restaurant Group?
Granit has said that feedback from Michelin following Shabour's fifth consecutive star suggested a second star may be within reach in future editions of the guide. He marked the fifth-year milestone by opening his first Instagram account, after years of avoiding social media entirely.
Granit's restaurant group continues to expand beyond its original Jerusalem and Paris bases, with recent additions including Shana in Paris, developed with JLM Group. The pattern mirrors the international ambitions of other kosher-adjacent hospitality founders, including Albert Allaham's Reserve Cut expansion plans for Tel Aviv and Miami. Additional entries in The Kosher Economy series track similar founders building cross-border kosher hospitality brands.
Sources
- Ynetnews, "Israeli chef Assaf Granit retains Michelin Star for Paris restaurant for fifth straight year"
- The Times of Israel, "Classic Jerusalem cuisine earns Assaf Granit a Michelin star"
- The Jerusalem Post, "Israeli chef Assaf Granit's Paris restaurant receives Michelin star"
- Michelin Guide official site, Shabour restaurant listing, Paris
- BILLIONAIRE Magazine (BLLNR), "Silk Road Treasures"
- Assaf Granit official site
