Despite still being in her twenties, Em Sherif’s group executive chef is leading the way in showcasing Lebanese gastronomy on the international stage. The newly crowned MENA’s Best Female Chef 2025 discusses working with her mother, her democratic deli concept and why she loves going to work
Yasmina Hayek’s childhood was characterised by the sounds and smells of her mother cooking Lebanese dishes from scratch in the kitchen at their family home in Beirut.
“I grew up around beautiful tables, excellent meals and happy bellies,” she says. There was a spell where Hayek considered training as a doctor, but a hospital internship put that idea to rest, and food lured her back in. “The kitchen is definitely a happier lab to be in.” Besides, the culinary arts gives her the best of all worlds: “Being a chef mixes food, art, science, travel, openness and curiosity – there’s really so many things you get from it.”
During her late teens and early twenties, Hayek first studied at what was formerly the Institut Paul Bocuse in France, now Institut Lyfe, before honing her craft in Michelin-starred kitchens in Paris and Copenhagen, working under the tutelage of top chefs such as Mathieu Pacaud and Jea- François Piège. She later obtained a master’s degree in Food Design in Milan. “Each experience really taught me something different. I grew personally and it really shaped my personality and who I am today – including what I like and what I don't like about the food industry,” she says.
However, it wasn’t until an economic and political crisis engulfed Lebanon in 2019, that Hayek knew she wanted to channel that passion and education into preserving her country’s food heritage and culture. “It tilted my head and I realised more than ever the impact of preserving our roots and our cultural heritage,” she says. “That’s how I shifted into working in Lebanese food. I felt that, as a young woman in the food industry, if I’m not the one who’s going to transform and take my local food culture to this other level and export it worldwide, who will?” 
Em Sherif was opened by Hayek’s mother, Mireille (above right), in 2011
And where better than from within the family business? Em Sherif Group was set up by her mother, Mireille, in 2011: a self-trained home cook, Mireille opened fine-dining restaurant La Parilla in Beirut in 2006, followed by an Indian fusion concept named after her daughter three years late, and then the now-flagship Em Sherif restaurant. In the years following, Mireille and the family expanded the concept across the Middle East.
Known for elevating simple classics like hummus (Em Sherif’s version takes 36 hours) and reworking ancient dishes rarely cooked in other Lebanese kitchens, the restaurant group has proved the perfect place from which Hayek can challenge any misconceptions that the cuisine doesn’t deserve its spot in the gastronomic landscape.
“There's a big lack of awareness towards Lebanese food, but I'm happy to invite anyone into our kitchen to see how long it takes to prepare every single dish,” she says. “It's very labour intensive, there are very long hours of preparation. I feel like the way Lebanese restaurants have branded themselves doesn't always reflect the way our culture is. And this is something I want to show to the world. I want to show the beautiful part of Lebanon, the Lebanon I grew up in.”
Hayek wants to showcase the best of Lebanon through her dishes
There were some mild growing pains when the mother-daughter duo first began working together, admits Hayek. “I had my way of seeing things and there was some conflict. I had different ambitions back then. But then I thought: ‘she’s so successful, there’s a reason why people love her product, and it’s up to me to find a middle ground where I can meet her.’” Now she says she and Mireille are the “best partners at work, we love working with each other. She built this [business] on her own as a home cook. Now, my challenge is to take things to another level and make what she did even bigger and better.”
Hayek didn’t hang around before making her mark. Soon after being named Em Sherif Group’s executive head chef, she was overseeing the opening of its first European outpost in Harrods. Located on the store’s second floor, each aspect of the 80-seat restaurant had to be painstakingly designed. Bespoke decorative tiles in rich blues were affixed to walls and chair backs were intricately embroidered with motifs designed to capture Lebanese heritage.
The creation of the a la carte menu, which includes wagyu hummus, sea bass shawarma and muhallabiya milk pudding, proved a steep learning curve in balancing European tastes and strict protocols with working in a destination like Harrods, says Hayek. “It was a challenge! It was my first opening, and I learned a lot.”
As executive chef, Hayek is involved in everything from menu creation to staff training
She has had plenty of opportunities to apply those lessons in the years since. The Em Sherif group now operates 24 outlets, four directly owned in Lebanon and 20 franchises. Its sub-brands include Em Sherif Restaurant, Em Sherif Café, Em Sherif Sea Café, and Em Sherif Deli – its latest addition. Hayek is involved in every aspect, from menu creation and execution to creative direction and training.
It isn’t always easy to oversee such a large portfolio, she admits. “It's definitely a huge challenge but our team is growing, and we've always grown as a family and not like a chain. We’re involved in every restaurant; we travel to every opening and we're involved in every step of the road.”
That includes tailoring their offer for each outlet. Ahead of the group’s opening in Oman in October, for example, Hayek developed a tailormade mashboos dish with Omani lobster and a bespoke hrisseh, a wheat porridge famous in both regions that “created a bridge between both cultures” using slow-cooked lamb shank and sage. Hayek’s involvement extends far beyond the menu, too. “Food isn’t only about what you find on a plate, it’s everything that comes with it too. It’s the music, it’s what what you smell, touch and even see on a screen. It’s everything – and that’s what I do.”
The latest addition to Em Sherif’s prestigious portfolio – and Hayek’s self-confessed baby – is its deli concept. The flagship store opened in Beirut’s New Starco Building in March as an all-day dining eatery with speciality coffee, sandwiches, salad bowls, mezze and desserts. Grab-and-go shelves are lined with jars of Em Sherif branded spices and jams, and cold-pressed juices.
The Em Sherif group now operates 24 outlets in total across the Middle East, North Africa and Europe
“I always believed there was a lack within the deli category for Lebanese food,” says Hayek. “We have a lot of street food, but it never looked clean and tidy, it never reflected a lifestyle. I wanted to create a deli where you could casually grab a sandwich, work from your PC with a coffee or pop by after your workouts. We even throw parties here, with DJs playing vinyl on top of the fridges with shawarma spinning in the back.”
The deli concept is already a hit and, crucially, it’s also opening up Em Sherif to a new audience. “We’re able target a different clientele that we didn't have in Em Sherif – a younger, hipper clientele.” Already there are new outlets planned for 2025 across the region.
After that, Hayek isn’t sure exactly where her mission to showcase Lebanese food to the rest of the world will take her. She mentions she would love to write a cookbook at some point. For now, she’s feeling grateful for everything she’s achieved so far – including being voted MENA’s Best Female Chef 2025 – and all before she has even turned 30 years old.
“I’m so thankful to have this privilege to work in my family business. I love what I do, and I’m excited every single day to go to work. And that’s something I’d wish for everyone to have.”
Meet Yasmina Hayek in the video:
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