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Season 11 continues with a story shaped by culture, curiosity, and a woman who sees food as memory, craft, and connection.
Leen Al Zaben grew up between Jordanian Bedouin hospitality and the fresh, seasonal cooking of her grandmother’s kitchen. Big salads, olive oil, Friday breakfasts, and long family tables. Those early moments became the foundation of her palate and the way she understands flavor.
Her path was never straight. She studied business, tried multiple careers, moved cities, felt lost, and often doubted herself. But writing, photography, and a quiet pull toward food kept finding their way back to her. From Amman to Montreal to Paris to San Francisco, each chapter pushed her closer to the work she was meant to do.
A blog she started one summer opened doors. Teaching herself photography opened more. A chance introduction in San Francisco led her into a food tech startup where she built content, tested recipes, and literally taught an oven how to cook.
Then came Japan. Quiet streets during COVID. Markets, donabe cooking, miso, rice, tea houses. A new universe of discipline and craft.
Today Leen is the Academy Chair for The World’s 50 Best Restaurants and MENA’s 50 Best. She champions homegrown talent, documents culture, and brings a thoughtful, grounded voice to the region’s culinary story.
This episode is honest, generous, reflective, and full of the moments that shape a career.
What You Will Hear in This Episode
• Growing up between Bedouin hospitality, family cooking, and early food memories
• The salads, textures, and seasons that shaped her palate
• Feeling lost in her early twenties and the long search for direction
• Why writing and creative expression changed everything
• The blog that quietly kickstarted her food career
• How photography and content work became her entry point into the industry
• Moving to San Francisco and working at a food tech startup
• Discovering Japan, cooking traditions, and learning through stillness
• How she became Academy Chair for 50 Best and what the role really involves
• The future of Middle Eastern cuisine and her message to young chefs and writers
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
04:00 Bedouin hospitality, grandma’s salads, and childhood food stories
12:00 How seasons shaped her palate and love for fresh ingredients
18:00 Career confusion, studying business, and feeling completely lost
26:00 The mentor who changed everything and the move toward writing
30:00 Oxford, the blog, and teaching herself photography
38:00 San Francisco and joining a food tech startup
55:00 Life in Japan during COVID and learning Japanese cooking
67:00 Becoming Academy Chair and the truth about how voting works
87:00 The rise of homegrown restaurants across the region
104:00 The future of Middle Eastern cuisine and advice for young talent
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Website
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