Born in Israel and raised on cheesesteaks in Philadelphia, chef Alon Shaya calls New Orleans his home. In 2017, Alon and his wife Emily formed Pomegranate Hospitality to foster opportunities for colleagues, partners, and friends in a comfortable and professional environment where cultural differences are celebrated. Alon has been nominated for five James Beard Awards. He has been named "Best Chef, South" while at Domenica in 2015, and his previous restaurant, Shaya, won "Best New Restaurant" in 2016. He was named one of the "50 People Who Are Changing the South" by Southern Living magazine in 2015, and one of the "50 Most Influential Jews in America" by The Forward. In 2016, Alon joined forces with Donna Barnett, his high school home economics teacher, to start the Shaya Barnett Foundation, committed to providing culinary education and resources to high school students. In March 2018, Alon published his debut cookbook, "Shaya: An Odyssey of Food, My Journey Back to Israel" (Knopf). In early 2018, chef Shaya & Pomegranate Hospitality announced the opening of two new restaurants: Saba in New Orleans and Safta in Denver. Saba opened it’s doors in May 2018 in Uptown New Orleans. Safta opened in the River North neighborhood of Denver in August 2018.