Yaz’s Table: From FBI Training to Falafel
Yasmine “Yaz” Zakhary took an unconventional road to restaurant ownership. Today, her Abington restaurant brings together Egyptian family recipes, New England ingredients and a belief that hospitality should make everyone feel like family.
There probably aren't many restaurant stories that begin with FBI training.
But then, Yaz’s Table isn't a particularly conventional restaurant.
Before Yasmine “Yaz” Zakhary became the woman behind one of Abington's most distinctive brunch destinations, her career appeared to be heading in a very different direction.
She had trained with the FBI.
Hospitality changed that plan.
Yaz went on to help open The Tavern at Granite Links, work alongside celebrated Boston chef Lydia Shire at Scampo, manage Abe & Louie's, and serve as an opening director of operations for several Massachusetts restaurants.
Eventually, all of that experience led her somewhere much more personal.
Back to family.
Back to heritage.
And, ultimately, to a table of her own.
A Taste of Egypt in Abington
At 1209 Bedford Street in Abington, Yaz has created a restaurant that combines the comfort of American brunch with flavors drawn directly from her Egyptian roots.
The restaurant describes its approach as scratch-made and locally inspired, blending Middle Eastern flavors with familiar American favorites.
But perhaps the most personal part of the menu belongs to someone else.
Momma Maggie.
Yaz's mother has become part of the restaurant's identity through Momma Maggie's Corner, a tribute built around family recipes including homemade falafel, tabbouleh, hummus and pickled turnips. The restaurant says Maggie remains part of the kitchen, with Egyptian dishes rooted in recipes passed through the family.
It's difficult to manufacture that kind of authenticity.
These aren't dishes selected because Egyptian food suddenly appeared on a trend report.
They're part of Yaz's own story.
Brunch With a Personality
That doesn't mean Yaz’s Table is interested only in tradition.
Quite the opposite.
Look through the menu and you'll find a kitchen that seems to enjoy playing with the boundaries of brunch.
There are house-made donut holes with flavors that change monthly.
The Sultan brings together braised short rib, home fries, caramelized onions, a poached egg, sweet-heat maple bacon and harissa-kissed hollandaise.
Elsewhere, a fig-and-Brie burger combines Angus beef with house-made fig jam, Brie and sweet-heat maple bacon.
Even French toast can become an event, with combinations such as Meyer lemon ricotta and blueberry.
It's playful food, but there's a common thread running through it.
The familiar and the unexpected keep meeting on the same plate.
American brunch meets Egypt.
Maple meets harissa.
Comfort food meets the flavors Yaz grew up around.
Then Came the Café
In August 2023, Yaz expanded the idea with the Yaz’s Table Boutique Café & Bakery.
Located alongside the restaurant, the café gives another expression to the same mixture of culture and creativity.
There's Egyptian-style coffee flavored with cardamom and spice. A pistachio latte arrives with a baklava-dust rim. The pastry counter might feature Egyptian baklava, tahini-date cruffins, baklava cinnamon twists or a cheesecake-stuffed croissant.
Once again, the connection to family is never very far away.
The café describes Momma Maggie as the "soul" of its kitchen, with her recipes helping connect what's being baked and served in Abington today to traditions stretching back much further.
Building Something Bigger Than a Restaurant
What's particularly interesting about Yaz’s Table is that the idea hasn't remained confined to tables and chairs.
Yaz has developed her own hot sauces and Egyptian spice blends, while the business has even ventured into a boutique spa collection inspired by ancient Egyptian traditions.
It gives the impression that Yaz isn't simply building a restaurant.
She's building a world around the things that shaped her food, hospitality, family, Egyptian culture and an obvious appetite for doing things a little differently.
And yet, beneath all that creativity, the philosophy remains surprisingly simple.
Make people feel welcome.
The restaurant talks repeatedly about community and family. Its food is made from scratch. Local ingredients are part of the approach. And Momma Maggie's recipes sit comfortably alongside Yaz's more adventurous creations.
The Road Not Taken
There's something satisfying about imagining the career Yaz might have had.
Had life followed the original plan, there might have been an FBI badge instead of a restaurant.
No Momma Maggie's Corner.
No pistachio latte dusted with baklava.
No Egyptian flavors finding their way onto brunch tables in Abington.
Instead, Yaz followed hospitality.
Years later, that decision has produced something that feels unmistakably personal.
A restaurant where her professional experience meets her family's history.
Where her mother's recipes have a place on the menu.
And where a little piece of Egypt has found a home on Massachusetts' South Shore.
Sometimes the most interesting local businesses come from people who didn't take the obvious road.
Yaz’s Table is what happened when Yasmine Zakhary chose her own.
LOCAL LEGENDS AMERICA
Business: Yaz’s Table
Location: 1209 Bedford Street, Abington, Massachusetts
Founder: Yasmine “Yaz” Zakhary
Style: Scratch-made American brunch with Egyptian and Middle Eastern influences
Also Home To: Yaz’s Table Boutique Café & Bakery
Known For: Momma Maggie's family recipes, creative brunch dishes, Egyptian flavors, house-made donut holes and specialty coffee
