Award-winning Baba’s Pantry adds Baba’s Bakery

By Pete Dulin

The colors at Baba’s Pantry captivate you first. Walls painted magenta, goldenrod, and Mediterranean blue offer a vivid greeting. Bold colors, Palestinian decor, and photos of the Kamal family and baba himself, chef and patriarch Yahia Kamal, signal that guests have entered an inviting Palestinian American café like no other. Located near 63rd Street and Troost Avenue, Baba’s Pantry and newly-opened Baba’s Bakery next door draw a steady clientele.

Local food-loving fans will likely recognize Yahia’s smile, bushy mustache, and welcome, “Hello, my friend.” Since he immigrated from Palestine to America in 1979, settling in Kansas City, he has run different food businesses over several decades. Supermarkets carried his line of from-scratch hummus, baba ganoush, and labneh, a soft cheese. Past restaurants across the Kansas City metro attracted devoted customers but ran their course.

Baba’s Pantry represents a fresh family-backed approach. Yahia, his wife, Yusra Abu-Alhassab, and their children Omar, Kamal, Jasmine, and Hannah partnered to open the café in July of 2021. The café celebrates their heritage, traditions, and spirit as Palestinians and Americans.

Eldest son Kamal, an interior designer, transformed the modest storefront into a vibrant destination with a personal, colorful, and familial touch. Omar, sous chef, and Jasmine, baker, joined their father in preparing a full array of platters, sandwiches, sides, and sweets.
Working with their father is “a continuation of something deeply personal.

Our father has always led with passion, generosity, and an unwavering commitment to his craft,” said Kamal. “Being able to contribute to that, whether through our own skills or just by supporting his vision, feels meaningful. It’s also a way of keeping our Palestinian traditions alive and sharing them with a wider audience.”

Made to order and worth the wait, Baba’s falafel sandwich is one of the best in the city. Falafel may also be ordered as a side. Another highlight includes savory shawarma made with marinated and seasoned chicken cooked on a rotisserie.

Baba’s Pantry earned well-deserved recognition in 2022 as one of the 10 best new restaurants in the country by Bon Appétit.

The Kamals cleaned and renovated the storefront next door, unused for years, and transformed it into a bakery with their now-signature style. After a few soft openings, Baba’s Bakery opened in late December 2024, quickly becoming an equally popular destination on Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Customers flock inside the confectionery shop once doors open before baked goods sell out.

“The bakery was inspired by a love for Palestinian sweets and the desire to share flavors that reflect more of Palestinian [culture]. It also grew out of Baba’s Pantry—wanting to expand on the storytelling that food allows us to do for Palestine,” said Kamal.

Jasmine, whose nickname is JuJu, and brother Omar lead the baking operation.

“Many of our desserts incorporate ingredients like rose water, orange blossom, saffron, mistica [a pine-like resin extracted from the mastic tree], cardamom, and nuts, such as pistachios and walnuts. These flavors are commonly found across Persian, Turkish, and Levantine sweets,” said Kamal. “We also use syrups infused with floral and citrus notes, as well as tahini and date molasses, which bring depth to some of the baked goods.”

Baba’s Bakery offers pistachio olive oil cake that is moist without cloying sweetness. The bakery counter is also filled with pistachio raspberry cream bars, pistachio chocolate baklava, black sesame cookie, and baklava apricot almond rolls. Several desserts come in different flavors, increasing the difficulty of making a decision or succumbing to the temptation to try them all.

Warbat, one of Kamal’s favorites, is a triangular wedge of phyllo dough filled with ashta, a homemade velvety rich cream, and then baked and drenched in rose water syrup. Today’s version featured cherry-infused cream. The pastry was topped with chocolate and crushed pistachios. Kunafeh is a distinctly Palestinian dessert of shredded pastry dough, stuffed with cheese, and topped with pistachios and simple syrup. Maamoul, a seasonal dessert, are date-filled cookies.

These three latter desserts are “all very Palestinian and have a direct link to all of our familial and communal gatherings, such as weddings, Ramadan, Christmas, and birthdays. These are desserts you will find present. We’re happy we can share them with everyone,” said
Kamal.

While demand continues to be steady for the bakery’s goods, the family isn’t keen to expand its hours too soon.

“For now, the focus is on refining our processes and ensuring everything runs smoothly during those hours,” said Kamal. “However, we do hope to expand when the time is right.” The immediate goal is to “maintain the quality we want to be known for.”

Baba’s Pantry and Baba’s Bakery represents the multi-generational story of a family business with roots planted in both Palestine and America. The family’s dedication to their craft, each other, and their community is evident.

“Everything is made with a lot of care. We’re focused on keeping rich flavors reflective of their roots while also making them accessible and innovative,” said Kamal. “We want the bakery to be a space where people can experience something nostalgic or entirely new, but
always made with intention. Since we’re a small operation, things will evolve—so we encourage people to check in, try what’s new, and be part of that journey with us.”