Afghanistan-born brothers Mujitaba and Mustafa Ashrafi opened their restaurant Khaybar four years ago as a celebration of culture, passed down through generations.
The brothers say they use a unique mix of spice and authentic style recipes at their Auburn restaurant, that sets it apart from similar venues in Sydney.
“The recipes and the spices we use are homemade. They are not something you would come across in different Afghan restaurants,” Mustafa said.
Their dedication to authentic and homemade cuisine has seen their restaurant flourish into a successful business.
The brothers attribute their love of food and cooking skills to their mother.
Afghani-born Mujtaba and Mustafa Ashrafi, owners of Khaybar. Source: Supplied
“The recipes came from my grandmother and then my mum and she passed it on to us,” he said.
“Every time she came to the restaurant she was very proud. She would walk into the kitchen and open the lid of the pot and smell and taste the food,” said Mujtaba.
While their mother’s passing last year took an emotional toll on the family, her legacy lives on through their food.
The brothers proudly report that they’ve never had to hire a chef to do the cooking.
Mujtaba’s sister taught him all of the family recipes when the restaurant first opened, and together they make all of the food in-house, including desserts.
Now Mujtaba runs the kitchen, while Mustafa manages the front of house, as they welcome customers from all over Sydney, Wollongong and the Blue Mountains.
Preserving culture is very important to the brothers who fled war with their family in the 1990s.
Their authentic and homemade food sets them apart from similar restaurants across Sydney. Source: Supplied
“We left Kabul because of the war. Some days there were bombs coming, and that's why my family made the decision to leave Afghanistan, and then we moved to Iran and then finally to Australia,” Mujtaba said.
“We were very lucky we didn’t lose a member of our family and were able to get away from there.”
They arrived in Australia as young men who spoke Dari, so finding work was hard.
“My brother was 19, I was 21 and when we came to Australia and had no English at all. And with no English, no work,” Mujtaba said.
For 15 years the brothers struggled to learn a new language and in 2013, they opened Khaybar to share their love of their home country and its unique food.
Khaybar is a mountain pass on the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan and was also the name of a famous restaurant in Kabul, so the brothers thought it would be a perfect fit.
The restaurant has become a go-to spot for foodies and locals alike with their most popular dish being the traditional lamb Qaboli Pallaw, a slow-cooked shank served with brown basmati rice and topped with sweet strips of carrot, raisins, almonds and pistachios.
For Mujitaba and Mustafa, the business is all about their family heritage.
“We want to celebrate our sharing culture. It’s not just about the food, it’s about the sharing culture.”
