From Nablus, With Love.
Our story begins in Nablus, Palestine.
When Mousa Khayat left Nablus for Melbourne at 24 years old, he brought with him memories of home — and a flavour he could never quite forget.
Knafeh Nabulseyeh.
Remembering the taste,
wasn't enough
A New Life in Melbourne
Mousa worked first in a glass factory, then spent more than three decades as a dental laboratory technician.
1996 — The Dream Begins
That nostalgia turned into a dream — to recreate the real Nabulsi knafeh of his childhood.
Mousa began experimenting at home. He worked on the dough. He experimented with the cheese. He studied the preparation.
He even began building his own machinery — at one point using a motor taken from an old refrigerator.
His children watched his determination grow.
He wanted to learn from the place where it came from.
He went back to Nablus.
Mousa spent more than a month learning the traditional craft from experienced knafeh makers — the techniques, the ingredients, the knowledge passed down through generations.
Eventually, his teachers gave him the words he had travelled thousands of kilometres to hear:
“Go, you are ready.”
Mousa returned to Melbourne. But this time, he brought more than the memory of home with him.
He brought the knowledge to recreate it.
Back in Melbourne, Mousa designed specialised machines with the help of engineers. When some ingredients couldn't be found in Australia, he imported them from Nablus.
Authenticity wasn't a marketing idea. It was the reason he started.
After years of experimentation and persistence
2016
Knafeh Nabulseyeh opens in Melbourne.
What began as one man's longing for the taste of his childhood had become something his whole family could share with their new home.
