Sad news: creator of the kapsalon has died
Yesterday (July 16, 2023) marked a dark day in snack history: the creator of the kapsalon passed away far too young. Nataniël ‘Tati’ Gomes was only 47, a hairdresser from Rotterdam who came up with this legendary meal. To be honest, I was surprised that the kapsalon is actually still so ‘young’; Gomes invented it in 2003, so this year it celebrated its twentieth anniversary.
While working as a hairdresser, he often stopped by El Aviva, a shawarma restaurant, and always ordered the same thing.
‘Then we’ll call this a kapsalon’
His order was always the same: fries with shawarma or kebab, tomato, melted cheese, lettuce, sambal and garlic sauce. Quite a mouthful to order, so the staff decided to call it a ‘kapsalon’, because Gomes worked at one. And voilà: the kapsalon was born.
As we now know, this dish became immensely popular, but it was good for business for Gomes too: ‘The kapsalon has been good promotion for me. I get customers from all over the world who want me to cut their hair. They come especially to thank me and then go eat a kapsalon. It is a dish that belongs to all of us,’ he told TV Rijnmond.
It is not known what Gomes died of. Tonight, in any case, I am going to make a real Rotterdam kapsalon in his honor, because it really is a delicious creation. Not always, by the way…
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