Our Story · Est. 2024
Knafeh warm from the tray. Coffee made with care. A table for everyone. We bring the sweets and hospitality of the Levant to our cafés in Mississauga and Scarborough.
Who we are
The founder
The meaning behind our name
Five centuries
500+
Years of Nablus tradition
2
Cafés, two cities
2024
Founded
Speciality Coffee
What we keep
Visit us
Our first café opened in Mississauga in September 2024. Scarborough joined us in August 2025.
Two neighbourhoods, one welcome: come for a coffee, share a warm tray, or find your new favourite sweet.
Kanafani was founded by Dr. Fersan Marei — a dentist and educator, born and raised in Nablus, the Palestinian city celebrated for its Knafeh.
He set out to bring the taste of home to his new home in Canada: slices, cupcakes and trays for every occasion, made the way he grew up eating them.
A kanafani is one who prepares Knafeh — a quiet vow to keep the craft, and the city it came from, alive in every tray we pull.
The name also pays tribute to Ghassan Kanafani, the Palestinian writer whose work stands for resilience, identity and freedom. One name, two debts — honoured in every tray.
Knafeh is the star of the menu — a dish of joy, togetherness and tradition. Nablus Knafeh carries more than five centuries of craft: a golden crust, a soft cheese or cream heart, syrup poured at the counter, perfected across generations in the city that named it.
We honour that legacy by making every tray the way it has always been made, to order, in our own kitchens.
Each cup is pulled by trained baristas who know that coffee is more than a drink — a pause, a moment, a connection.
From Turkish coffee to the espresso bar, every drink is built with the same care as the sweets.
Made in our own kitchens
Premium ingredients, traditional recipes, our own kitchens — and nothing patched when it can be replaced.
Heritage, held
Each dish is a tribute to the Levantine table, shared with every community that makes up the GTA.
Craft, both counters
From classic sweets to the espresso bar, time-honoured technique meets contemporary skill.
A room to stay in
Genuine hospitality: cafés where people gather, work, and share a story over something good.
