An Afghan Chef’s Hard-Won Career Blossoms in Richmond

As a young cook in Kabul, Afghanistan, Hamid Noori lifted a book on French cuisine from his manager’s office. He brought it to a copy shop, reprinted all its pages, and returned the book to its shelf. “I didn’t know whether he would fire me or forgive me,” says Noori, who, at the time, worked in the kitchen of Kabul’s five-star Hotel Serena. His manager found out about the heist, and...