Mabel Suen
Grand Center has a new destination for casual Turkish cuisine. Grand Mediterranean held its grand opening on October 17, following a soft launch in September. The quick-service concept features traditional Mediterranean specialties, including pita sandwiches, wraps, rice bowls, salads, appetizers and pides (Turkish pizzas).
Chef Inci Sen.
Mabel Suen
Emrah Şelli and Ersen Özcan – who became good friends as members of the Turkish American Society of Missouri – partnered to bring their dream food concept to the area. “We recently found out that we both share the same dream of opening a restaurant, so we thought why not together?” says Şelli, who works as a cancer researcher by day. Özcan owns several locations of phone repair shops throughout St. Louis.
The co-owners hail from eastern Turkey, where they grew up eating their shop’s signature dish: doner, or Turkish gyro. “We all grew up eating doner almost every week. Every city of Turkey knows it. You can find doner shops on every corner,” Şelli says. “There isn’t a single doner shop in St. Louis, so we are really excited to offer Turkish cuisine to St. Louis. I like to call it a healthy alternative to American fast food.”
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The interior features contemporary flair.
Mabel Suen
Grand Mediterranean fills an approximately 2,500-square-foot, 36-seat space in the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Missouri building next to the Fox Theatre. The modern interior features plenty of natural light, wood tables and a contemporary geometric design on the wall, with pops of color from yellow armchairs and the brand’s orange logo. “We tried to keep everything elegant and always have fine music playing in the restaurant,” Şelli says.
Spicy Turkish kabob.
Mabel Suen
In the kitchen, chef and manager Inci Sen, who has prior experience in kabob shops, created a vibrant set of specialties to carry out the duo’s vision. She developed the recipes for a set of signature sauces, including white garlic, red spicy and tahini options, in addition to a housemade hummus, to accompany the savory dishes.
Grand Mediterranean’s doner features a special blend of 80% beef and 20% lamb cooked on a vertical spit that is sliced and hand stacked, available in a pita sandwich, wrap, rice bowl or salad. “We are very proud of our doner. It’s very special, and you can’t find it anywhere else because our supplier is a very Turkish-specialized place,” Şelli says.
Falafel salad with mixed greens, roasted beets, pomegranate dressing and falafel topped with tahini-yogurt sauce.
Mabel Suen
Alternative protein options include a marinated chicken doner as well as crispy falafel, which is available in preparations such as a pita sandwich with hummus, tomatoes, onions, pickles, your choice of sauce and pomegranate. Appetizers include dolma (stuffed grape leaves) and borek (spiral-shaped, filled flaky phyllo pastry).
Some of Şelli’s favorite menu items include pide, an Anatolian-style pizza with toppings such as mozzarella and tomato or feta cheese and herbs. Turkish kabob, which is ubiquitous in eastern Turkey where Şelli and Özcan come from, is a newer menu item featuring ground beef kabob cooked with a blend of spices, available as a rice platter or wrap.
Beef-lamb doner wrap with tomatoes, pickles, onions and your choice of sauce in a warm tortilla.
Mabel Suen
To drink, Grand Mediterranean offers soft drinks as well as Turkish coffee and ayran – a Turkish yogurt beverage. Sweet options include Turkish baklava and kataifi. Going forward, the eatery will also roll out a coffee bar menu called GM Coffee, which will feature Kaldi’s Coffee and expanded dessert offerings.
“In the future, we plan to expand and have other locations. We have returning customers visiting us a couple times a week and giving us good feedback which is very encouraging,” Şelli says. “I hope more people will give us a chance and come try this healthy, fresh Mediterranean cuisine we serve.”
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Chicken doner pita sandwich with marinated chicken, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, onions and your choice of sauce in a warm pita.
Dolma (stuffed grape leaves) with rice and herbs.
Mediterranean Crunch salad with cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, green peppers, iceberg lettuce, feta and herbed mayo vinaigrette.
The interior features contemporary flair.
Housemade hummus and pita.
Now open in Grand Center.
Grand Mediterranean is open daily from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Grand Mediterranean, 519 N. Grand Blvd., St. Louis, Missouri, 314-710-0949, grandmediterranean.com