A view of just some of the Lebanese, Turkish, Greek and Moroccan goods at the Mediterranean sandwich and specialty market. Photo By Douglas D. Melegari
MEDFORD—Dory’s Mediterranean Goods at Village at Taunton Forge in Medford Township has all the ingredients and packaged goods you need to add clean, plant-based, health-conscious choices to your meal plan, as well as to help elevate your meals or gatherings with food that is authentic and real-non-GMO.
These findings, an array of Mediterranean sandwich and specialty market food items that comprise Lebanese, Turkish, Greek and Moroccan goods, can be found at 200 Tuckerton Road, with Dory’s the first and only Middle Eastern Mediterranean-Style sandwich and specialty market of its kind in the Medford area.
And if you’re just looking for a quick health-conscious bite to eat and want to forgo cooking lunch or dinner, but yet seek “an out-of-this-world flavor experience,” Owner Dory Chamoun keeps his grill ovens hot all day to serve your needs, as well as has refrigerators stocked with a variety of fresh grab and go items, including some unique salads.
Chamoun and his wife, Christine, a licensed clinician social worker who is celebrating her 20th year working in education and had the unique experience of teaching overseas in Lebanon, recently gave the Pine Barrens Tribune a tour of their ethnic grocery store, a small, but fascinating enclave in the Pinelands, that offers true “Lebanese hospitality.”
Specialty Greek Locanico and sought-after Turkish Sujuk sausages available for sale at Dory’s Mediterranean Goods. Photo By Douglas D. Melegari
They started by showing this newspaper what they call the “Grab and Go” fridge with the establishment’s “main staples.”
Among the selections inside the fridge are Mediterranean Mezze, Baba Ganoush Hummus, Stuffed Grape Leaves and authentic Lebanese Spinach Pie.
“A big part of what we do are our Mediterranean salads,” Christine Chamoun said. “We always have three different kinds available for sale.”
On this particular day of the newspaper’s visit, the Chamouns prepared Greek, Fattoush and Beet & Bean salads.
According to Christine Chamoun, the Fattoush Salad topped with sumac and mint aioli makes it “unique,” while the Beet & Bean Salad can be described as “really hardy.”
Their Grab and Go case also contained Tzatziki and Spicy Feta dips to complement the offerings, with Christine Chamoun pointing out to this newspaper that the dressings “are also made fresh in house,” and that customers often tell her husband, ‘“Dory, you should bottle this!’” given its freshness.
Also pointed out to this newspaper is the Open-Faced Mediterranean Pita Sandwich that Dory Chamoun, once the general manager of B.R.A.S.S., the American Employee Association of the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, makes daily.
In describing the sandwich, Christine Chamoun said that her husband uses “Lebanese pita bread” and “really simple ingredients,” and while the end result can be mistaken for it, “it is not pizza.”
Another must-have, Christine Chamoun suggested, is the Brioche Croissants.
“We have flavors you are not going to find in many other places,” declared Christine Chamoun of Dory’s Mediterranean Goods.
The Chamoun’s opened Dory’s Mediterranean Goods in the Village at Taunton Forge, a center that is “a staple in the community,” after closing what was Dory’s Mediterranean Grill in downtown Medford.
“It has been a warm welcome from the merchants,” Christine Chamoun said. “I used to say it, ‘Always takes a village.’”
The couple had debuted what was the first Mediterranean grill in Medford just seven months before the Coronavirus pandemic, and three-year long episode forced them to re-think their approach to still bring the Medford area a selection of “flavors from our favorite parts of the world!”
In opening Dory’s Mediterranean Goods, Dory Chamoun first began with the Grab and Go and retail offerings, but is “now cooking a simple menu.”
“He is here for the people because, again, there is nothing like this with such flavor in the area,” said Christine Chamoun of Dory Chamoun, who has a background in hospitality and over 30 years of national and international experience in the industry, having grown up watching his mother in the kitchen.
The change from a grill to a Mediterranean sandwich and specialty market, Christine Chamoun noted, has allowed her husband to now offer the community at large “a chance to get imported goods,” including those from Lebanon, Turkey, Greece, Morocco and France.
“You are not going to find a Lebanese, Turkish and Greek aisle anywhere else,” she said, noting that people come to Dory’s Mediterranean Goods just to grab exclusive brands, including the specialty Greek Locanico Sausage.
The market also offers the sought-after Turkish Sujuk Sausage.
Additionally, the shelves and tables are stocked with various spices, marinades and pickled goods, as well as olives, olive oil, jams and honey and Turkish coffee and teas. The imported olive oils, according to Christine Chamoun, are “made and farmed by monks” and are also “organic and cold pressed,” which is “something unique” in itself.
There are also offerings of specialty cookies and chocolates.
All told, there are more than 300 “tasty items” to choose from, anything from do-it-yourself charcuterie-style grazing boards to personalized Bistro Boxes, not to mention certified-organic and vegan meal choices, some that are ready-to-go in 30 seconds to five minutes or less.
“What is so cool about this space is the way customers can interact with Dory,” Christine Chamoun said. “A lot of people have different questions about what they can make or the ingredients, and he can answer them on the spot.”
One “does not have to be a master chef” to whip up a meal with what the Chamouns offer in their market, Christine Chamoun noted, with there being a number of options in the store to put together “quick marinades” or a variety of cookbooks available for making good use of the Lebanese, Turkish, Greek and Moroccan goods, including cookbooks that detail how to make veggies, and dips using a spread of veggies.
“You can have a good conversation with food,” she declared. “All walks of life come into our store. And we have a lot of families that come here, looking to elevate their meals. And we can elevate your meal or gatherings across the board. We have sauces to kick up your home meals, too!”
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