The Fan is getting a taste of the Mediterranean.
Mediterranean Bistro on Main Street will be the seventh installment in a family business that began in Sicily more than 50 years ago. The restaurant, opening next month, will serve 1970s-era Mediterranean cuisine, owner Jason Farag said.
Farag, who owns the restaurant with his wife, Deborah Farag, has the restaurant business in his blood. His father operates restaurants in New York and Florida. The Main Street restaurant will be the first Mediterranean Bistro in Virginia.
Mediterranean Bistro will serve gyros, falafel and hummus made from family recipes. Farag’s father, who learned his recipes directly from Antonio Farag, will teach Mediterranean Bistro’s chefs how to prepare the food.
“There’s no better teacher than the original teacher,” Jason Farag said.
The restaurant is more than three years in the making, Farag said. He searched for more than two years for a location before settling on the building at the corner of Main and Addison — the former home of Panache Hair Studio.
Farag moved into the 1,200-square-foot space June 1. He said construction is about half finished.
Entrees will cost between $6 and $10 with a drink included, Farag said. Each item will cost an even dollar amount, Farag said. The restaurant will not deal with spare change, in keeping with an Italian restaurant custom.
“In Italy, there are no coins,” Farag said.
Mediterranean Bistro will also grow its own basil, oregano, cilantro, mint and Roma tomatoes in a garden behind the restaurant. Growing the spices onsite will help keep prices down, Farag said.
Farag has about $150,000 invested in Mediterranean Bistro. He is financing the project with a loan from his father: an interest-free advance that he hopes to pay back in a year.
“We don’t do bank loans,” Farag said. Then he smiled. “So we were excited when this got approved.”
The Fan is getting a taste of the Mediterranean.
Mediterranean Bistro on Main Street will be the seventh installment in a family business that began in Sicily more than 50 years ago. The restaurant, opening next month, will serve 1970s-era Mediterranean cuisine, owner Jason Farag said.
Farag, who owns the restaurant with his wife, Deborah Farag, has the restaurant business in his blood. His father operates restaurants in New York and Florida. The Main Street restaurant will be the first Mediterranean Bistro in Virginia.
Mediterranean Bistro will serve gyros, falafel and hummus made from family recipes. Farag’s father, who learned his recipes directly from Antonio Farag, will teach Mediterranean Bistro’s chefs how to prepare the food.
“There’s no better teacher than the original teacher,” Jason Farag said.
The restaurant is more than three years in the making, Farag said. He searched for more than two years for a location before settling on the building at the corner of Main and Addison — the former home of Panache Hair Studio.
Farag moved into the 1,200-square-foot space June 1. He said construction is about half finished.
Entrees will cost between $6 and $10 with a drink included, Farag said. Each item will cost an even dollar amount, Farag said. The restaurant will not deal with spare change, in keeping with an Italian restaurant custom.
“In Italy, there are no coins,” Farag said.
Mediterranean Bistro will also grow its own basil, oregano, cilantro, mint and Roma tomatoes in a garden behind the restaurant. Growing the spices onsite will help keep prices down, Farag said.
Farag has about $150,000 invested in Mediterranean Bistro. He is financing the project with a loan from his father: an interest-free advance that he hopes to pay back in a year.
“We don’t do bank loans,” Farag said. Then he smiled. “So we were excited when this got approved.”
If the food is half as good as what I can get at the Lebanese Food Festival each year, this place will be a success.
I love Mediterranean food; looking forward to the opening. In the food court of a large shopping mall in NoVa is a Medit.”restaurant” with this type of food which I have enjoyed for years. Glad that I will be able to enjoy it right here in Richmond.
Question for the bookkeepers out there: How do you make the whole even dollar thing work with tax reporting? Do you have to show the taxes on the customer receipt, or can you just back into the meal price when it comes time to pay your taxes and hide the whole thing at point of sale? It seems to me that with such low entree prices and substantial tax rates, you wouldn’t want to build the tax in and reduce your margins, but obviously you can’t over-collect taxes by rounding the tax up to the nearest dollar. If you have/want… Read more »
Have you ever been to the movies? They seem to do just fine leaving the taxes line off your receipt even though they passed the taxes on to you!
A simple solution would be to express each product in percentages. This way, taxes is built into the list price the same way you build cost of goods sold into the list price.
They have finally opened -can’t wait to try them!
Welcome to the neighborhood!
We have finally opened!!!! After 5 long months – we are open and ready to treat you to the best home made mediterranean cuisine the fan has ever seen! My husband and I are so proud of what we have to offer and can’t wait to share it with you!!! Come in and give us a try!!! As we strive our hardest for 150% positive customer service I am asking you to share your experience with us!! My husband and I have very high expectations of our staff, food, presentation an of course customer service!!! Now, the only way to… Read more »