Mezeh Mediterranean Grill to open Capitol Hill location

Mezeh Mediterranean Grill will open its newest D.C.-area restaurant on Capitol Hill on Feb. 6, which will be its 52nd location since its founding. (Courtesy Mezeh Mediterranean Grill)

Fairfax, Virginia-based Mezeh Mediterranean Grill will open its newest D.C.-area restaurant on Capitol Hill on Feb. 6, which will be its 52nd location in barely a decade since its founding.

Friends and business partners Saleh Mohamadi, Steve Walker and Tai Chiao opened the first Mezeh Mediterranean Grill in Annapolis in 2012. It has expanded beyond D.C., Maryland and Virginia to locations in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey. The company has grown to about 800 employees.

Mezeh’s rapid growth is all internal. The company does not franchise, and all locations are company-owned.

The Capitol Hill location is at 333 Pennsylvania Ave. in Southeast D.C., next to longtime Capitol Hill institution Hawk ‘n’ Dove.

It is Mezeh’s third location in the District.

Mezeh’s menu leans heavy on the Mediterranean diet, with bowls and flatbread or pita wraps. Its bowls are largely a build-your-own menu, with greens and grains, proteins and toppings. There are more than two dozen toppings and a dozen sauces to choose from. Mezeh uses only 100% olive oil and halal protein, including chicken, steak and lamb. There are also vegan options.

“Mezeh” is a twist on mezze, or mazza, words for flavor or taste in Mediterranean culture.

The Capitol Hill location will be open from 10:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. and seven days a week.

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Jeff Clabaugh

Jeff Clabaugh has spent 20 years covering the Washington region's economy and financial markets for WTOP as part of a partnership with the Washington Business Journal, and officially joined the WTOP newsroom staff in January 2016.

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