Aladdin's Eatery is a chain of franchised restaurants in the

Midwestern United States The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

and the

Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also referred to as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical region of the United States. It is located broadly on the eastern portion of the southern United States and the southern por ...

, specializing in

Lebanese cuisine Lebanese cuisine is the culinary traditions and practices originating from Lebanon. It includes an abundance of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, fresh fish and seafood. Poultry is eaten more often than red meat, and when red meat is eaten, it ...

. Adapted to American tastes, the sites are

fast casual restaurant A fast casual restaurant, found primarily in the United States and Canada, does not offer full table service, but advertises higher quality food than fast food restaurants, with fewer frozen or processed ingredients. It is an intermediate conce ...

s that also offer

take out A take-out or takeout (U.S., Canada, and the Philippines); carry-out or to-go (Scotland and some dialects in the U.S. and Canada); takeaway (England, Wales, Australia, Lebanon, South Africa, Northern Ireland, Ireland, and occasionally in Nort ...

. The firm, Aladdin's Eatery Systems, Inc, is headquartered in Lakewood, a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio. Besides Ohio, the company also has locations in Indiana, Virginia, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania.

History

Aladdin's Eatery was founded by Fady and Sally Chamoun in 1994. Since then it has become an extremely lucrative chain of restaurants. Fady Chamoun had arrived in the US from Lebanon in 1972 and worked at

Little Caesars Little Caesar Enterprises Inc. (doing business as Little Caesars) is an American multi-national pizza chain. Based on 2020 statistics, Little Caesars is the third-largest pizza chain by total sales in the United States, behind Pizza Hut and ...

full-time while studying at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. Over the next twenty years he rose within Little Caesars, eventually running 40 franchises, which he sold, leaving him with $10,000 after repaying his debts, which he used to help fund a site in Lakewood, OH. By 2004 the chain had 17 outlets and Chamoun won the Northeast Ohio

Ernst & Young Ernst & Young Global Limited, trade name EY, is a multinational professional services partnership headquartered in London, England. EY is one of the largest professional services networks in the world. Along with Deloitte, KPMG and Pricewat ...

Retail Entrepreneur Of The Year award. Chamoun had established Jasmine's Bakery in Cleveland in 1997 to supply all his restaurants and by 2004 it was employing 40 people and making sales of $2 million. In 2013 the chain was reported to have 30 sites in 5 US states.

Reception

With a concept of "providing good food with a slightly exotic flavour and cheap prices" the chain is noted by reviewers for its assortment of soups, smoothies and juices, and options for vegetarians and meat lovers. Desserts such as traditional Lebanese baklava or pistachio cookies, which are supplied from Jasmine’s bakery, compete with more American gourmet cheesecakes.

References

External links

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Review of Raleigh, North Carolina restaurant
{{Restaurants in Ohio Fast casual restaurants Restaurants in Ohio Companies based in Ohio Regional restaurant chains in the United States Lebanese-American history Lebanese restaurants Restaurant franchises Restaurants established in 1994 1994 establishments in Ohio

History

Reception

See also

References

External links