Zaina Brings Mediterranean Cuisine to Crown Center Shops

Zaina has opened on the ground level of Crown Center Shops and the co-owner of the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern restaurant believes the new location should generate more traffic than its previous home on Grand.

“With all the exposure here, we think we’ll do better business and we also do a lot of business online,” said Salah Harzai.

Zaina traces its downtown roots back to 2010 when it opened at 12th and Walnut. It moved to 11th and Grand in 2017.

Its journey to Crown Center was prompted when the building it was located in was sold to a St. Louis developer who wants to convert it to a boutique hotel.

Zaina restaurant is located on the ground level of Crown Center Shops.

“We wanted to stay in the area and we love downtown,” he said.

Harzai, a native of Tunisia who moved to the U.S. 20 years ago, said popular dishes at the restaurant include hummus, falafels, kabobs, curries, shawarma and gyros. Other menu items include lentil soup, Greek salad and stuffed grape leaves.

He said the restaurant attracts devotees of Mediterranean food from as far away as Liberty and Independence. The new place was formerly the location of D’Bronx pizza and seats about 30 people.

The other co-owners of Zaina are Ayman Hassan, Abraham Salem and Salah Harzi.

Hours are Mondays through Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.