By Sandy Meyer
If you’re tired of the same old chain restaurants or takeout food, Pita Kebob has a fresh new option in Apollo Beach. Pita Kebob opened in January and serves a Mediterranean menu with recipes from all cultures around the Mediterranean Sea including Greece, Egypt Lebanon, Morocco Syria and Italy.
Owner Khalid Abouelhouda moved to the area a year and a half ago and saw an opportunity to bring something new to the residents. “I looked around and saw one thing that the area is lacking is that people don’t have that many choices when it comes to food. So many people here came from big cities and miss this type of food,” he said.
Born and raised in Morocco, Abouelhouda’s interest in food began when he moved to New York at age 26 where he says he was able, for the first time, to sample foods from all over the world. He has been in the restaurant business for over 14 years in every capacity from busboy to manager to chef.
Pita Kebob’s serves lunch and dinner at reasonable prices in a casual atmosphere. Abouelhouda boasts the freshness of the food saying “We don’t even use a freezer. I go shop every three days so food stays fresh.” Everything is cooked to order and nothing is precooked he said. Among his favorite items are the lamb kabobs, which he says are marinated and grilled to perfection and the fire roasted eggplant, a recipe from his mother. “Our Greek salad is the best in the area,” he added.
The restaurant also offers specials including a three-course Early Bird special for $9.99 and a lunch menu that is $1 cheaper per item than the dinner menu for the same size meal. “We’d like people to come in and try us out. Everybody who has been here keeps coming back which is a good thing, but we also want to introduce our menu and our recipes to people who haven’t been here,” Abouelhouda said.
Pita Kebob’s is open daily from 11 a.m. until 8 p.m. and offers both takeout and dine-in service. The restaurant is located at 243 Apollo Beach Blvd. in Apollo Beach. More information can be found at www.pitakebob.com or find them on Facebook.
