South-side stalwart Mediterranean Market has been under new ownership since November, when longtime owners Feras and Nariman Al Shobaki sold the Middle Eastern grocery to Emad Alkhateeb and Mohammad Hassan, Alkhateeb tells the Observer.
The Ann Arbor resident’s most recent job had been managing a Brighton gas station, but while shopping near home, he heard of the opportunity to buy the whole store. “Especially these times, it’s so tough to find workers, it’s the only reason why he [sold] it,” Alkhateeb relates.
Alkhateeb typically runs the register, while Hassan handles the in-house bakery, which includes a few new items, such as kaak bi ajwa, a ring-shaped bread with dates. They’ve moved the entrance and checkout counter to make it easier to access the extensive selection of grocery items, many of them imported from the Middle East and the Balkan countries. Including the partners, four or five workers keep the store and its extensive halal meat counter running seven days a week.
Mediterranean Market, 4019 Stone School Rd. (734) 477–8023. Mon.–Sat. 8 a.m.–9 p.m., Sun. 8 a.m.–8 p.m. mediterraneanmarket-grocerystore.business.site
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