Felicity Harrell
Instructional Info
Aladdin’s Mediterranean Grill & Deli has made a home in Atlanta. Owners Imad and son Majed Nassereddin have found a way to mix the Mediterranean tradition with an American Twist.
The Nassereddin family draws their Mediterranean theme from their Palestinian heritage. After coming to America in 2004, they settled and New Orleans, but soon had to relocate to Atlanta after hurricane Katrina.
Once in Atlanta the idea of Aladdin’s began to develop. After leaving the hotel management business, the Nassereddin family collaborated with a chef from Chicago to come up with an American friendly menu selection. Majed Nassereddin, owner, said, “Rather than make it a mom and pops restaurant that focused only on our culture, we wanted to make it friendly to everyone.”
The idea of the name Aladdins and the adding of the grill and deli was another way to bring the cultures together. Due to the scarcity of Mediterranean restaurants in the area, Sandy Spring was chosen as the location to create a market. Mr. Nassereddin, owner, said, “The ways we make our Mediterranean foods are healthy, we make basic grilled foods, and we make everything from scratch.”
The staff at Aladdin’s is made up of a variety of cultural backgrounds like Moroccans, Palestinians, Egyptians and Arabs. This diverse staff allows for the authenticity of traditional items such as homemade hummus made of ground chick peas, Tabouleh salad which is a Lebanese tradition and grilled lamb kabobs made with traditional spices such as oregano.
The Nassereddin’s faced a few challenges while creating the menu and finding the necessary equipment needed to prepare foods, “It took a half a year, to perfect and create the recipes. We also had to ship some machinery here from overseas,” said, Mr. Nassereddin.
Aladdin’s has been in business for nine years and is happy to be opening a second location in Decatur this fall. Mr. Nassereddin adds “we don’t believe in advertisement and promotion, we believe in good customer service and word of mouth, which will keep us in business.”
Recreation Center Awareness
Georgia State University Recreation Center is open for the summer.
Recreation Center hours for summer are from 6 a.m. until 9 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. until 7 a.m. on Saturdays, and closed on Sundays.
Recreation Center is equipped with an aerobics/weight room, a basketball court, a pool, rock climbing center, game room, and male/female locker rooms with showers/saunas.
The recreation center also provides a variety of classes, such as swimming, kickboxing, cycling, and Zumba.
A lot of students are unaware of the advantages they have to accessing this facility.
Stephanie Belcher, Center program coordinator, said, “The facility is free to students, and is included in their student fees.”
Aston Washington, GSU student, said, “I’m glad the center is open this summer. I come here to relieve stress after classes, and I pay for it so mine as well.”
The recreation center will be open for the summer until the end of July, excluding holidays. For more information visit the gsu.edu homepage.