Hopkins’ Mainstreet is trading in Boston for the Mediterranean.
Twin Cities chef Bill Ansari plans to open Adam Basha Café: American Mediterranean Grill and Bakery at 1019 Mainstreet, the site of the former Boston Garden.
The restaurant will have a rotating menu of specials from countries across the Mediterranean, plus American-themed entrees. The bakery will offer subs, donuts, bread baked fresh daily and pies—including raspberry pie in honor of Hopkins. Catering services will also be available.
“Fresh and healthy food—that’s the name of the game,” Ansari said, adding. “I make the best baklava in the world.”
Ansari is no stranger to the restaurant business. He’s been a chef for 35 years. His family owns Gyros Grill in Bloomington, Ansari’s Mediterranean Grill & Lounge in Eagan and Mediterranean Cruise Café in Burnsville. He’s also been at the State Fair.
The Burnsville resident is rooted in the same region as the food he cooks. He was born in Jerusalem and is married to a woman with Moroccan and French ancestry.
He said he’s gotten to know Hopkins over the years—going to the Hopkins Center for the Arts, attending the movie theater and selling food at last year’s Raspberry Festival—and saw a chance to bring a new type of food to the community.
“I feel like the people in Hopkins are so cool, so friendly, so nice,” Ansari said. “They need this type of food.”
Ansari plans a full remodel with an opening in the beginning to the middle of February. Prices will range from the $5 range for subs to $22 for steaks.
“It’s going to be a nice, nice place,” Ansari promised.
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Sample menu items
Chef Bill Ansari plans to have numerous menu items from around the Mediterranean and the United States. Many of the menu items will rotate, so diners can always expect to find something new.
American
- New York: Pizza
- Chicago: Hot Dogs
- California: Organic
- Colorado: Omelette
- Minnesota: Walleye
- Steaks and Tex-Mex
International
- Mediterranean islands: Seafood every Friday
- France: Couscous
- Italy: Pizza and calzones
- Greece: Gyros
- Jerusalem: lamb shank, falafel, hummus
- Turkey: shish kebab, doner kebab
- Jaffa, Israel: Fish
- Lebanon: Kibbi
- Egypt: Molokhia
- Tunisia: Lamb bamia
- Morocco: Couscous, tagine
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WHAAAAAAT?!? I was just in Boston Garden last week! They said nothing about closing for good. A sad day indeed. They might not have been the prettiest place to grab a bite to eat, but the food was phenominal.
Felix and Kristy are just retiring, and they haven't shut down yet. So, while it's sad to see them go, I suppose it's just the end of one chapter in their lives and the opening of another.