Category: NEWS CHOICES

Zaytoun Mediterranean Grill For Authentic Middle Eastern Cuisine!

Next month, Zaytoun Mediterranean Grill, located near the intersection of Cross Creek Blvd. and Morris Bridge Rd., will celebrate one year in business. It’s been a good year for owner Bilal Saleh and his wife Abida, who created the recipes used at New Tampa’s most authentic Mediterranean restaurant.

Even so, Bilal admits, “Some people still don’t know we’re even here. I know if they do find us, they’ll keep coming back.”

It’s hard to argue with Bilal’s logic, as Zaytoun (which literally means “olive tree” in Arabic) already has a loyal following of people who enjoy authentic dishes of Syria, Lebanon and Greece prepared with the best and freshest ingredients, and with so many people eating healthier these days, “We have so many vegetarian and gluten-free choices here we know you’ll keep coming back.”

In fact, Bilal and Abida, who also runs two other local businesses (Florida Aesthetics and the Neuro Center), agree that although Zaytoun has attracted many of the Muslim people who live in New Tampa (the mosque the Salehs belong to is 1/3 of a mile north of Zaytoun on Morris Bridge Rd.), “most of our customers are not from the Middle East. They just like good food.”

A Few Of The Favorites…

ZMG_Fresh-Kebob-SandwichWEB — Fresh Kebob Sandwich

Of course, I always try to tell you about my favorite dishes at any of the restaurants I review, and I have quite a few at Zaytoun.

My favorite starters are the fattoush salad — which features romaine, cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, pomegranate molasses, lemon juice, mint, sumac and extra virgin olive oil, topped with toasted pita chips — and the traditional Greek salad. You can add chicken, shrimp beef or kufta kabobs to any salad for $2.99-$3.99 and the salads themselves are only $4.99-$8.99.

I will say that Zaytoun’s homemade hummus might just be the best I’ve tasted, although I’m not usually the biggest fan. I’m also not usually the biggest fan of grape leaves, falafel, tabbouleh or baba ghanouj, but many of my Zaytoun-loving friends rave about all of them. There’s also two appetizer platters on the menu, one which combines salad, falafel, grape leaves, hummus, baba ghanouj, muhammara and tabbouleh (for $12.99) and the Zaytoun Sampler Platter ($16.99), which has yogurt salad, tabbouleh, grape leaves, hummus, fried kebbeh, muhammara and baba ghanouj.

There’s also two homemade soups on the menu — lentil soup and freekeh, which is an aromatic soup made with tender chicken, smoked green wheat and spices.

Zaytoun’s grilled entrées are definitely my favorites, especially the perfectly seasoned grilled lamb chops — which are soaked in lemon, garlic and extra virgin olive oil marinade and served with veggies and rice —and the Zaytoun mixed grill, which features grilled kufta (spiced ground beef and lamb) and tender beef and chicken shish kabobs.

ZMG_Fresh-Falafel-SandwichWEB — Fresh Falafel Sandwich

I also enjoy the chicken shawarma platter (the kabobs and shawarma are all available as sandwiches, too, rolled in fresh, warm pitas straight from the oven and served with Zaytoun’s special garlic sauce).

And, although I can’t eat the shrimp kabobs on the menu because of my shellfish allergy, Bilal says he has many customers asking for them — and for more seafood.

“We do have a wild-caught salmon special sometimes, when we get salmon we like,” says Bilal. “But, we’re very picky.”

Speaking of picky, Abida promises that although she isn’t at Zaytoun every day, she does go into the kitchen and sample different dishes every time she does come in, “just to make sure the quality is what we and our customers expect,” she says.

In addition to the puffy pitas, Zaytoun’s hand-crafted brick oven also creates some wonderful entrée pies. My favorite is the spinach pie, although I did also enjoy the sfeeha, or ground beef pie. I’ve yet to sample the feta cheese or zaatar (thyme) pies, but they look and smell wonderful as they go by at Zaytoun, and you can get a single piece of each baked pie in Zaytoun’s Pie Sampler for only $9.99.

Before we get to the decadent desserts, let me not forget to mention that Zaytoun also is known for its fresh mint lemonade — it’s like a mojito without the alcohol, since no alcohol is served at the restaurant.

I also really love Zaytoun’s hot tea and Nespresso-brand espresso drinks, especially the cappuccinos and lattes.

But, I really hope you’ll plan to save room for dessert at Zaytoun. The signature dessert is called knafeh, which is shredded dough which bakes up extra crisp, filled with a thick (and not overly sweet), homemade cream filling, sprinkled with chopped pistachios and drizzled with orange blossom syrup. Whatever you think it sounds like, to me, the knafeh is decadent, like the crispiest hash browns you ever had, but for dessert, stuffed with a cannoli-style cream. Awesome.

Please note that the knafeh takes 25-30 minutes to bake, so the servers all suggest ordering it when you order your meal, so it will be perfect when you’re ready for it.

I also rave about Zaytoun’s homemade baklava and the sticky, smooth cheese roll with cream also is very tasty.

So, stop in at Zaytoun and try a few of these great menu items. You may just end up letting them cater your next party or event.

For more information about Zaytoun Mediterranean Grill (10970 Cross Creek Blvd., behind Dunkin’ Donuts), call 345-2515, visit Zaytoun-Grill.com, or see the ad in our latest issue for some great coupon values. Zaytoun is open Mon.-Thur., 11:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m., 11:30 a.m.-10:30 p.m. on Fri. & Sat. and noon-9 p.m. on Sun.

Wharton’s Jared Bell Makes Class Valedictorian A Family Tradition

Jared Bell, the Class of 2016 valedictorian at Paul R. Wharton High has advice for those striving to finish at or near the top of their class.

Relax.

Have fun.

“Not too much fun,’’ he says. “But, don’t get too caught up in all the technical stuff and GPAs. It is important, but you should try to enjoy your time in high school, too.”

Sage advice from a guy who was following in the footsteps of his brother, 2014 class valedictorian Earl, and the son of two Wharton teachers — math teacher Dave and English reading teacher Diana Bell.

Pressure?

What pressure?

Jared, who will attend the University of Florida next year, finished high school with a 7.49 weighted grade point average.

“I didn’t really decide to be (class valedictorian), but after my freshman year I was first and my dad just said, ‘let’s try to stay in first,’” Jared says. “And we did.”

Having parents as teachers helped, although Bell says there really wasn’t any added pressure. But, he says the right frame of mind was instilled in him early on.

“We started at a young age with their education,” Dave says.

That included math games played in the car on long trips, no volume and closed captioning subtitles when they watched their favorite television shows, and plenty of reading time with their mother.

“They get their smarts from their momma,’’ Dad says.

Obviously, Jared not only had his parents as examples, he also had his big brother. Following in Earl’s footsteps certainly put a little charge into the process.

“I would say I put more pressure on myself than he did,’’ Jared says. “But my brother definitely helped me a lot.”

Earl was able to help Jared avoid some of the “prep pitfalls,” while also steering him clear of classes and teachers he didn’t think his brother would like.

Dave says both boys were, “typical teenage boys. They didn’t want to do homework. We pushed them a little bit. We stayed on them.”

Jared modestly declines to run down the list of all of his high school accomplishments, but says he was “active” in school. He joined several clubs, and was president of Mu Alpha Theta, a mathematics honor society.

He wrestled for three years, and says he worked with 15-20 clients as a private tutor to make a little spending money. He recently completed his final credits and will graduate with an Associate of Arts (A.A.) degree in Business from HCC this summer.

For fun, he says, he enjoys exercise and working out, hanging out with friends, and playing ultimate frisbee.

Jared only makes being class valedictorian sound easy. He does describe it as “very, very tough,” and said the biggest key, and struggle, is time management.

A typical high school day his sophomore and junior year would generally start at 6 a.m., with school until 3 p.m., then wrestling practice until 6, and home by 7, where he would do homework for a few hours before going to sleep.

“Then, repeat,’’ he says.

Jared is undecided about what he will study at Florida. He is attending the university in Gainesville on a Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) scholarship, and will serve four years in the Army following his graduation. He said he will probably focus on the sciences for a major.

And, he and Earl will live together in Gainesville.

“Both boys worked very hard,” Dave says. “We are proud of both of them. Super proud.”

And, while two class valedictorians from one family is impressive, consider that the Bells may not be finished.

Earl and Jared’s sister Victoria is wrapping up her freshman year at Wharton.

Freedom Valedictorian Maya Patel Parlays Excellence Into Bright Future

Maya Patel, a senior at Freedom High in Tampa Palms, has already graduated.

From college.

When she graduates again, as Freedom’s Class of 2016 valedictorian on Wednesday, June 8, 9 a.m., at the Florida State Fairgrounds Expo Hall, it will just be the icing on the cake.

Maya is one of many exceptional students in the New Tampa area, but the Tampa Palms resident makes a strong case for being at the top of that list.

She is graduating with an 8.6 weighted grade-point-average, believed to be the highest ever at Freedom.

And, she already has an Associate of Arts (A.A.) degree with highest honors in Business Management from Hillsborough Community College. She also was president of five clubs at Freedom.

She even started a nonprofit organization with her best friend, Milan Shah (see below), dedicated to donating used books across the globe.

While she will attend the University of Tampa in the fall, declining opportunities to attend, among others, the prestigious University of Cambridge — the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world — and Kings College of London, England.

And, get this – Maya says she still found time to have some fun in high school. “Of course, of course,’’ she says, laughing. “High school is not just about academics; it’s also about fun. I have done Indian dance (called Bhangra) since I was five, and I did typical high school things like movies and the mall. I always made time for fun.”

And sleep, she says. Maya says that despite her many responsibilities, she always got 7-8 hours of sleep a night, even after she added a part-time job at Taco Bell to her already busy schedule.

She says it’s pretty simple, really — use a calendar, make lists and just follow them.

Cheryl Bernales, Maya’s Latin teacher and World Language Department head at Freedom, as well as an American Government honors teacher, thinks the secret might be more about math than lists.

“I don’t know how she does it, but she does seem to have found a few extra hours in a day,’’ Bernales says.

The only child of V.C. and Nila Patel, pharmacists with the Suncoast Community Health Center in Palm River, Maya says she never set out to be the class valedictorian. She did, however, want to be in the top 10 percent.

But, once she started taking dual enrollment and AP classes, “I realized my level of rigor was pretty competitive.”

Her initial goal, laid out with intricate planning, was to graduate with her A.A. degree from HCC, which she did on May 6. Then, she added Class Valedictorian to her to-do list.

Her sophomore and junior years were the toughest, she says, as the classes and assignments could pile up at times, causing a few brief moments of self-doubt.

“I felt at those times that I needed to keep going on,’’ Maya said. “Such a big thing like valedictorian doesn’t come easily. So, I would get a snack and a drink, and get back at it.”

Maya had no idea who else was close to valedictorian status. When she found out her closest competitor was good friend Junie Kim, who had gone to school with Maya at both Chiles Elementary and Liberty Middle School, she was thrilled.

“Had it been anyone else, I would have also been happy for them, but it was even sweeter that it was a friend,” Maya says.

Maya credits her parents for being “pillars of support” in her academic quests. She says they never pressured her, and only encouraged her to reach the goals that she had set for herself.

Those goals now include becoming the first dentist in her family. At the University of Tampa, which she chose in part because of its “positive vibe” and proximity to her Tampa Palms home, she will study biochemistry and work towards a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree, while trying to get into a top dental school.

She also will continue to help run MSMPC (her registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit), which stands for Milan Shah Maya Patel Collaboration, in the fall of 2014.

The two fell in love with reading at a young age, and over a discussion about what to do with their old books, hatched a plan to donate them, as well as others they would collect.

The MSMPC has donated more than 4,000 books in less than two years to places ranging from local community centers to Zambia, India, Mexico and the Dominican Republic. The organization also has partnered with Books For Africa to donate more than 2,000 books.

Maya admits it all sounds like a lot for an 18-year-old to juggle. But, she loves it.

“I don’t understand where she gets all this time,’’ Bernales says, “but she’s always positive, always high energy and never comes to school like it’s a burden or a task. She goes all out and does her absolute best job on everything, and does it with a smile on her face.”

If you want to contribute books to Maya’s nonprofit, please visit MSMPC.weebly.com.

Wounded Warriors Project Shows Competitive Side At The YMCA

WoundedWarrior4 By Christen Caporali

The New Tampa Family YMCA in Tampa Palms is well known for its impact on the community. On April 29, it expanded this impact to benefit the Wounded Warrior Project.

The Wounded Warrior Project provides free programs and services focused on the physical, mental, and long-term financial well being of injured veterans, their families and caregivers.

As of April 1, 2016, this 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization has served 87,264 veterans as well as 17,872 family members.

The New Tampa Y hosted 40 warriors from all over the southeastern U.S. — as far away as North Carolina — for the project.

WoundedWarrior The warriors participated in games like “Capture the Flag,” rock climbing, basketball and baseball, and completed a water fitness & therapy class conducted by a YMCA personal trainer.

The warriors and their families also took classes regarding healthy eating habits and diabetes prevention. New Tampa YMCA executive director Tony Kimbrough, who also ran the Wounded Warrior Project event, says that the goal is to make this an annual event for the Warriors.

“We are definitely looking to expand this program in the future,” Kimbrough says.

For more information about the Wounded Warrior Project, volunteer information, or to make a donation, please visit WoundedWarriorProject.org. For more information about the New Tampa Family YMCA (16221 Compton Dr.), please visit TampaYMCA.org/locations/new-tampa.

Family Of Christ Student Wins $2,000 Writing Award!

By Christen Caporali

Bree Cleveland, a seventh grade student at Family of Christ Christian School in Tampa Palms, has been named the First Place scholarship winner in the “Why I Want to Go to College” writing contest. She was one of 1,133 entries from across the country, and won $2,000 in scholarship money to go toward any college or university in the U.S.

The “Why I Want to Go to College” essay-writing contest is sponsored by the Nebraska State Treasurer’s Office and the Omaha Storm Chasers baseball team, which is the AAA affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. The contest is open to 7th and 8th graders across the U.S., and judged by the students and faculty in the College of Education at the University of Nebraska in Omaha, as well as by Nebraska State Treasurer Don Stenberg.

Applicants were tasked with writing a 750-word essay about their educational goals and dreams for the future, and had the opportunity to win up to $2,000 in scholarship money toward the Nebraska Educational Savings Trust (NEST), a state-sponsored college savings program. Three winners were chosen from each of Nebraska’s three U.S. Congressional districts; the other three winners, including Bree, were all from outside of Nebraska.

Bree learned about the contest from her language arts teacher, who has her students enter it every year, telling them that, “they never know, they might actually win!”

Bree’s educational goals and dreams for the future involve children with special needs. She has been a volunteer at St. James United Methodist Church in Tampa Palms since she was 8 years old, and has had the opportunity to work closely with special needs children during a program called FriendZone, which was the inspiration for her essay.

She wrote, “Most people look down on those with special needs as if they can’t do anything, or that they were a mistake, but I see them as a gift that is full of potential and love. That’s why I want to be a sign language teacher. If I can help special needs kids express their full potential, then I believe the world could see them the way I do!”

In addition to working with special needs children, Bree also has dreams of becoming a professional dancer. She has been taking dance classes at the Jansen Dance Project in Tampa Palms since she was 4 years old, and plans to potentially attend Howard W. Blake High in Tampa for its performing arts program. She says her ultimate goal is to dance for the New York City Ballet.

“Dance is a way for me to take my emotions or whatever may be bothering me and leave it at the door,” she wrote. “Once I step in the dance studio, I feel like I can be an all new me.”

As a victim of bullying herself, Bree has been able to take the negative emotions she felt when she was bullied and throw them into her dancing, turning them into something positive. Because of this drive, she has been able to excel in her dance classes.

“College is about growing and perfecting what I love so that one day I can share it with the world,” she wrote in her $2,000 scholarship-winning essay.

With Bree’s heart and positive spirit, she is sure to have a bright future ahead of her.

For more information about the Why I Want to Go to College scholarship, please visit: treasurer.nebraska.gov/csp/scholarships/essay/college/2016/contest-announcement.