ANDERSONVILLE — It won't be long now until a Middle Eastern cafe opens at the busy corner of Clark and Foster avenues, its owner said Tuesday.
After working on an expansion since November of last year, Middle East Bakery & Grocery, 1512 W. Foster Ave., is aiming to open its cafe in the former Icosium Kafe space in a month, according to owner Hisham Khalifeh.
When the sit-down cafe at 5200 N. Clark St. opens, it'll serve affordable Middle Eastern food, Khalifeh said.
"It's going to be good, healthy food," he said.
The bakery and grocer sells Middle Eastern foods, including pickled cheeses and vegetable pies, as well as cookies and pastries.
Employees previously told DNAinfo Chicago that the cafe would be opening some time in late spring, possibly in April.
Khalifeh said the process was slower than expected because he and his employees are running the grocer while working on the expansion.
"We were a little bit slow [because] we are doing business, too," he said.
The space was home to Icosium Kafe, an Algerian creperie and teahouse, for eight years before it closed in January of 2014. It is unclear why the restaurant shuttered.
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