A new Mediterranean restaurant is coming to East Boulevard and it’s a sneaky big deal

It’s going to be a Mediterranean smokehouse, serving grilled and wood-fired dishes like pork, lamb, chicken, seafood, calamari and grilled vegetables. The hope is to not even have a fryer in the place, said John Hadley of The Nichols Company (which is involved on the real estate side).

But the more significant aspect is who’s running it: Martin Sprock, a restaurant empire-builder. The man co-founded Moe’s Southwest Grill and has been behind other franchises like Mama Fu’s Asian House and Planet Smoothie. He is now running RuRu’s Tacos & Tequila, Leroy Fox and Ios Greek Kitchen at the EpiCentre.

Sprock bought the building in late 2009 and rented it out to Tijuana Flats. When that restaurant went under, Sprock decided he wanted to do something with it himself. He’s bringing in another big name to do the menu: Giorgio Bakatsias of Georges Brasserie.

Construction is well underway. Right now new windows are going in to let more light into the place, and the patio will get an expansion. An opening date is projected around Thanksgiving. 

Take a look around.