Enlarge A traditional Middle Eastern meal from Middle East Deli.

Posted: September 29th, 2009 Rhiannon Fionn-Bowman

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Middle East Deli

4508 E. Independence Blvd.

Hany Solh, co-owner and chef

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Though his heritage is Lebanese, Hany Solh, 23, was born and raised in Charlotte. His father, Alex, moved to Charlotte from Lebanon when he was a teenager because Alex's family had run out of money.

Alex's first job was as a dishwasher in Uptown. From there, he worked his way up to bus boy, then sous chef and soon moved on to become the restaurant manager at the Raintree Country Club, then Charlotte Country Club and, finally, the Adam's Mark (now the Blake) Hotel in Uptown.

In the early 1990s, Alex opened a "little grocery store on Central Avenue," says Hany. Then, one day, "My dad was making food for me and my mom when a customer came in and wanted some, too."Since they didn't have a license or equipment to make food, Alex closed the store and opened the Middle East Deli on Independence Boulevard.

It was different back then, says Hany. Independence Boulevard was the center of everything. The corner deli attracted Middle Eastern students from the University of North Carolina Charlotte and Central Piedmont Community College, both only a few miles away. Most of those students, says Hany, were of Middle Eastern descent; young men who came to the Queen City to study but didn't have time to cook for themselves.

"We stick to very, very traditional recipes," he says. "We don't want to Westernize our food, even though most of our customers are (now) Americans. They love that we're traditional." Several dishes served at the Middle East Deli are created from recipes passed down to Alex and Hany from their family, and most of them are centuries old.

Today, Hany, now a UNCC business student, does most of the cooking at the deli. While he admits that it's difficult to balance school and work, his business always takes priority saying, "My father says, 'It's what we're made to do.' "

Hany knows most of his customers by name. Many have known him since he was a child doing homework at one of the restaurant's tables or playing soccer on the deli's sidewalk. In fact, he says, one of his customers taught him how to play soccer.

When asked to pick a special dish, Hany recalled a time when his grandfather came to visit from Lebanon and made pickled turnips behind his father's back. Alex thought they were too time consuming and hard to make, says Hany. They must marinate for five to six days before they are ready, he says.

He's also fond of kibbie, or all-meat pie, and the stuffed grape leaves and homemade yogurt he prepares himself. And, he says, "Our hummus is the creamiest in town -- guaranteed."

Hany says he loves Charlotte because it's home and because of the vast international community.

It's different now, though. He says many of his customers complain that they no longer have a reason to travel down Independence Boulevard. That's why he has, once again, started offering grocery items. "We want to make things easy for our busy customers," he says.

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