Middle East Side now open at 3rd Street Market Hall

Ever since it opened in January, 3rd Street Market Hall—a.k.a. the sprawling food hall that occupies the first floor of the former Shops of Grand Avenue at 275 W. Wisconsin Ave.—has become our favorite downtown spot. Food! Drinks! Shuffleboard! Virtual golf! A selfie museum! A couple of Nintendo Switches hooked up to some flatscreens so we can get destroyed by some 11-year-old in Mario Kart!

And now, Middle Eastern cuisine!

Yes, 3rd Street’s newest vendor, Middle East Side, is now open. According to owner John Chandler, the spot offers Man’oushe (flatbread), Baklawa, Fattoush Salad, Muhammar, and more.

“I love Middle Eastern food,” Chandler says in a press release. “I fell in love with it when I worked in a Syrian-Lebanese fine dining restaurant in Seattle. We would have Syrian refugees come in to help prep, and just being in that environment made me fall in love with the culture and the food.”

Formerly a pop-up, Middle East Side completes 3rd Street’s lineup of “hawker vendors.” These vendors share resources with fellow food hall vendor Dairyland Old Fashioned Hamburgers & Custard. Middle East Side is located next to the other “hawker vendors”: Strega, Hot Dish Pantry, and Amano Pan.

Other 3rd Street vendors include Mid-Way Bakery (sweets, soups, sandwiches), Make Waves (smoothies and juices), the 3rd Street Market Bar, Milwaukee apparel company Brew City Brand, and the recently opened Valor Aquaponics.