{"id":456540,"date":"2025-12-18T23:26:29","date_gmt":"2025-12-18T23:26:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/456540\/"},"modified":"2025-12-18T23:26:29","modified_gmt":"2025-12-18T23:26:29","slug":"diners-drive-ins-and-dives-featured-tahini-opens-in-san-diego","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/456540\/","title":{"rendered":"Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives Featured Tahini Opens in San Diego"},"content":{"rendered":"

Guy Fieri<\/a> loves shawarma\u2014specifically, the chicken shawarma at Tahini<\/a>\u2014and it\u2019s no surprise why. On Season 30, Episode 3 of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives<\/a>, the famously spiky-haired foodie sinks his teeth into a fresh-baked pita made in-house, stuffed with a hefty helping of halal chicken marinated in a tangy and spicy yogurt sauce. It\u2019s topped with sriracha tahini, garlic sauce, French fries, parsley, tomatoes, and pickled cucumbers. Even I\u2019m trying not to drool in envy watching it get devoured.<\/p>\n

The shawarma at Tahini<\/a> had a fast-track to Flavortown, arriving on-screen only about two years after opening by two longtime friends, Osama Shabaik and Mahmoud \u201cMoody\u201d Barkawi.<\/p>\n

\"SanCourtesy of Tahini Street Food<\/p>\n

Shabaik and Barkawi have been best friends since high school. \u201cAnd not to date ourselves, but that\u2019s about 20 years ago now,\u201d Shabaik laughs. (I\u2019ve got them both beat, but never mind by how much.) Neither of them grew up in families with restaurant or hospitality experience, but they both share two important things: a common heritage of being Muslim Arab Americans, and a drive to share that heritage across San Diego.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor us, we always wanted to be able to present our identity in our culture, which so much of it is based also around food, hospitality, warmth, inviting people in, and really over coffee as well,\u201d explains Shabaik. So in 2017, the duo decided to open Tahini Street Food as a fast-casual Middle Eastern street food<\/a> concept in Kearny Mesa<\/a>. In 2019, Yelp named Tahini as one of the \u201cTop 100 Places to Eat\u201d that year, and in 2023, San Diego Magazine named them the Critic\u2019s Choice for Best Middle Eastern Restaurant in San Diego<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"FoodCourtesy of Postmates
Food and drinks from Finjan Coffee Co.<\/p>\n

The partners then opened a second Tahini location at UCSD\u2019s Sixth College development, followed by Finjan, their Turkish coffee concept<\/a>. Finjan (Arabic for coffee cup) and the original Tahini location have operated side by side since 2022, and as of this Saturday, the two concepts will be officially under the same roof when they open a new shared location for both in the former Fig Tree Cafe space in Mission Valley<\/a> at 7710 Hazard Center Drive.<\/p>\n

Tahini will soft open on Saturday, December 20 at 11 a.m., and will be open seven days a week. Soft opening hours will run for around two weeks (Shabaik hopes) from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and once Tahini is fully open, hours will extend until 8 p.m. or 10 p.m.<\/p>\n

Finjan will soft open the week of January 5, 2026, open seven days a week. Hours will likely be 6:30 a.m. or 7 a.m. to open and 3 p.m. or 5 p.m. to close during the initial soft opening phase, with possible late-night hours<\/a> during the weekends in the future. Both businesses are flexible to the neighborhood, Shabaik explains, and will adjust according to demand.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"ExteriorCourtesy of Tahini Street Food<\/p>\n

Guests will still order at separate counters, but will sit at communal dining areas. The menus<\/a> are the same as other locations, and everything is still made from scratch\u2014the bread at Tahini, the syrups at Finjan, etc. But having a central shared location will help put both businesses in front of a larger audience.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s part of a larger path forward of growth and kind of establishing who we are and our brand and our way of doing shawarma and coffee,\u201d says Shabaik. \u201cI think for us, really Tahini and Finjan have served as a way in which we can kind of bring forth our identity in a very unapologetic way\u2026 we felt it was something that San Diego needed.\u201d<\/p>\n

And after hearing him explain how they make Finjan\u2019s Nitro Moroccan mint tea cold brew<\/a>, I agree that it is definitely something that I need.<\/p>\n

Tahini and Finjan Coffee Co. open at 7710 Hazard Center Drive, Mission Valley.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"FoodCourtesy of Visit Oceanside<\/p>\n

San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events<\/p>\n

The Swell Plates Series Returns To Oceanside In Early 2026<\/p>\n

In other \u201cswell\u201d food news (sorry, not sorry), Oceanside\u2019s second Swell Plates series<\/a> returns from January 14 through February 11 as part of California\u2019s Restaurant Month, with 18 restaurants featuring a \u201cswell\u201d plate intended to capture the spirit of Oceanside<\/a>. It could be through using local spirits in a cocktail, produce from a local farm, fish caught in local waters\u2026 I could keep going, but you get the idea. Considering how high and bright Oceanside\u2019s culinary star is rising, there\u2019s never been a better time to eat your way through the North County\u2019s best restaurants, like Michelin-starred Valle<\/a>, Bib Gourmand Dija Mara, Michelin Guide\u2013recommended 24 Suns<\/a>, Allmine, Odie\u2019s Pizza Co., Merenda, Matsu, Magia e Bevi, Rose Caf\u00e9, Jitters Coffee Pub<\/a>, The Plot, The Victorian, The Market at the Victorian, Piper, 333 Pacific, Flying Pig Pub & Kitchen, Lighthouse Oyster Bar & Grill, and Wrench and Rodent\u2014plus special Swell cocktails at The Privateer and Frankie\u2019s.<\/p>\n

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