San Bruno's Mazra set to expand to Redwood City

Then COVID struck, forcing it to close, and the Makableh brothers got to work. They opened Mazra, which means farm in Arabic, in 2021, serving Mediterranean dishes like shawarma wraps, wood-fired kebabs, hummus, baba ghannoush, tabbouleh and more.

Initially, Jordan Makableh said, they thought the restaurant would only take up a portion of the building’s space and the rest could be sold or leased. But popularity struck and changed their plans.

“During that first year, all glory to god, during COVID we did get nominated number two in the nation on Yelp and number one in California and that really blew us up,” Jordan Makableh said.

The quick route to success wasn’t enough to make the Makableh brothers complacent. Jordan Makableh said he and Saif Makableh felt like they needed to elevate their food to continue to meet the high expectations they set.

Jordan Makableh admits that as young and inexperienced restaurateurs they’ve made some mistakes. In the coming months, Mazra’s San Bruno location will temporarily close to address some issues with parking and the building’s interior design, he said.

While the San Bruno location is under renovation, though, a new spot is expected to be opening in Redwood City.

“We can’t leave people without Mazra,” Jordan Makableh said. “So, when this one closes down, hopefully that one will be opening.”

The Redwood City location will be located at 2021 Broadway, the previous location of Courthouse 2021 restaurant, a block west of Main Street. If all goes as planned, it should open sometime in August, Jordan Makableh said.

“We just want to show that we are always elevating and consistent no matter what,” said Jordan Makableh, who added the brothers want to ensure the second location is just as good as the original.

Mazra’s specialty is its wood-fire grilled kebabs such as chicken, lamb, beef kofta, which is ground beef, lamb, shrimp, wild oyster mushrooms, for vegan options, and octopus. The kebabs are the foundation of the food in the restaurant.

“My father did have kebabs at the deli and he started that. My brother and I just tried to elevate it and take it to the next level,” Jordan Makableh said.

All of their meat is 100% halal, which means the animal is prayed over for before slaughtering. Jordan Makableh said it is the preferred style of meat for Islamic and Muslim people.

The Makableh family is Jordanian, a country in the Levant region in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Western Asia. The brothers, born and raised in San Bruno, said their vision was to bring street-style food from the region to the restaurant and that they feel indebted to the local community for embracing the restaurant.

“We saw the impact we had on the community and it was humbling and a blessing,” Jordan Makableh said, adding that Mazra will never leave the city.

The menu also offers a traditional wrap that comes with a choice of protein, pickles and garlic: Jordan Makableh’s favorite meal on the menu for its simplicity. It’s also the style he grew up on, he said.

The mezzas, which are appetizers, include falafels, grilled artichoke, a cracked wheat beef croquette and whole cauliflower tossed in tahini sauce.

Other appetizers are street fries that come with fries, tzatziki sauce, tomato, pickles and onions. A sambusa, similar to a samosa, is a vegetarian stuffed pastry stuffed with peas, carrots and potatoes. Another popular dish is the halloumi cheese rolls: halloumi cheese made from cow’s milk, wrapped in phyllo dough, deep fried and served with spiced honey. All of the mezzas range from $6 to $13.

The wraps come in four different styles. The street wrap is a pita bread, filled with a choice of protein, fries, tzatziki, tomato, pickles and onions, for $13. The shawarma’s come with either chicken or steak and filled in a traditional lavash bread accompanied with onions, pickles, tomato and tahini and are $12 for chicken and $13 for steak. The menu also offers a vegan wrap, it comes with falafels, Arabic salad, hummus and tahini, for $11.

The plates have a wide variety of choices with prices ranging from $18 to $28, including lamb chops, half garlic rotisserie chicken, bone-in, six hour braised lamb shanks, grilled salmon and butterflied branzino. All the plates come with rice, two choices of sides, garlic and hot sauce and pita bread.

One unique and highly popular dish is the Jordanian mensaf, a New Zealand lamb braised for 12 hours in yogurt and lemon broth. It is only available on Fridays after 1 p.m. and comes over fluffy rice, roasted slivered almonds and parsley, according to the website.

Makableh emphasized that the love for the family business runs deep and the passion for food and hospitality spills over to his employees who he said are also part of the family.

“We hold so true to that,” Jordan Makableh. “This is the family’s restaurant.”

Visit www.eatmazra.com/ for more information about the restaurant.