Hummus & Pita Company is scheduled to open in mid-November. Watch video
The hummus is among us, Jersey.
The Hummus & Pita Company, a Manhattan-based chain named for the savory spread made from mashed chick peas, tahini and garlic, announced it will open its first New Jersey location next month in the redeveloped Bell Labs complex in Holmdel.
“We have been long awaiting the day where we finally get to introduce The Hummus & Pita Co.’s fresh and authentic Mediterranean cuisine to the Holmdel community,” the new franchise owner, Kaushal Shah, said in an announcement by the company on Wednesday.
More than just hummas, the menu of Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and Turkish delights includes falafel, gyro, shawarma, chicken, meatball and steak on pita flat-bread pockets, all available as laffa, or wraps, and in bowls.
Hummus & Pita chose an auspicious space for its New Jersey debut and fifth location in all, after three in New York City and one in Connecticut.
The store is in the Bell Works Metroburb, an office, retail and dining complex that occupies the historic former Bell Labs headquarters in Holmdel’s Crawford’s Corner section, which housed the pioneering research of seven Nobel Prize winners in the fields of telecommunications, computing and other basic sciences.
Apart from its scientific history, the 2-million-square-foot Bell Labs location was designed by renowned architect Eero Saarinen, and later dubbed the most iconic building in New Jersey by Architectural Digest. Even so, some questioned the decision by developer Ralph Zucker to buy the dormant property in 2013 and transform it into a mixed use complex.
Now, corporate tenants include MetTel, Smith Eibeler and JGS Insurance, while the general public can access the Holmdel Public Library & Learning Center, Dubz Deli and Broadfork. And, as of its Nov. 12 opening, the state’s first Hummus & Pita Company location, which Shah said will be just a starting point for the chain in New Jersey.
“From there,” he said, “we plan to spread The Hummus & Pita Co.’s high-quality eats to the entire state of New Jersey.”
Steve Strunsky may be reached at sstrunsky@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SteveStrunsky. Find NJ.com on Facebook
