A new counter-service Mediterranean restaurant opened its doors Wednesday inside one of downtown Des Moines' most storied buildings. Mezze Mediterranean Kitchen began serving customizable bowls, pitas, salads and wraps from inside the Temple for Performing Arts at 1011 Locust St., giving downtown workers and visitors another scratch-cooked, grab-and-go option in a neighborhood that has been hungry for exactly that.
The restaurant was developed by Pamela Bass Bookey and Harry Bookey, according to The Des Moines Register, and it's managed day-to-day by Des Moines-based Orchestrate Hospitality. The format leans on a counter-service build-your-own model, with diners choosing between proteins, grains, vegetables and sauces to construct their own salads, grain bowls or wraps rather than ordering off a fixed menu.
Price-wise, the math is simple: pitas run $12 and bowls run $16, per the Register's reporting. Mezze is a scratch kitchen.
What's Actually On the Menu
The build-your-own format draws from a roster of Mediterranean staples. Mezze's own menu, posted at mezzedsm.com, lists ingredients including chicken shawarma, feta, cucumber-tomato salad, pickled red onion and tzatziki, alongside dishes like kofta meatballs, falafel and hummus. The restaurant offers both dine-in and carryout service, according to the same site.
That menu was created by Tom McKern, the executive chef for Orchestrate Hospitality, according to the Business Record's reporting on the project. The Register also reported that Bass Bookey brought on architect Brad Hartman of Hartman Spiller Architects to design what the paper described as a bright, contemporary space inside the historic Temple building.
Why Fast-Casual, Why Now
The timing traces back to how downtown eating habits have shifted since the pandemic. Pam Bookey told the Business Record that the fast-casual concept grew directly out of changing dining trends as office workers returned downtown, favoring quicker, more flexible meal options over sit-down service.
That shift isn't just a Bookey observation. Chris Diebel told the outlet that counter service is rising rapidly for restaurants industry-wide, and he pointed to South Union Bread Cafe as evidence of the appetite for grab-and-go downtown food, noting it's not uncommon to see more than 40 people queue out the door there for takeout orders.
Joining a Crowded Mediterranean Scene
Mezze joins other established downtown restaurants, including The Green Olive and Eatery A.
For now, Mezze is open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., with the Temple for Performing Arts location putting the new counter-service concept right in the middle of downtown Des Moines' lunch and after-work foot traffic.
