Signs are up at District 15Fifteen for Basha, the Parsippany-bound sibling of Paterson's longtime Middle Eastern favorite Al-Basha, signaling that the restaurant's arrival in Morris County is getting closer even though no opening date has been locked in. The new storefront will carry the shortened Basha name, and it's set to bring the family's hummus, falafel, pita and kabobs to the sprawling mixed-use development on Route 10.
A Paterson Staple Heads to Route 10
Basha is described as the Parsippany outpost of Paterson's Al-Basha, according to Parsippany Focus, which reported that the business has put up its signs at District 15Fifteen. The outlet notes that an opening date has not yet been set for the new location. The family behind Al-Basha has been serving Palestinian cuisine since 1998, building a following that stretches well beyond Paterson's Crooks Avenue, where the flagship dining room still operates.
Founder Yaser Baker began cooking in Ramallah, and the same report notes that he built Al-Basha's reputation on home-style dishes drawn from the kitchens he grew up in. Since opening the Paterson flagship, the business has grown to include a takeout location on Main Street in Paterson and a restaurant in the Bronx. Al-Basha earned national recognition in 2024, when, per northjersey.com, it was included alongside 46 other restaurants on the USA TODAY Restaurants of the Year list.
Inside the Growing District 15Fifteen
District 15Fifteen itself is a mixed-use development on Route 10 in Parsippany, according to roi-nj.com, built on the site of the former Dialogic and Intel office campus and designed as a walkable town center. The project includes 498 apartments, and the site's retail and dining footprint has been described two ways in available reporting — Parsippany Focus cites nearly 60,000 square feet, while jerseydigs.com puts the figure at 58,600 square feet of retail and restaurant space.
The development has come a long way from its original blueprint. Plans shifted during the pandemic, with the retail, restaurant and services space shrinking from 100,000 to 60,000 square feet while apartment counts grew from 250 to 498 units, according to a 2023 report from re-nj.com describing how the project replaced the long-vacant Intel Corporate Center.
Neighbors on the Tenant Roster
Basha will join a tenant list that already includes Burtons Grill & Bar, Kura Revolving Sushi Bar, Meximodo, O'Bagel, Haraz Coffee House, Pure Green, Home Town Creamery and Dhaba Indian Restaurant, per the same Parsippany Focus report. Burtons Grill & Bar opened its first New Jersey restaurant at the development on October 20, and shopmorriscounty.com reported that as of this week, Burtons, Kura Revolving Sushi Bar and O'Bagel were all open for business.
Other businesses are still filling in behind the scenes. Dhaba Indian Restaurant signed a lease for 1,834 square feet and is expected to fill the development's final food-and-beverage space, according to roi-nj.com, which also reported that Discover Strength, Kura Sushi, JetSet Pilates and O'Bagel were already operating as part of the broader wave of openings. Five additional businesses, including the restaurant formerly known as Al-Basha, were slated to open at the site over an eight-week stretch, per the same report.
Still Waiting on a Date
Despite the signage now up at the site, shopmorriscounty.com reported that as of this week, Basha — listed in the district's directory with a 2026 opening — had not yet opened its doors. Once it does, it will sit within walking distance of the development's apartments, fitness studios and coffee shops, giving Parsippany residents a taste of the Paterson institution's hummus, falafel, pita and kabobs without the drive to Crooks Avenue.
