Middle Eastern restaurant owner doubles down on his American dream

Khaled Eshkuntana, 40, and his family fled their home country of Jordan in 2012 after government corruption and high inflation crippled the nation’s economy. They settled in Lansing, where Eshkuntana began working 70 hours a week at multiple jobs, including driving for Uber and Lyft part time.

His hard work paid off when he saved enough to open his first restaurant, Siraj Cuisine, on the southwest side of Lansing in 2018. After navigating through the pandemic, he decided to open a second location on the south side. The new spot, at 6030 S. Pennsylvania Ave., began business on Oct. 19.

Eshkuntana describes his success as the result of “13 years of nothing but work.” Over that time, he said his three sons have grown into dependable business partners. Today, the majority of his staff comes from his own home.

“My family is happy here, so I’m going to keep doing it. I’m not stopping now,” he said.

Siraj’s halal menu includes familiar Middle Eastern appetizers and sides like hummus, baba ghanoush, falafel and lentil soup; entrees like chicken shawarma, lamb kabob and manakish, which are similar to flatbread pizzas; and desserts like baklava and mahalabia, a milk pudding topped with fruit.

“They have shawarma and falafel everywhere, but my recipes are special. I put my own touch on them,” Eshkuntana said.

He’s confident in the quality of his food but also wants to make sure it’s as affordable as possible. Almost everything on the menu is under $10.

“At other restaurants, the shawarma will be $18.99. I set the prices so low because I see that some people here have lower incomes, and I try to help them as much as I can. I don’t need too much money,” he said.

After more than a decade in the country, Eshkuntana considers himself an American above all else. His memories from before he moved to Michigan are now distant, he said.

“Siraj means ‘light’ in my country. I picked that name because here, there’s the freedom for everything. You can open a restaurant, you can buy a house — whatever it is you want, you can make it happen,” he said. “It’s not easy, and you have to work for it. But in my country, it’s not like that.”

Although his workload has grown with the opening of the new restaurant, Eshkuntana said he still spends just as much time cooking as he does managing and budgeting. He credits his hands-on approach as a major factor in Siraj’s growth.

“The U.S. has helped me so much. I have my two locations, my house, my car, my family, my safety and freedom. I have everything. That’s why I want to keep giving back to the community,” he said.