Owner: New restaurant moved to Hamilton because ‘I’ve seen a lot of growth happening’

A new restaurant is doing business in a spot vacated by a longtime family restaurant.

Dean’s Grill at 2535 Pleasant Ave. in Hamilton’s Lindenwald neighborhood offers American and Mediterranean cuisine, specializing in dishes such as falafel, chicken shwarma and fried fish.

Dean’s Grill is owned by Al Alfrookh and Mo Abubakr, two former college buddies who opened Patrick’s Family Restaurant on Ohio 128 in Cleves in 2015.

The Hamilton location at the former site of Lindenwald Station, which moved to Fairfield last year, appealed to the pair.

“We were looking for another location that had more people around it, that had a bigger community than Cleves,” said Abubakr, who added that he has lived in Hamilton for eight years. “I’ve seen a lot of growth happening in Hamilton and we want to be a part of it.”

The business, which is named after Abubakr’s son, employs three servers and a chef.

Abubakr said he and Alfrookh invested almost $60,000 and spent nearly eight months renovating the restaurant, replacing booths, repainting and re-flooring and adding a digital menu board.

They’ve posted some signs as Dean’s Fish & Chicken because only going by the name “Dean’s Grill” could scare off cost-conscious consumers who might assume a grill-type place would be an expensive one, they said.

Instead, daily specials run $5.99 and include fries and a fountain drink. Most menu items, including a wide array of burgers, wings, Philly cheesesteak, felafel, shawarma, gyros, sandwiches and other dishes, are $7.49 or cheaper.

Fish meal options include cod, whiting fish, catfish fillet and tilapia. Side dishes are plentiful.

A Sunday buffet offers fried fish, fried chicken, red meat, rice, green beans and mashed potatoes and costs $9.99.

The restaurant also is offering an entertainment option of sorts: karaoke on Fridays.

For more information, visit www.tinyurl.com/deansgrill or call 513-805-7576.

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