Sababa’s Second Location Will Greatly Increase the Financial District’s Pita Consumption

Since opening last May, Financial District Mediterranean spot Sababa has been doing brisk business out of its tiny space on Kearny Street. Now, according to chef-partner Guy Eshel, the cozy little pita bar is ready to expand with a second location on Commercial Street, just across from the Transamerica Pyramid.

With the exception of a rotating seasonal salad that’s in the works, Sababa number two will keep the same menu, hours and vintage travel decor as the original, Eshel told Eater. The new location also has seating for 28 so hungry neighborhood office workers will be able to dine-in with their pita sandwiches or escape their sad desk lunches and take them outside to the patio on Commercial Street, which closes to cars during the day.

Beyond all the increased foot traffic, Eshel and partner Matt Semmelhack (AQ, Fénix) had even bigger plans in mind for Sababa when they chose the new space. In addition to being about two and a half times their current square footage, they’ll be getting larger basement prep kitchen and greatly increasing their pita production by building the restaurant around a semi-automatic pita bakery that can crank out thousands of pita a day. The increased production also means Sababa will finally be able to offer fresh-baked, take-home pitas while expanding their catering business and adding more third-party options. Eshel says their current setup with “ClassPass for lunch” startup MealPal sells out 20 meals a day almost immediately, and they also plan to start offering delivery via Caviar as well.

Sababa’s Commercial Street location is aiming for a May opening, and even further in the future, Eshel hopes to get his pre-packaged pita into some local grocery stores.