New Restaurant Opens in Chelsea, a Labor of Love That Took Three Years

The ground for a brand new restaurant concept in the neighborhood: Terra Mediterrania. The idea for the bright airy new Chelsea restaurant on Seventh Ave. near 17th Street was generated during the darkest months of Covid, when all aspects of health and well-being were prioritized, and QR codes surged into popularity. Now it has finally opened its doors.

This labor of love has been in the works now for almost three years, having landed in what was previously a Le Pain Quotidien location. Appearances, however, can be deceiving: the enormous, open space has undergone a complete gut renovation, worthy of any high-end dining establishment. The exposed brick remains, framed with gorgeous panels of striated wood, sleek, modern lighting and a real olive tree imported from Arizona. An open kitchen, a highlight of some of the fanciest, most prestigious destinations in New York is also featured. But Terra Mediterrania is no elitist joint.

The restaurant is a collaborative effort of industry professionals of varied backgrounds, perspectives and provenance. Their combined strengths have resulted in a conglomerate called Better Food Group, which describes the basic tenets of Terra’s philosophy. Shannon Hicks, director of office operations and more, describes the concept as healthy, delicious and affordable quick-service Mediterranean, with an emphasis on sustainability, efficiency, consistency, and most importantly: quality. The goal is to get savvy diners nourished and satisified for under $20 a person, a fantastic deal in this age of skyrocketing restaurant prices in New York and across the nation.

Chelsea was chosen as the flagship location for its diversity, and the “vibrant community” of residents that inhabit it, says Hicks. The team has put all the love, care and attention to detail into creating the restaurant that one might invest in a high-end, fine dining establishment, but Terra will remain accessible to a much wider demographic, with its modest pricing and broad menu. Plus, it will be available on all the delivery platforms, with take-out options as well as eat-in options in their beautifully designed dining room, which seats about thirty people. A dining shed which should seat another fifteen is in the works to take advantage of Mayor Eric Adams new allowance for permanent outdoor dining, and theirs will display the same polish and elegance as the interior.

This care and attention to detail is magnified across the menu. They are currently featuring approximately forty menu items, which they will cull and adapt in accordance with their popularity amongst diners. Using ATMOS, a cutting-edge point of sale platform brand new to the industry that not only streamlines the ordering process for diners, it aggregates information about ordering trends so that management can optimize the menu in accordance with diner preferences. Some of those items might turn out to be their tender, deeply flavored short ribs, fragrant in a rich, tangy tomato-based sauce, crispy chicken cloaked in kataifi, a shredded phyllo, and served with tahini yogurt, or a hearty vegetarian plate featuring an array of grains, legumes and savory falafel.

All dishes will be served in compostable take-out containers embossed with their olive tree logo, along with recyclable utensils. Ultimately, the goal is to have all fully compostable accessories and become the most sustainable, lowest carbon-emitting restaurant possible. The kitchen is fully electric, a feature of which Governor Kathy Hochul should approve, and great care has been taken to function with respect to the planet. Seafood is sourced from Wild Edibles, a forerunner in sustainable fishing practices. The menu also features multiple vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options, customizable for diners with almost any dining restriction or preference, in sync with current dining trends, But this is no dietetic eatery; the food is flavorful and plentiful. Plates are rounded out with hearty grains and nutritious legumes. Flatbreads, which will be offered only in the evenings, are cooked in-house in super hot, specialized ovens with an array of toppings. Every dish is carefully prepared to order and wildly flavorful, amped up with their unique spice blends and saucy dips.

Terra Mediterrania checks all the boxes. It is easily fancy enough for an evening out with friends, but convenient enough for a relaxed meal on the couch, and affordable enough to make it a weekly staple. And with food this thoughtful and enticing, it might become just that. The kitchen will be open for lunch and dinner, from 11:30am to 9:00 pm, giving their staff of about fifteen a well-deserved hour-long hiatus between what is expected to be very busy service periods. Pending its success in Chelsea, plans to expand with four additional locations throughout the borough.

Editor’s Note: The owners, who hail from Lebanon, did not want to disclose their identities. But an ad on a job listing site “Culinary Arts” described the company this way: “Terra Mediterrania is a new, well-funded company with a big vision to grow our business by expanding our concept to various markets. We’ve spent the last 2 years designing a unique QSR concept, introducing an efficient, modern, and innovative kitchen, and serving quality Mediterranean food.”