1. Brazen Café - 725 Irving Ave., Syracuse
Located across the street from Crouse Hospital, Brazen Café serves breakfast sandwiches, rice bowls, soups, sandwiches and more.
Christopher Griffin and Damian Giordano opened the café in August.
“Brazen the company was born of a concept that is a spoof on the cooking process and also, that’s my approach to food – big flavor,” Griffin said.
He has been in the restaurant business for more than 20 years as a chef, and Giordano has a 20-year business background. The business partners said they had bounced around the idea of opening a restaurant for quite some time.
“When this location came up the accessibility was very good for us, so we landed on this concept. There’s high foot traffic, and it still allows us to pivot and grow the way we want to,” Griffin said.
At first, the café was quiet, but now it has picked up speed.
“We’ve had a great response from the clientele here, and we’ve got a lot of regulars. It’s started to steadily pick up speed,” Griffin said.
A signature breakfast sandwich they serve is on a DiLauro’s roll with egg, cheese and Taylor ham that Griffin said he was introduced to by Giordano as a New Jersey staple.
2. Over the Cuse Deli and Grill - 712 E Fayette St., Syracuse
Upon entering Over the Cuse Deli and Grill, customers will see vibrant scenes of the city of Syracuse painted on the walls throughout the restaurant and greeted by general manager Mike Atieh.
“We serve smash burgers, halal food like halal chicken or steak over rice, shawarma wraps. We do tacos as well as build your own burritos,” Atieh said. “It’s kind of a taste of all around the world.”
Atieh recommends trying any of the specialty items on the first visit. One of their specialty burgers is the Big Cuse smash burger.
“It’s three smash patties, bacon and then an egg on top of it with cheese on every layer,” Atieh said. “There is also the Otto smash burger which has our house sauce, caramelized onions, tomatoes and lettuce.”
Another popular item has been their chicken shawarma wrap, Atieh said. Over the Cuse opened on Dec. 1 and has seen a steady crowd of students, hospital staff and other locals.
“I didn’t expect it to be as busy as it was when we first opened, but it has been great. We’ve been busy, and people are learning about us every day,” Atieh said.
In addition to their lunch and supper items, they offer breakfast and will soon begin catering.
“I just want people to know we are a family business, and we really started from scratch, so we just went along with our favorite foods and put things together,” he said.
