Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Nazar -- A New Mediterranean/Middle Eastern Market -- To Open This Weekend In Columbia

Columbia gets a new market for Mediterranean and Middle Eastern food when Nazar Produce Market opens in Columbia this weekend.

Nazar Market is opening in the exact space where Sizar's sold Middle Eastern food until last year when it moved to Elkridge and changed its name to Ceazar International.  I stumbled on the new market Monday night when I was picking up dinner at Bon Fresco.  When I stuck my head into Nazar, the folks inside said that they would open this Saturday.

Based on the signs and the Web, Nazar will be open 10a to 8p daily.  That will fill a gap in the Columbia shopping, where you can get Mexican items at Lily's Mexican Market and Indian at a bunch of places, but had to go to U.S. 1 for Middle Eastern.  (Click here for a prior post about ethic shopping.)

The place has been completed rebuilt.  The signs are up.  The decor is modern and bright.  All the shelves and fixtures look new.  The folks there said they'll sell Mediterranean and Middle Eastern food, and the store's Facebook page suggests that the owners are Turkish.  (As in, some of the posts appear to be in Turkish.)  Packaged goods were already on some of the shelves.  There is a place for cheeses and a huge display at the entrance for baklava.  A wall of baklava!  Now, I just have to hope that Nazar will stock pistachio nougat!

(Update:  After a few weeks, Nazar dropped the "produce" from the name.  They added a halal butcher, which makes it a fine spot for lamb and goat.  Try this post about lamb kabobs.  The cooler also has delicacies like chicken hearts.  Personally, I keep going back for dried fruit, sausages like soujouk, and Middle Eastern ingredients like beans, bulgar, and dried lemons.  We also discovered Tamek sour cherry nectar, which is an uncarbonated soft drink that you can buy by the can or larger packages.)

Is it possible that two Middle Eastern markets are opening at the same time?  There was a comment last month saying that a market appears to be opening next to Royal Pizza on Snowden River.  I drove by in the dark last night, but I didn't see anything -- and didn't have the comment with me to know that I should actually stop at look in the windows next to Royal Pizza.  Anyone know about that?  (Update: Pars did open, and it's a Persian alternative in Columbia.)

For coupons, click on the Nazar Produce Web site.  For more, become a fan of Nazar on Facebook.  With Nazar, the local Middle Eastern market scene includes Ceazar International Market (the renamed Sizar's) in Elkridge and Aladdin Food Mart in Laurel.

Nazar Produce Market
6955 Oakland Mills Road, Ste A
Columbia, MD 21045

NEAR: Nazar is opening in the same store that used to be Sizar's.  It's just off Oakland Mills Road on the west of Snowden River Parkway.  From Rte 175, drive south on Snowden and turn right at the traffic light on Oakland Mills.  Then take the first right into the shopping area.  Nazar is on the right on the ground level.

8 comments:

emkenton said...

Man! Now I'm disappointed in myself. We ate at BF recently and I noticed the sign for the produce store in the window, but I figured you already knew about it. I must develop confidence in my scoop-reporting skills!!

Eric said...

We were over near Royal Pizza last weekend and the other store was stll in construction mode. It did appear that some stocking was completed.

Anonymous said...

yes the new middle eastern store named Pars market is open next to royal pizza and still is improving in their products....
you can find different things in the this store...........i enjoyed it

brandon said...

Stopped into Pars market (next to Royal Pizza) last night and talked to the owner some. Since it just opened he's still getting his inventory sorted out so mostly what you'll find in there now is the pre-packaged goods (and a cooler case with some perishables) but he said that he intends to expand into more fresh-made goods as he gets settled in.

The owner was very nice and clearly very excited about his new store. Hopefully he'll do well in this spot.

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

Hey, don't forget about the Caspian Market on Rt. 40 behind Burger King (across from Mars). They have fantastic saffron ice cream. This place is convenient for those of us who live in Ellicott City.

Anonymous said...

Does anyone know of a place that sells Mediterranean/Middle Eastern FOOD in or near Columbia? What I would give for a good falafel sandwhich or grape leaves...HELP!

HowChow said...

@Anon -- I haven't found a great falafel yet. If I had a craving, I would look try Cazbar Kebap House, Dobbin Donuts & Kabob Korner, or Hickory Ridge Grill. They're not falafel specialists. But they're casual lunch places with the right vibe to do ethnic Mediterranean and to fry stuff fresh -- a diner, a Turkish and a Pakistani place if I'm right. If you find one, please let me know.