For years now, Aladdin has been serving delicious and authentic Mediterranean cuisine at their restaurant located on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard. Thousands of people have joined them for food and friendship over the years.

Aladdin is an important part of San Diego’s community and has made it very popular. Thanks to the popularity of Aladdin Café, the same people who have brought you delicious food at their first location will now be opening a second restaurant. This is a huge opportunity and presents a wonderful chance to let even more people experience the joy of delicious, high-quality Mediterranean food.

Introducing Zytoun Gourmet Mediterranean
Zytoun Gourmet Mediterranean will be opening up in Seaport Village, starting in mid-February. San Diego has been working hard to renovate Seaport Village, with over two million dollars spent on the restoration process and Aladdin is excited for the opportunity to be a part of it.

The boardwalk has become a bustling hub of activity, with the focus on local food and small business. Effort has been made by the city to encourage small, local businesses to join the boardwalk, and the owner of Aladdan’s café has answered with a brand-new restaurant.

The new location will be in the Carousel district, along the boardwalk, with ample patio space to enjoy the view of the San Diego Bay while enjoying the delicious cuisine. Zytoun is quite close to the historical Carousel, allowing those walking around to enjoy the area a chance to see both.

Although it has a different name and a different location, you can expect the same great food from Zytoun that you have come to expect from Aladdin over the last 30+ years.

What to Expect
Zytoun will be featuring Kabobs, hummus and falafel among the many different foods at their new location. If you’ve ever been to the Aladdin, you have a good idea of what awaits you at the our new location.

Although the location is new, it’s important to understand that the quality of the food is not. All of the same high-quality ingredients will be used at the new location.

The Tajine is a traditional Mediterranean dish that is popular the world over. It gets its name from the Greek word “têganon” which means “Earthern Dish.”
Unsurprisingly, the name stems from the type of dish Tajine is cooked in. It’s always cooked in a clay cooking dish. Although Tajine is called slightly different names depending on which region it comes from, and the style of clap cooking dish varies also, it almost always means a clay pot with a conical lid.
The pot is ingenious because the lid traps moisture from the cooking food under the lid, and drips it back down onto the food. The result is a food that cooks while still retaining moisture.

Tajine can be cooked with a variety of different ingredients but is usually some sort of meat and vegetables cooked in a clay pot. Although ingredients vary depending on where the people using the pot was cooking, it nearly always included some sort of meat and an abundance of vegetables.

Is Tajine Healthy?
Like most Mediterranean dishes, Tajine stews are usually very healthy. These stews tend to be full of vegetables, including antioxidants rich peppers, vitamin c rich tomatoes, and immunity boosting garlic.

Tajine is a staple in many countries around the world, so it makes sense for the dish to be both healthy and delicious.
Since Tajines are a broad spectrum of dishes with the clay pot they are cooked in as their common roots, it’s important to look at the ingredients when deciding if it is a healthy dish.

Fortunately, most traditional dishes cooked in the tajine are indeed healthy, regardless of where they originated from.

History of Tajine
The Tajine goes back centuries, with the first known mention in the classic Arabian tale, One Thousand And One Nights. Evidence of Tajines have also been found at the the Antonine Wall, a Roman creation that suggests people with direct knowledge in how to make African style Tagines was at the wall.

The Roman Tajines found at the Antonine Wall may have been far from home, but they’re good evidence at how popular this cooking style was at the time. The earthenware pots made it so little water needed to be used to create a meal, which is especially important in areas where water was scarce.

As the Tajine grew in popularity, new and wonderful dishes evolved along with it. In Morocco, dishes include dried fruits being added for a unique savory-sweet flavor, while in the Atlas mountains, you’re more likely to find meats and root vegetables in the dish.

The Tajine was also popular with nomadic tribes, since it made cooking over a campfire delicious and easy.

Conclusion
The Tajine is a dish rich with history. From the Roman civilization to the nomadic tribes of Africa, the Tajine has provided ancient civilizations with healthy, delicious food for hundreds of years. Today, we still love and appreciate this form of cooking as a healthy and delicious meal that can be enjoyed by all.

Mediterranean food is all about the culture and cuisine of the people who live by the Mediterranean sea. Alongside freshly pressed olive oil and whole grains milled into flour, the people of this area also often took their meals from the sea.

Although there are many wonderful fish in the ocean, today’s spotlight will feature a delicious fatty fish: the Salmon.

Rich in Omega-3 Fatty Acids
When people refer to a fish as a fatty fish, it means that the fish is packed with an amazing, healthy fat called Omega-3 Fatty Acids. This type of fat is good for your skin, your heart and your brain. Many people don’t get enough Omega-3 Fatty Acids in their diet, so eating a little salmon every now and then is especially good for them.

Rich in Selenium, Phosphorus, and B vitamins
Although Omega-3 Fatty Acids alone make Salmon worth eating, Salmon also contains a whole host of other nutrients that add to how healthy it is. Selenium is an important nutrient that helps support both thyroid and cognitive health.

Phosphorus, another important nutrient, helps activate certain enzymes in your body, and is also an important component of your bones and teeth.
Finally, B vitamins are an array of many different vitamins which help give you energy. They also help support your metabolism, and play a role in brain function as well.

Salmon contains all of these important nutrients. This means every bite you take of this delicious food is packed with nutrients that will help nearly every part of your body.

Farmed Salmon vs. Wild Caught Salmon
Although any salmon you pick will boost your overall health, there are a few differences worth noting between farmed salmon and wild caught. Farmed salmon tends to have more omega-3 fatty acids, and be slightly higher in calories. (Likely because of the higher fat levels.)
On the other hand, Wild Caught Salmon tends to be lower in calories, and have more of the other nutrients in them.

While either choice is good, if you’re trying to count calories you may prefer wild caught, while if you need more omega-3 fatty acids, you may find farmed salmon to be a better choice.

How to Enjoy More Salmon
Although Salmon and other fatty fish are incredibly good for us, they don’t always end up on the menu with great regularity. It can be a challenge to get enough Omega-3 fatty acids, and just taking a supplement may rob you of the many other nutrients in salmon.
Fortunately, many Mediterranean dishes feature salmon and other fatty fish as part of their menu. At Aladdin’s, we also serve salmon. Try our Salmon Arrabiata, made with fresh Atlantic Salmon. Arrabiata is a flavorful tomato sauce that adds to the salmon, and the entrée is served with a fresh salad to really give the entire meal a nutritional boost.
Salmon and other fatty fish are a critical part of a healthy diet. If you haven’t had Omega-3 rich food in a while, consider stopping by for some delicious Salmon today.