Semra’s Mediterranean Grill open for business

A taste of the Mediterranean has come to Rehoboth Beach.

Semra’s Mediterranean Grill is open at 19 Rehoboth Ave., ready to fill a void in Mediterranean-style cuisine that has been there since the Camel’s Hump closed.

The namesake of the restaurant is Semra Tekmen, who based many of the dishes on family recipes learned in her native Turkey.

Semra’s husband, John, said, “My wife always wanted to have a business. She’s a great cook. She learned from her mother, who learned from her mother. We were always thinking of the need for good, Mediterranean-style food.”

John said the restaurant came together rather quickly once they found the location, formerly occupied by Seaside Thai.

Semra’s main dish is its gyros, a traditional food in Greece and Turkey, which the restaurant will serve in varieties including lamb, beef and, coming soon, chicken with Semra’s special seasoning recipe. While most people know what a gyro is, its pronunciation can often be elusive. John said Greeks pronounce it like 'heroes,’ while Americans call it ‘gy-ros.’ In Turkey he said, it’s called ‘doner,’ which means ‘spins’ in Turkish.

“It all comes from the same thing. Greek and Turkish food is very similar because we’ve occupied that region; it’s a big melting pot for hundreds and hundreds of years. So we have the same foods. There are slight variations of every food," he said.

Other staples of Semra’s include shish kabobs, yogurts, soups and sandwiches.

For vegetarians there are roasted red peppers, yellow squash, eggplant, Greek salad, couscous, red kidney bean salad and potato salad.

“A lot of the vegetarians are coming in and saying, ‘Hey, this is great because we didn’t have many options around here,” John said. “We’ve had very good, positive feedback.”

For dessert, Semra’s has two types of baklava: Greek style, which uses thicker dough and looks like pie, and Turkish style, which is smaller, uses thinner dough, mixes in walnuts or pistachios and is topped with a special syrup.

Semra’s also offers kataifi, which is similar to baklava but uses a shredded dough, rice pudding, cheesecake and tiramisu.

John said the concept is similar to what can be found overseas in Turkey, a mix of a deli, with foods put out for people to eat on the go, with a sit down restaurant.

The restaurant will also be serving breakfast, including hot, homemade donuts

The Tekmens have been married for 18 years and have lived in Rehoboth since 2000 with their two sons, Kubilay, 16, and Volkan, 14, who are helping out at the restaurant this summer.

“We’ll be ready for a good season coming up,” John said.

Semra’s will be open daily from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. For more information, call 302-381-5908.