Alba Mediterranean Market and Bakery On Moody To Close

WALTHAM, MA — If you noticed a for lease sign in the window of Alba Mediterranean Market and Bakery, well, that's because the shop, known for its specialized goods- everything from first pressed olive oil from overseas to homemade baklava - is closing after five years in town.

The last day will be March 14. The five-year lease is up and the owners - a brother-sister duo- are telling customers they have decided not to renew the lease.

Siblings Kristina Zeqo and Stavros Kondo left Albania 1998 and eventually settled in Waltham where they decided to bring a bit of their past to town. They opened Alba Mediterranean Market and Bakery in 2015, named for their mother, Alba Kondo, with the mission to share generations of their own family cooking and baking with the community. Stavros trained as a pastry chef in Greece and Zeqo has years of cooking under her belt.

For the next couple of months you can find a variety of freshly made Mediterranean desserts, gourmet foods and some vegan and gluten free items, too. Look for everything from honey baklava with coconut or walnuts, Kataifi logs made with pistachios and strands of phyllo to the savvory hummus, tabbouleh, rice-stuffed grape leaves, spinach pie, and quinoa salads.

Patch reporter Jenna Fisher can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna).