Shah's Halal Food Celebrates Grand Opening In Riverhead Friday

RIVERHEAD, NY — A new eatery is opening its doors in Riverhead Friday with a celebration featuring free platters of food and fun, all with an eye on social distancing.

Shah's Halal Food is located at 1767 Old Country Rd. in the Dick's Sporting Goods shopping plaza. The grand opening will feature giveaways of masks, shirts, bottles of Shah's white sauce and free platters of food (one per customer) from noon to 2 p.m.

Owner Khalid Mashriqi said the family business began in 2005. His father Ibrahim, his brother-in-law Shafiq and a fourth partner, Rahim, began with a pushcart in Richmond Hill, Queens.

Mashriqi said his father is an immigrant from Afghanistan who came to America and began working in restaurants.

"He struggled and had amazing hardships," he said.

His father, a natural storyteller, ultimately found success.

"He saved up and bought the restaurant he was working in," Mashriqi said.

The family business has grown in popularity. The simple menu at an affordable price point includes chicken, lamb and vegetarian options such as falafel on rice or pita topped with a trademark homemade sauce, all featuring the rich flavors of Afghanistan, Mashriqi said.

"Everything comes from the original, authentic Afghan flavors and family recipes," he said.

From the beginning, even when the business was just focused on food carts, crowds loved the flavors and low price points, Mashriqi said.

Four years ago, his family expanded the brand. The first brick-and-mortar locations opened in at the Queens College campus and later, in Hicksville.

"We sat down at the table and came up with a very simple menu and discussed how to make it a little more complex, based on our experience with food," Mashriqi said. "We came up with a menu that is simple but appealing, knowing we had to keep the cost of the food down."

Today, the business has grown to 12 locations on Long Island, with Huntington Village also opening and locations coming soon in Commack, Hauppauge, Holbrook and Patchogue.

As for Friday's grand opening, Mashriqi said the event will be carefully orchestrated to embrace coronavirus constraints and social distancing. Masks are required.

"We decided, 'Let's try to make the most of this; we're in a bad situation — how can we make people happy and still practice safety precautions?'" he said.

The business has expanded to Boston, with carts in California and a spot ready to open in Toronto, Mashriqi said.

His family also believes in giving back: In the last month, the business had donated around 40,000 boxes of food to people in need through New York food pantries, he said.

Looking ahead, Mashriqi said: "I'm driving this thing and the vision is to go nationwide and international." The company even has plans for about 20 sprinter trucks in the United Kingdom.

"We're trying to grow as much as we can — to introduce halal food and our fast, casual concept to mainstream America," he said. "That's what I think we are accomplishing — to go into communities such as Riverhead, where people are trying halal food and getting educated about the religious aspect of it, the cleanliness of the food."

As the business grows, Mashriqi said, "I feel honored, humbled and overwhelmed."

Shah's Halal Food is located at 1767 Old Country Rd. in Riverhead and will be open Sunday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 3 a.m. For information. call 631-284-3109. Order online through fast bite on the restaurant's website here or through Uber Eats, DoorDash or Grubhub.