Partners Ammar Hunaish and Anas Al Sharepy.
The “Sam’s Southern Eatery” on 7000 NW 23rd Street in Bethany officially opened it’s doors recently, and seems to be in the process of developing a clientele of local people who have possibly heard from others about the quality of food that is served there. According to New Orleans legend, a workers strike in that community decades ago prompted a sympathetic restaurant owner began to give loaves of French bread with various types of meat in them to some of the more youthful strikers, because they were “poor boys.” After the strike ended, many of those strikers continued to patronize his establishment out of gratitude, as well as the quality of the sandwiches he served them that in time became known as “poor boy sandwiches”, which gradually evolved into the term “po boys” due to the unique English vernacular that is spoken in New Orleans. And poboys play a prominent role in the menu of Sam’s Southern Eatery, and include versions that are termed “Philly Cheese Poboy,” Philly Chicken Poboy” and in a nod to the increasing role that Mediterranean fare is playing in Southern cuisine “ Gyro Poboy.” The menu boasts that the place is the “home of the jumbo shrimp” and includes numerous seafood items, including oysters, catfish and some items that bear the generic title of “fish.” It has been said that Louisiana gumbo is one of the least uniform item found in the South, and that chefs have departed elite restaurants in New Orleans due to the arguments they had with owners over what should be in their gumbo. At Sam’s it appears to be a primarily fish based, but also has tasty bits of sausage and bay leaves that also give it a flavor. It was reported that sausage was placed in the concoction at the insistence of one of the partners whose wife is from Louisiana. And the small bottles of hot sauce that are in place on the tables are a further reminder of the Louisiana connection.
The place owes its existence to the vision and dedication of three young men who now make their homes in Oklahoma City, Ammar Hunaish, Anas Al Shorepy, and Maeen Alqohaif, who were originally from strife torn Yemen, who despite their relative youth, approached the owner of the Sam’s Southern Eatery that is headquartered in Louisiana and persuaded him to grant them a franchise for the Bethany location. The trio are a constant presence in their place and radiant the wonder and pride that is often found in young people who establish a successful business. They also tell of their clientele, which includes a daily lunch crowd that appears to double on Sundays after religious services conclude, as well as evening meals that bring Bethany families to its doors. The owners are excited to be part of a new undertaking and are grateful to the citizenry of Bethany and neighboring locales for the success that they have enjoyed to date and are hopeful will continue.
Against the Grain 