Zaina Mediterranean Cuisine & Catering

Zaina Mediterranean Cuisine & Catering is Lebanese immigrant Joe Semaan’s Crown Center restaurant, named for his daughter Zaina. Open since 2010, it’s been a Downtown KC Mediterranean staple for 16 years — gyros, chicken shawarma, falafel, hummus, and salads with old-world recipes passed through generations. Halal.

Description

Zaina Mediterranean Cuisine & Catering is Joe Semaan’s 16-year love letter to Lebanese cooking, named for his daughter and built on old-world recipes passed through generations of his family. Semaan came to Kansas City from Lebanon and opened Zaina in 2010 in downtown KC, eventually relocating to Crown Center (2450 Grand Blvd, Suite 124) where it now anchors the food options at one of Kansas City’s most visited destinations. The menu draws on Lebanese and broader Mediterranean traditions — gyros, chicken shawarma sandwiches, falafel, hummus, fresh salads, and vegetarian options. All meat is halal. The catering arm serves private events and corporate clients across the metro. A simple premise — authentic flavors, family recipes, no shortcuts — executed for 16 consecutive years in Kansas City.

Tier classification

Tier 2 — Lebanese-born, KC-dedicated 16+ year operator. Joe Semaan was born in Lebanon — not KC-born/raised.¹ He came to Kansas City and opened Zaina in 2010, operating it for 16+ years (2010–present). Family-owned (daughter Zaina active in the business). Long-tenure KC food operator. Tier 2 on KC-dedicated immigrant grounds.

Menu

Last verified: 2026-07-25 · Source: Official Menufy online-ordering platform² · Confidence: High (complete itemized menu with real per-item numeric prices rendered via Firecrawl)

Lebanese/Mediterranean cuisine; vegetarian options throughout; all meats halal-certified.

Starters

• Hummus (chickpeas, tahini, garlic, lemon, sumac, olive oil): $8.49
• Baba Ghanouj (roasted eggplant, garlic, tahini, lemon, served with pita): $8.49
• Falafel (5 pcs, chickpeas, cilantro, parsley, garlic, onion, tahini sauce): $7.99
• Spanakopita (phyllo dough with spinach, cheese, herbs): $7.99
• Stuffed Grape Leaves (savory rice, herbs, vegetables, lemon-olive oil broth): $6.99
• Shrimp Garlic (fresh shrimp grilled with garlic parsley sauce): $8.99

Soups & Salads (served with warm pita bread)

• Lentil Soup (puréed lentils, roasted vegetables, cumin, lemon): $5.99+
• Greek Salad (romaine, greens, Kalamata olives, tomatoes, feta, peppers, house vinaigrette): $6.50+
• Tabbouleh Salad (finely chopped parsley, tomatoes, onions, bulgur wheat, lemon, olive oil): $7.99

Entrées (served with rice and choice of salad or soup)

• Gyro Plate (chicken, beef, or lamb gyro meat on basmati rice with tomatoes, onions, tzatziki, pita): $13.99
• Vegetarian Zaina Sampler Plate (falafel, grape leaves, spanakopita, hummus, baba ghanouj, tahini, pita): $14.99
• Shawarma Plate (marinated grilled chicken, beef, or lamb with basmati rice, pita, tomato, onions, lettuce, special sauce): $14.99
• Chicken Biryani Plate (chicken with rice, vegetables, biryani seasoning, cucumber yogurt sauce): $15.99
• Beef Biryani Plate: $15.99
• Lamb Biryani Plate: $15.99
• Chicken Curry Plate (marinated chicken breast grilled with vegetables in mild or spicy creamy curry, basmati rice, pita): $15.99
• Sun-Dried Creamy Chicken Plate (chicken strips and vegetables in garlic butter with sun-dried tomato cream sauce): $15.99

Kabob Plates (served with rice and choice of salad or soup)

• Chicken Kabobs (marinated cubed chicken breast, grilled vegetables, yogurt cucumber sauce): $15.99
• Kofta Kabobs (ground beef, parsley, onions, grilled vegetables, yogurt cucumber sauce): $15.99

Sandwiches (served with choice of rice, salad, soup, or fries; meat and vegetarian options)

• Beef and Lamb Gyro (warm pita with lettuce, onions, tomato, cucumber yogurt sauce): $12.99
• Chicken Gyro (warm pita with lettuce, onions, tomato, cucumber yogurt sauce): $11.99
• Beef Shawarma (toasted flat bread with pickles, tomato, onions, Zaina shawarma sauce): $13.99
• Lamb Shawarma: $13.99
• Chicken Shawarma (marinated chicken, toasted flat bread with pickles, tomato, onions, shawarma sauce): $13.49
• Falafel Sandwich (warm pita with tomato, pickles, cucumber, tahini sauce): $10.49
• Falafel and Hummus Sandwich (warm pita with tomato, pickles, cucumber, tahini sauce): $10.99
• Mixed Grilled Veggie Sandwich (grilled eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash, red pepper, onions, pita, garlic sauce): $10.99

Desserts

• Walnut Baklava (filo with chopped walnut, syrup): $3.49
• Pistachio Baklava (filo with chopped pistachio, syrup): $3.49
• Hareeseh (traditional Middle Eastern sweet cake, rose water syrup): $2.49

Beverages

• Soft Drink: $2.49 · Iced Tea: $2.49 · Hot Tea: $2.49
• Turkish Coffee (finely ground with cardamom): $2.49 · Bottled Spring Water: $1.99

Catering — Private events and corporate catering available — contact (816) 842-1800³

Links

• Website: https://orderzainacafe.com

Sources

Footnotes

1. Feast Magazine — “Zaina Mediterranean Cuisine & Catering Moves to New Downtown Location” — https://www.feastmagazine.com/travel/kansas-city/zaina-mediterranean-cuisine-catering-moves-to-new-downtown-location/article_fb7ca66e-f68a-11e5-b2d3-3f18764241f0.html — Confirms: Joe Semaan (owner), from Lebanon; daughter Zaina active in business; restaurant named for her; established 2010; original downtown location (1108 Grand Blvd); relocation to new downtown address. Also: Crown Center listing — https://www.crowncenter.com/business/zaina — confirms current Crown Center (2450 Grand Blvd) location. ↩

2. https://www.orderzainacafe.com/order — Zaina Restaurant official Menufy online-ordering platform (accessed 2026-07-25, rendered via Firecrawl). Asserts: Complete itemized menu with per-item prices; all categories verified; hours Mon–Sat 11am–7pm dine-in / 11am–6:30pm carryout, Sun 11am–4pm dine-in / 11am–3:30pm carryout; halal-certified meats; vegetarian options marked throughout. ↩

3. Zaina Restaurant — https://orderzainacafe.com — confirms address (2450 Grand Blvd Suite 124, KCMO 64108, Crown Center), phone ((816) 842-1800), hours (Mon–Sat 11am–7pm; Sun 11am–4pm), menu (gyros, shawarma, falafel, hummus, salads, chicken curry plate), catering services, family-owned description. (Accessed 2026-06-29.) ↩