New vendor to continue Mediterranean cuisine at 2nd Street Market

Gunash Akhmedova is opening Gunash Mediterranean Cuisine at 2nd Street Market in Dayton.

Credit: Natalie Jones

Credit: Natalie Jones

Gunash Akhmedova is opening Gunash Mediterranean Cuisine at 2nd Street Market in Dayton.

A new vendor is joining 2nd Street Market in the longtime space of Azra’s Mediterranean Cuisine.

Gunash Akhmedova is hoping to open Gunash Mediterranean Cuisine in the next two weeks. Azra Kaurin, owner of Azra’s Mediterranean Cuisine, is retiring from 2nd Street Market this weekend.

Akhmedova told Dayton.com customers can expect a few similar menu items like shawarmas, gyros, paninis and soups but they will be her own recipes. She added that everything will be made from scratch and she hopes to add additional dessert options, Turkish bread, eggplant kebabs and much more.

Cooking has always been second nature, Akhmedova explained.

She said, “Turkish people used to teach kids from a young age to cook.”

Akhmedova explained when she was growing up in Uzbekistan there was always fresh, homemade food twice a day in her household.

Almost 18 years ago, she said her family moved to Salt Lake City. When she arrived she didn’t speak English and worked as a dishwasher before she became a supervisor of a kitchen at a nursing home.

She said she moved to Dayton about five years ago to be closer to her family. Having a small space to feed people was a dream she had since she moved here but she said there was never an open space at 2nd Street Market. Over the last couple years, she has worked as a cook at Dayton Children’s Hospital.

She said she never thought she would become a professional cook but really loved being creative and trying new recipes.

“The more I cook, the more I love this job,” Akhmedova said.

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