Fresh Deli and Grill to close at Alliant Tower in Cedar Rapids downtown

CEDAR RAPIDS — Fresh Deli and Grill on the ground floor of Alliant Tower in downtown Cedar Rapids will close June 30, after seven years in business.

The restaurant announced its closure late Tuesday on social media, thanking customers and a supportive landlord throughout the pandemic.

“Please stay posted on the arrival of new tenants taking over the space later this summer,” the post said.

Owners Salem and Marbett Daoud did not explain why they were closing their business and could not be reached for comment.

The Daouds opened in October 2015 at the spot formerly occupied by Mr. Beans coffee shop, which they purchased at 200 First St. SE. They kept it operating under that name until they finished their new menu and transformed the space over a weekend without closure.

With a breakfast and lunch menu from pancakes and omelets to pork tenderloins and gyros, they also had hopes at the time to attract more coffee customers.

Salem grew up in Cedar Rapids and graduated from the University of Iowa before moving to Las Vegas, where he met Marbett. They moved back to Iowa in 2014.

At the time, Salem’s family owned other restaurants in the area including Breakfast House Cafe in Cedar Rapids, Cibo Fusion in Marion and American Skillet in Cedar Rapids. Cibo Fusion closed in 2019.

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