STRONGSVILLE, Ohio — In October, Fasih Syed received a phone call that would change his life.
A friend was driving by his business, CleaveLand Grocers & Grill on Snow Road in Brook Park, when they noticed smoke. The business he and his family had opened in 2021 was on fire.
"About four months ago, we had a fire. It was actually just an electrical fire, a freak accident overnight," Syed recalled. "Within 10 minutes, the whole store burned down. Most of it was smoke damage. We had to clean it out — everything that was inside, we had to throw away. We suffered heavy losses with that."
Luckily, no one was inside at the time. Instead of giving up, Syed began looking for another location, knowing that what he offered was important to provide.
"We're the only HFSAA certified location in all of Ohio, which means that all of the meats that we serve are hand slaughtered, Zabiha," he explained. "There's many other Halal stores in Cleveland, but the standards that we follow, nobody else does in Cleveland."
Halal foods meet certain requirements to be permissible for consumption under Islamic law and practice. Syed says an inspiration for opening his business was to make it easier for people to access these foods, while providing items reflective of his Pakistani roots and other international cultures.
At the new location at 17024 Pearl Road in Strongsville, he will have a smaller grocery section than his Brook Park store. He said this location will go by CleaveLand Grill, rather than CleaveLand Grocers & Grill, to reflect the news offerings.
He still hopes to repair the original location and open that back up while keeping the new location, for a total of two storefronts.
"We still have our kitchen, we'll still be serving the community with the Halal meats. We have our butcher shop," he said. "The only big difference is the groceries. We won't be able to carry as much as we did at the other spot, but we have a few items. You know, the nostalgic Pakistani snacks that we carry."
On Thursday, the butcher and grocery portions of the store opened. Syed says they are still waiting for final inspections before opening the kitchen, where he'll continue making his signature smash burgers.
He says his phone has been ringing constantly as people await the opening of the new store, and he's grateful for the support he's received.
"I can't thank people enough for the support and love they have showed us throughout this whole time, ever since we've been open, and especially the last four months that we have been closed," he told 3News. "It's great!"
While there may still be a bit of a wait until customers can buy their burgers at the Strongsville location, Syed says they will be hosting a pop-up where people can get burgers on Sunday at the Islamic Center of Cleveland.