Owners double as head chefs at Italian eatery

Restaurant owners often like to tell people that everything coming out of their kitchen is top quality, but few can be as certain as Ekrem Hyseni and Alban Bulliqi, owners of Adriatic Cafe & Italian Grill in Jersey Village. Not only do they own the eatery, but as the head chefs they have personally been preparing meals since opening the cafe in October 2012.

"We invested a lot of money into this restaurant, and we make sure everything that we produce comes out right," Bulliqi said. "Neither one of us wants to be outside of the kitchen."

Bulliqi and Hyseni—both Kosovo Albanians who came to the U.S. in 1999 and 2001, respectively—have experience with different kinds of cooking styles. Bulliqi spent years working in pizza shops in the Houston area where he developed his own recipe for pizza sauce and mastered the recipes for the pizzas served at Adriatic Cafe.

Hyseni spent several years in Venice, Italy, where he learned to saut chicken, seafood and pasta dishes, all of which are staples of the cafe's menu.

"We thought between the two of us there would be a good combination of different kinds of food that we could offer," Hyseni said. "So far, our customers have been very impressed. We've had people say our restaurant reminded them of places they ate at in Italy."

Almost everything at Adriatic Cafe is homemade. The dough used for the pizza and garlic knots—the latter of which are provided at no cost to diners before the meal—is made fresh every day.

"It's a lot of hard work, but we've found that it pays off," Hyseni said.

Customers can dine in or order meals to go. Adriatic Cafe also offers a catering menu and has catered to groups of up to 300 people in the past.

The owners of Adriatic Cafe put a heavy emphasis on customer service, which they say has resulted in a batch of customers who dine at their restaurant several times a week.

The dining area fills up during lunch hours, and weekends provide a steady flow of customers throughout the day. Members of the wait staff and customers alike say Bulliqi and Hyseni treat them like family.

"This has been a good experience for us so far," Hyseni said. "We are happy with our location and our growth, and we plan to keep up the excellent service and quality of food."

Wine list

Adriatic Cafe offers 21 different wines for customers to pair with their meals, including Sauvignon Blanc ($6), Merlot ($6.50) and Chianti Classico ($6). Wines are imported from Italy and Australia among other places.

Customers can also choose from a list of beers or six different cocktails. The restaurant's owners say they are in the process of adding to the cocktail menu, which was recently introduced. Happy hour specials are available weekdays from 3–6 p.m.

Weekly specials

A sign posted in front of the Adriatic Cafe alerts customers to various weekly lunch specials, many of which were popular enough that the owners are considering adding them as permanent fixtures on the menu.

Past specials have included salmon francais, chicken margherita and veal milanese. Prices for lunch specials typically range from $5.95–$7.95 and come with garlic knots and salad.

Owner Recommendations

• The Alex Special—Chicken breast sauted in a spicy dish of red peppers, mushrooms, onions and garlic, in Sherry wine, Alfredo sauce and a touch of marinara sauce, served over spaghetti pasta ($11.95)
• Linguini Pescatore—Shrimp, calamari, mussels and clams sauteed in a marinara sauce over linguini pasta ($16.95)
• Beef Lasagna—Layers of pasta filled with ricotta cheese, marinara sauce, beef and mozzarella cheese ($7.99)
• Chicken Alfredo Pizza—Alfredo sauce topped with spinach, fresh garlic and chicken breast or artichoke heart (8-inch $6.99, 12-inch $12.99, 14-inch $14.99, 16-inch $16.99)
• Tiramisu ($4.50)

17402 Hwy. 290

Jersey Village 713-983-6565

www.adriaticcafe.com

11 a.m.–11 p.m