Saj Lebanese (formerly Cultivar)

[Anonymous.]

Definitely going to try to go here often. Hopefully they can get a following and get a sign.

[David]

Hopefully the social media coverage gets them a good jumpstart.

[PaddyShack]

I'm glad they didn't spend much money on a remodel. I think the decor meshes well with Lebanese cuisine well.

[soonerguru]

That chicken shawarma sandwich/wrap was really good.

They use some sort of creamy garlic sauce which was really tasty.

It looked like they had their entire family working there; 3 generations.

Sure hope they find a following.

Yum

[OkieBerto]

Had lunch here today and it was busy and they were definitely backed up in the kitchen. Not a bad problem for your first week. So they will have to adjust. They already ran out of the Chicken Shawarma so I went with the Beef and it was delicious. I also got some hummus and pita and fries. I can't wait to try the full menu.

[Urbanized]

Having attempted to eat there today for lunch - not my idea but I did enthusiastically support it - I’d recommend to anyone reading this that they should give it week or two (or three). Definitely not quite ready for prime time. I can’t report on the food itself, because I had to give up on it and go back to the office after sitting there for an hour.

I’ll give it a few weeks, and I’d imagine that I will be giving a glowing review at that juncture. My fault for going to a place so new.

[Pete]

It's run by 3 generations of a family.

I was in there about 2 PM yesterday and I'm pretty sure I was their first paying customer even though they opened at 11. I told them who I was (after I paid -- I don't accept freebies) because our first social media post had received a ton of interest and then asked them if it was okay if I let everyone know they were open. I didn't say it but it was clear nobody knew at that point.

They all said, 'Sure, we'd love the business!' And I told them, 'With all modesty, you can count on being overwhelmed tomorrow if I post in the morning.'

As typical, our social media posts about them went through the roof (reached over 100,000 people between Insta and Facebook as of this afternoon) and I'm sure they were in no way ready for the onslaught.

They posted today that they are going to now close every late afternoon to get caught up before dinner. They ran out of some things and have now posted about seeking more help.


It feels weird for me to keep making these posts because it seems braggy and self-serving and that's very much against my nature. But the truth is, if OKCTalk posts about you on social media, you'll go from near zero to overran in a day. It happened with Made With Love in the Plaza District on Sunday, Momocha, Summer Moon, and many more. The good news is they all made it through the first big wave and have now seemed to have found their following.

Anyway, this family is incredibly sweet and passionate about their food and Lebanese culture. Give them a little time and I'm sure they'll get the place humming.

[OkieBerto]

It's run by 3 generations of a family.

I was in there about 2 PM yesterday and I'm pretty sure I was their first paying customer even though they opened at 11. I told them who I was (after I paid -- I don't accept freebies) because our first social media post had received a ton of interest and then asked them if it was okay if I let everyone know they were open. I didn't say it but it was clear nobody knew at that point.

They all said, 'Sure, we'd love the business!' And I told them, 'With all modesty, you can count on being overwhelmed tomorrow if I post in the morning.'

As typical, our social media posts about them went through the roof (reached over 100,000 people between Insta and Facebook as of this afternoon) and I'm sure they were in no way ready for the onslaught.

They posted today that they are going to now close every late afternoon to get caught up before dinner. They ran out of some things and have now posted about seeking more help.


It feels weird for me to keep making these posts because it seems braggy and self-serving and that's very much against my nature. But the truth is, if OKCTalk posts about you on social media, you'll go from near zero to overran in a day. It happened with Made With Love in the Plaza District on Sunday, Momocha, Summer Moon, and many more. The good news is they all made it through the first big wave and have now seemed to have found their following.

Anyway, this family is incredibly sweet and passionate about their food and Lebanese culture. Give them a little time and I'm sure they'll get the place humming.

I do not see this as a brag but as an acknowledgment of the community working together through OKCTALK to welcome new local businesses. The owner of Made with Love spoke about you in a glowing fashion and was very appreciative of your support! Just keep it up and we will follow and make sure and take care of these new businesses and let them know who sent us!

[Urbanized]

To be clear I’m still very excited about this place. It was just a poor choice on my part to go on the week they opened and right after lots of social media.

[king183]

To your point, Pete, I spoke to a friend who tried to go there to lunch the day after your post and she said it was completely packed. She also had to abandon her attempt to eat there because the line was so long. She talked to several people in line who said they learned about it from OKCTalk. I'd bet 90% or more of the people who were there were there either directly or indirectly (friend told them, "hey, let's go to this new place") because of the post. It's not a brag; it's simply a fact of the changing dynamics of how people get their information and what they're looking for--and OKCTalk does what it does very well, so it's trusted and closely followed.

[dankrutka]

Local restaurants may now require an OKCTalk plan before Pete posts.

[Anonymous.]

The real question to Pete is how often and how much are business owners offering to pay for social media shoutouts? No way his DMs are empty

[Pete]

The real question to Pete is how often and how much are business owners offering to pay for social media shoutouts? No way his DMs are empty

I get bombarded.

I've never done paid promotions but would consider it for the right businesses.


The problem is, people here are generally clueless about this sort of thing: "I'll give you a t-shirt if you send to us thousands of people and tens or maybe hundreds of thousands of dollars in business".

[shartel_ave]

I drove by this place a couple of hours ago and thought about okctalk and wanted to pop in but didn’t have the time

Hopefully they get their own sign they deserve the recognition!

[Pete]

They have submitted plans to replace the big Cultivar sign out front with one of their own.

Or I should say, they will be modifying the existing sign.

[Mantison]

Pete, not exactly on topic, but kind of... As I approach 11 years of visiting this site, I have to say thank you for all you have done and continue to do for this area. Not sure how long you had been doing this before I stumbled upon this site, but my life is certainly better for having this resource.

Thank you sir.

[Pete]

Pete, not exactly on topic, but kind of... As I approach 11 years of visiting this site, I have to say thank you for all you have done and continue to do for this area. Not sure how long you had been doing this before I stumbled upon this site, but my life is certainly better for having this resource.

Thank you sir.

That's very kind and it makes me happy to know others get something valuable from OKCTalk.

[Rover]

For those that haven't been here yet, you are missing out. Lebanese food made the authentic way. Super people who own and run it. Great ambiance. Will be expanding hours and adding to the menu. They should have very good long term success and its another feather in OKC's culinary cap.

[Pete]

^

Glad to hear you enjoyed it.

It's somewhat unique and certainly a nice alternative to burgers, tacos and pizza.

I look forward to returning and trying more things from their menu.

[okatty]

We went this past weekend and it was fantastic. My grandfather immigrated from Lebanon so I have had this food my entire life - and this was really good. Everyone makes it different but I really enjoyed it. Grape leaf rolls, hashweh, kibbeh are recommended if you are not familiar with the menu. But I suspect whatever you get will be good.

I hope they have great success.

[Jeepnokc]

Looks great. Has anybody taken a picture of the menu? The one online doesn't have prices and difficult to do call in takeout for staff without it. Didn't see one on yelp or looking around

[TheTravellers]

Looks great. Has anybody taken a picture of the menu? The one online doesn't have prices and difficult to do call in takeout for staff without it. Didn't see one on yelp or looking around

There are a couple on Yelp, on a standing up whiteboard, and the caption says "The entire web menu isn't available each day, just what's on the board" (paraphrasing).

[Jeepnokc]

There are a couple on Yelp, on a standing up whiteboard, and the caption says "The entire web menu isn't available each day, just what's on the board" (paraphrasing).

Thanks I saw the board picture. I thought that was just specials and had decent prices. Didn't catch the part about that being the menu for the day. I'll have to find a day to go in for lunch with a friend as I want to try it.

Call in take out is out though until they get up and running where the daily menu is the same. I don't see my office calling in to find out what is available that day and then circulating that info to ten people and then calling it back in.

[TheTravellers]

...

Call in take out is out though until they get up and running where the daily menu is the same. I don't see my office calling in to find out what is available that day and then circulating that info to ten people and then calling it back in.

Yeah, not sure why they can't just take a pic of the board (or create an electronic version, since most days are probably the same-ish) and post it on their website/FB page daily, we're almost 1/4 of the way into the 21st century...

[okatty]

Here are a couple of pics