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Tony Marashi and Mehran Izadi met through friends in 1991 and soon found that they had much
in common. They became roommates and began talking about starting a business together. After
each married and started families, they continued to develop an idea.
In 1995, they decided to bring together their true love of fine food and exceptional service and
founded Marketplace Grille in beautiful downtown La Jolla. Soon, the smells of mesquite grilled
delicacies filled La Jolla and they became the favorite. They then opened the Mira Mesa location
in 1996, sharing their traditional specialties in a casual atmosphere that everyone loves. The
surrounding businesses quickly chose Marketplace Grille as their favorite spot for lunch and the
residential neighborhood made it their choice for dinner.
Tony and Mehran share their restaurants as if they were their homes. “We want our guests to feel
at home here. I feel that I do not have customers, I have friends who come over, we cook for them,
and they have a wonderful meal with us.” Tony states.
On Thanksgiving weekend 2002, they pair opened their third location in the Historic Gaslamp Quarter.
Although the first two locations are casual, Tony and Mehran wanted to create a more upscale dining
experience for downtown. “The Gaslamp is a fast growing collection of the best restaurants in San
Diego. We needed to showcase our traditional style and fresh, healthy lunch and dinners.” Tony adds.
Downtown soon fell in love with the Mesquite Grille menu and the wonderful appetizers, healthy salads
and fresh grilled meats, fish and vegetables. The surrounding offices depend on their Hummus and Pita
for a mid-day „fix‰ and the neighbors enjoy sitting on the patio and watching the sights. “Our guests
enjoy a glass of Mediterranean Sangria, a delicious dinner and see all the activity going on in the Gaslamp.
We even have our best customers picking up dinner and taking it to the new PetCo Park.” says Tony.
“Our goal is to treat the customer as if they were our family and create a restaurant where you don”t
want to leave and when you do, you want to come back. We know how busy people are today and how
hard it is to eat healthy food. Here it is only the best!” Tony and Mehran agree.
Tony is married to Camilla and have handsome twin sons. Mehran and wife Mojgan have two sons as well. You can often find both families dining in the locations.
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